a simple real food recipe :: pumpkin pie :: allergen free options

I know, I know…you probably already have your Thanksgiving meal plans made. I’m a little late to the punch on this post…but I just had to try – in case there were any of you out there still planning on that freezer store bought pumpkin pie for the “perfect” end to your feast Thursday.

Can I challenge you to make it a little more “perfect”?? As in make it yourself? Please don’t be intimidated! Pumpkin pie is about as easy as pie making gets!

I know it’s just “once a year”…so who cares about all the hydrogenated oils, artificial flavors and colors, and other junk in those store bought pies, right?!

Well, I do care, and I won’t judge you if you don’t…but it really is so much more than that. Homemade TASTES way better than store bought. And THIS homemade version skips out on the corn syrup laiden condensed milk that most homemade recipes contain. There is literally NO guilt here. But it is JUST as delicious!

The crust is soaked 12 hours to make it more digestible – if you are really strapped for time please don’t not make it just because you don’t have time to soak the crust – I would rather you make this recipe without soaked crust than go out and buy that junk pies in your grocers freezer. From there it only takes an hour to bake and a few hours in the fridge to chill! Easy!

My pumpkin filling is based on the recipe in Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon. I want to be sure to give credit where credit is due 😉

**If you are on special diets or have allergies please see the Kitchen Tips section for tips on swapping!**

FOR THE CRUST (for ONE pie):

1 ¾ cup unbleached whole wheat or spelt flour

½ cup whole organic yogurt

½ cup softened pastured lard or butter

¼ tsp sea salt

1. Combine the ingredients well in a mixing bowl, kneading slightly, and then forming it into a ball.
2. Let it sit in the bowl with a towel over top, under the light in your oven overnight, or 12-24 hours to soak. The yogurt will break down the phytic acid in the grain to make it more digestible.
3. When you are ready to fill your pie, knead the dough slightly then roll it out. Place it in the pie dish, press into all the sides, and crimp the edges.
4. Now your crust is ready to fill with the filling!

FOR THE FILLING (For ONE pie):

3 pastured eggs

¾ cup sunacat or organic pure cane sugar

2 cups pumpkin puree (Or one 15oz can. If using homemade – drain the water out of it in a strainer for about 10 or so minutes – you’ll need about 4 cups of pumpkin puree to make 2 cups once drained)

2 tsp ginger

1 tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp cloves

¼ tsp nutmeg

¼ tsp sea salt

1 tsp lemon juice

1 cup sour cream (NOT light or ULP sour cream)

1. Cream the eggs and sunacat with a handheld mixer
2. Blend the rest of the ingredients.
3. Pour into the uncooked pie shell.
4. Bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes. Use a butter knife to slit the middle to see how much more it needs to cook. You shouldn’t get a ton of batter on the knife although you will get some. It will firm up more once it is cooled and refrigerated. I always have to bake mine an hour or a little over an hour. Just keep checking after about 45 minutes to keep an eye on it.
5. Let it cool and then refrigerate.
6. Serve with homemade whipped cream!

Kitchen Tips:

1. This is such a great make ahead dish for the big day! Make up the crust dough Tuesday night, bake the pie sometime on Wednesday, and serve Thursday! You could even make the dough up Wednesday sometime, bake the pie up Thursday morning, and chill the rest of the morning Thursday while the turkey cooks! Perfect for those who have to travel as well!
2. We usually just need 1 pumpkin pie since we have apple pie too – if you need 2 pies, just double the recipe!
3. Here is in my homemade whipped cream – takes just a few minutes to whip – way tastier and no hydrogenated oils like store bought!
4. Pie pumpkins are much cheaper starting around the first of November through the month – at least here they are. I did use puree from pumpkins I did up in October but you could pick up a pie pumpkin to roast and puree – one would probably give you the 2 cups of pumpkin after water is strained. It really just takes  an hour to roast so it wouldn’t add much more time to your planning 🙂
5. For the crust: If you are dairy free use coconut milk yogurt vs milk yogurt, and lard or coconut oil vs the butter. If you are gluten free use brown rice flour. If you are grain free press a crushed nut and date mixture into the bottom – just pulse it in your processor.
6. For the filling: If you are dairy free use coconut cream vs the sour cream. If you are egg free make an egg replacer mixture from your Ener-G egg replacer, or THIS homemade version from Whole New Mom.

YOUR TURN!

Do you make pumpkin pie for your Thanksgiving? Let me know if this will be your first time! I would love to hear how it goes! You are going to be so proud of yourself!

This post was shared at Real Food Forager’s Fat Tuesday, and Real Food Freaks Freaky Friday!