Pumpkin Pie recipe and Spooky Hallowe’en stories

Happy Samhuinn! Merry Hallowe’en!
Celebrating the end of the harvest season with a velvety smooth vegan dessert – sweet treat, cool baking trick

Vegan, crust-less pumpkin pie - it's just about perfect!

This is my favorite pie to bake for our family Thanksgiving feast; however, today I’m sharing it as a Hallowe’en treat because it fits so perfectly with several spooky, fun read-a-loud stories I’ve been treating my sons to at bedtime. And Hallowe’en is one of our favorite family holidays.

 

                                  

The Perfect Pumpkin PieThe Perfect Pumpkin Pie by Denys Cazet

Cazet serves up a macabre tale of a pie aficionado who can’t go on to his final resting place until he’s eaten a perfect pie. And he’s quite particular about the exact specifications. While the story and stylized illustrations certainly have a creepy quality, the unflappable Gramma at the heart of the story keeps it light with a touch of humor. I found the ghost’s chants to be like a pop song; stuck in my head for hours after hearing. And leaving me with a craving for pie to boot!

Mrs. McMurphy’s Pumpkin by Rick Walton

Thinking she has everything under control, Mrs. McMurphy awakens a few days before Hallowe’en to find her cozy calm threatened by a peevish pumpkin. The pumpkin boasts about his features and eagerly anticipates getting a mouth full of sharp teeth. But the imperturbable Mrs. McMurphy wins the holiday. Victory is indeed sweet. The clearly drawn illustrations contrast with the somewhat sinister pumpkin and take the edge off the spookiness while enhancing the story.

Halloween Pie by Michael O. Tunnell

A witch bakes her favorite treat and sets it on the windowsill to cool, setting off a wake up call to the ghostly neighbors who find her pumpkin pie irresistible. But there are consequences for taking without asking… each creature is magically transformed into a replacement ingredient so the witch can bake a second pie. Again the humor shines through the spooky story and the brightly colored, cartoon illustrations charm.

Fully cooked & taste tested pumpkin pie

Enough talk about pies – let’s get baking!

I am so indebted to Karina, the Glutenfree Goddess, for this amazingly delicious and ridiculously easy pumpkin pie recipe. All the ingredients get blended at once and you do not have to mess with any pie crusts. That is the super cool baking trick – and the basis for the depth of my gratitude! The pie will bake a bit like a cake, appearing to be slightly rounded when it first comes out of the oven. As it cools, the center falls, while the sides stay at the same level. It creates its own “crust.” And trust me – you will not miss the typical crust one bit. And with no raw eggs to contend with, you can taste any leftover batter and the baking is almost foolproof.

Before my son was diagnosed with his egg allergy, I used my mom’s tried and true egg-custard based pumpkin pie recipe. It was delicious but touchy. There were a few years that I inadvertently overbaked it and ended up with deep cracks in the filling. Or despite my futzing with tinfoil borders and adjusting oven temps, I still managed to singe the edges of the crust. I am so delighted that this recipe, sans eggs and bothersome crust, tastes every bit as good as my mom’s version. And did I mention how much easier it is to make?

Vegan pumpkin pie with whipped topping

Vegan Pumpkin Pie

egg free & mostly dairy free

Adapted from Karina Allrich’s Easy Gluten-free Pumpkin Pie Recipe ©2005-2009 -- her version is totally dairy-free and also gluten-free; she uses a food processor

I make this using a blender, but use a food processor if you have one.

Ingredients:

1 15-oz can pumpkin

1½ cups coconut milk (I use canned)

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

2 Tbsp light olive oil

1 Tbsp Orgran Egg Replacer (white powder mix can be bought at healthfood or grocery store)

1 cup brown sugar

½ cup wholewheat pastry flour

2 Tbsp cornstarch

2 tsps baking powder

1/4 tsp xanthan gum (can be purchased at healthfood or grocery store)

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp each – allspice, ground cloves, ginger, nutmeg

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Lightly grease a glass pie plate. (I use 9” round; I use butter – use margarine or oil to avoid dairy.)

Measure out all ingredients into an electric blender.

It looks a bit like sand sculpture in a bottle at this phase

Cover and press “blend” button or pulse to blend together. Stop and check to see if all dry ingredients are being well incorporated; scrape down the sides of the bowl with spatula, as needed. You’re going for a very smooth consistency. (Be VERY careful not to get your spatula snagged on the blades of the blender. Amazing how that sturdy-seeming rubber can be bitten or torn!)

Once ingredients are completely blended, pour into the greased pie plate. Use a spatula to smooth filling evenly.

Smooth consistency at the end of blending

Poured and smoothed right before baking

Bake for about an hour. The pie should have no jiggling or wetness in center and be mostly firm. The center falls as it cools, and the edges will stay up, like a pie crust. Looks quite a bit like a traditional pumpkin pie, but without the traditional crust.

In the oven, enticing aroma, and all puffed up

Cooling on the rack; center looks wet but toothpick came out clean - it's already starting to fall a bit in middle

Place the pie on a wire rack to cool completely, then cover the pie, and refrigerate.

Serve chilled, with dollop of fresh whipped coconut milk (to stay dairy-free) or fresh whipped cream (I whip my own and sweeten with a drizzle of maple syrup.) 

Vintage postcard - Wishing you and yours a Merry Hallowe'en!

By the way, Samhuinn is the Scots Gaelic word for the end of harvest time and the beginning of the dark days of winter. Hallowe'en festivities can be traced back to the Celts and many of the ancient traditions are still practiced today. Edinburgh holds an annual fire festival that sounds like an absolute blast. I really want to celebrate Samhuinn in Scotland someday! In the meantime, check out this website for the Beltane Fire Society for more details on the music, costumed performances, and fire dances. And check back to my previous blog post here for more details on the history of Hallowe'en.  

ALLERGENS: Contains wheat. Contains dairy if you grease with butter and/or use whipped cream. Contains corn if you use cornstarch.

ALLERGY ACCOMMODATIONS: To replace the wheat, go to Karina’s original recipe and follow her suggestions for buckwheat or sorghum flour. To replace the dairy, use margarine instead of butter for greasing the pie dish and use whipped coconut milk for garnish. To replace the corn, use Karina’s recipe suggestion (tapioca starch) or another safe thickening agent.