Punkin Pie

Makes one 9-inch pie.

This punkin pie (that's how we say it, so that's how I'll spell it :) recipe is based on a recipe from a can of Carnation evaporated milk (probably this one), modified over time to improve it (reducing the quantity of evaporated milk, for example).

• 2 eggs
• 1 ½ c punkin mush (see below for how to cook a punk)
• ½ c sugar - ¼ brown (not packed), rest white
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ tsp ground cloves
• ¼ tsp ground ginger
• ½ tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 small can evaporated milk (not sweetened) - undiluted (or ¾ c whipping cream)
• 9-inch unbaked pie shell (i.e. bottom crust) made with ½ whole wheat flour

Preheat the over to 425°F.

Pre-bake the pie crust for about 10 minutes. Remove it from the oven every 5 minutes or so and pat it down with the back of a spoon. Pre-baking keeps it from getting soggy. It doesn't need to brown as it will continue to cook after it's filled.

Beat the eggs. Add the punkin mush, sugar, salt, spices, and evaporated milk. Pour into pie shell. Bake at 425°F for 10 minutes, then at 375°F for about 50 minutes, or until a knife inserted near the center of the pie comes out clean. Cool.

Praline Topping - optional:
Melt 2 tbsp butter. Add ½ c brown sugar and 1/3 c chopped pecans. Stir. Sprinkle over pie. Broil for up to a minute, watching very carefully!

Now, to cook your own punkin: This can be found in Joy of Cooking. Start with a "sugar" punkin if you can. These are smaller and are meant to be eaten. Cut open the punk. Throw out the seeds and brains. (You can roast the seeds if you like.) Cut into slices and remove rind with knife. This is difficult. Always cut away from yourself. Cut into 1" square or smaller chunks. Put in big pot with heavy bottom for good heat distribution. Add about ½-inch of water and bring to boil, then simmer until tender (about 40 minutes). Drain water using lid (anything else will make a mess). Mash in pot with a potato masher. Try to remove as much liquid as possible. Pack in clean jars. We usually use Classico spaghetti sauce jars since the lids seal well and pop down. Let cool, then refrigerate. If you bake the jars and boil the lids, it should keep for several months in the fridge. Once you open a jar it'll go bad quickly (about a week), so freeze unused portion or make more pies. :-) :^)