Winter Squash Pie
- 1 medium-size winter squash (Ms. Fountain likes Buttercups and orange Hubbards; if you go canned, and shes definitely not recommending that, use unsweetened pumpkin)
- 3/4 cup sugar (half white, half brown, packed)
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 18 teaspoon crushed cloves
- Pinch of salt
- 1 pie crust, homemade, of course
- 4 eggs
- Slice the squash in half.
- This is the moment for the biggest knife in the drawer.
- Scoop out the seeds.
- Place each half facedown on a baking sheet lined with parchment or foil.
- Bake for 30 to 50 minutes at 385 degrees, until squash feels soft on the outside.
- After it cools from blistering to merely hot, scrape the meat from the skin with a spoon.
- Run the squash through a food processor until it looks like baby food.
- Measure 15 ounces or roughly 2 1/4 cups for the pie.
- Go ahead and feed the rest to a baby.
- Beat the eggs.
- Add sugar and beat some more.
- Add heavy cream.
- Combine the cooked squash puree with the egg batter.
- Toss the cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt in a bowl.
- Add the spice mixture to the squash goop.
- Unless you want a mouthful of cloves, might as well stir again.
- If your Thanksgiving table is filled with blue-ribbon bakers who can detect a little soft dough from across the room, blind-bake the crust for a flakier bottom.
- If youre anyone else including Ms. Fountain, at times youll probably skip this step.
- Pour the filling into the pie crust.
- Bake the pie at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
- Or 45.
- Or maybe 50.
- But dont overbake.
- If the center jiggles like the back end of one of those music video dancers you wish the kids wouldnt watch, its done.
- Serve with fresh whipped cream.
- After the kids go to sleep, Ms. Fountain says, whip in a shot of rum.
winter, sugar, heavy cream, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, salt, pie crust, eggs
Taken from cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1013360 (may not work)