Thanksgiving memoirs...the Pumpkin pie!

I can't believe it's almost Christmas...I am so late with my blog posting...so just a little note to tell you I recently baked my first pumpkin pie and it was really delicious! It made me think about the first Thanksgiving I celebrated in my life, last year in New Jersey with part of my family there...what a great dinner we had with all the traditional Thanksgiving recipes, the turkey, the sweet potatoes, the cranberry bread...and as a dessert a wonderful pumpkin pie...This terrific cake with its sweet spicy fragrance reminds me of the great time I had in New York, not only on Thanksgiving, but on Halloween and my birthday as well. It was my unforgettable Autumn in New York...so I take this occasion, inspired by the spirit of Thanksgiving, to thank all my family in New York/New Jersey for those magic moments! I miss you guys!

Pumpkin pie 

(this recipe is taken from www.shakeandbake.it {using less sugar} Makes 8-10 servings)

To make the dough:

490 g  white flour (type 00)

150 g sugar 

225 g soft butter

3 eggs

1 and a half lemon grated peel

a pinch of powdered vanilla extract 

To make the filling:

100 g cane sugar

1 tablespoon corn flour

1 teaspoon powdered cinnamon

1 teaspoon powdered ginger

1 teaspoon powdered nutmeg

2 eggs

750 g steamed and blended pumpkin pulp

225 g condensed milk 

First prepare the dough working together all the ingredients, the eggs and sugar, then butter, the aromas and lastly the sifted flour. Wrap the paste with film and let it rest for about half an hour in the fridge. To make the cream first sift the spices and the flours, add the eggs (lightly beaten), the blended pumpkin pulp and the condensed milk. Mix well. Preheat the oven to 190 C. Roll out the dough to 3 mm thick and lay it on a buttered 26 cm cake mold. Pour the pumpkin cream in and level it with a palette knife. With the rest of the dough create a sort of frame to add to the rim of the cake mold. Brush the rim with a little egg or egg white and bake the pie for 20 minutes at 190 C. Reduce the oven temperature to 180 C and bake for another 20 minutes. If the surface gets too brown cover with an aluminum foil, riddling it with a fork (to let steam go out).

When ready let the cake cool a bit. Sprinkle with icing sugar and serve warm with whipped cream, topped with a touch of cinnamon.

Pumpkin feelings...Ginger-spiced Pumpkin Muffins

Here we are, another piece of my "muffinmania". I love Fall with its yellow and red leaves covering the streets like soft carpets and the orange of pumpkins delighting our kitchens and... keeping away vampires during Halloween. In this recipe, the sweet pumpkin pulp is enriched by the intriguing touch of exotic spices, like cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg, leaving a wonderful natural spicy fragrance all over the house. Here the recipe of these delicious Ginger-spiced Pumpkin Muffins for your autumn breakfast or "good little moments"...^_^

Ginger-spiced Pumpkin Muffins

(this recipe is taken from cuochepercaso.blogspot.com - makes 12 muffins)

350 g white flour
200 g pumpkin pulp
50 g sugar
50 g cane sugar
3 eggs
150 g butter
1 sachet baking powder
100 ml milk
1 teaspoon powdered cinnamon
1 teaspoon powdered ginger
a pinch of nutmeg

Line muffin pans with paper liners. Cook or steam the pumpkin pulp and mash it with a fork. Melt butter and let is cool. Add sugar and work till the compound gets frothy. Add eggs, flour, baking powder, the mashed pumpkin pulp. Lastly add the spices and milk, stirring gently. Pour the mixture into the paper liners until 2/3 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 180 C until the muffins reach the right consistency. Let them cool.