no crust pumpkin pie

Fresh pumpkin pie makes a great autumnal side dish . . .

One small fresh pie pumpkin makes about four cups of mashed pumpkin.

Each pie (with or without a crust) requires 1 cup of mashed pumpkin.

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First, cook the pie pumpkin:

Prick the skin of one pie pumpkin in several places.

Cook whole pie pumpkin in 350 degree F oven for about an hour.

Remove pumpkin from oven and cool.

When pie pumpkin is about room temperature, cut into halves. Scoop seeds from pumpkin.

Scoop pumpkin flesh from the shell. Mash with a hand-held potato masher.

I small pie pumpkin makes about 4 cups mashed pumpkin. (I reserved three cups of mashed pumpkin to make "real" pumpkin pies with crusts.)


I used the Old Fashioned Pumpkin Pie recipe from Esther H Shanks' Mennonite Country-Style Recipes as the basis for no crust pumpkin pie.

Mix:
1 cup fresh, mashed pie pumpkin
1 egg
1/2 cup brown sugar
dash of salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
2 tsp. vanilla
1 and 1/2 cups milk

Pour into greased baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees F for an hour, or until center of pie is firm. (Table knife comes out clean.)

Serve as delicious side dish for winter menu.

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Review:

3 forks
My diners were merely tolerant of the whim to use pumpkin pie as a side dish. It was enjoyed with scepticism.