Today in the West people are celebrating “Thanksgiving”. So we are posting a traditional Thanksgiving recipe; Pumpkin Pie (without the eggs). I have been making egg-less pies for the last 39 years, and have tried many different variations. I use 2 tablespoons of sour cream instead of 2 eggs, and one year I used Philadelphia cream cheese instead of evaporated milk, all with good success.

If you want to do everything yourself, there is the do it yourself recipe for a “homemade” pie crust, pumpkin puree, spicing, and sweetened whipped cream.

Ingredients:

For the crust:

* 1 cup unbleached plain flour
* 1/3 cup cold butter
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 5-7 tablespoons cold water

For the filling:

* 2 Cups baked, mashed Pumpkin
* 2 tablespoons of sour cream (instead of 2 eggs)
* 3/4 Cup Sugar
* 1 cup, condensed milk
* 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder
* 3/4 teaspoon freshly-grated nutmeg
* 1/2 tsp ground cloves
* 1 tsp. Pure Vanilla Extract

Prepare the crust:

Mix the flour with the salt and cut the cold butter into the flour using a pastry blender or with your fingers until you get coarse breadcrumbs. Or, combine the flour, butter and salt in a food processor and process with 12-15 short bursts until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Put in the cold water and form into a soft dough. Do not handle the dough more than required at this stage. Gather the dough into a ball and chill well for an hour or two. Place the dough on a floured surface. Roll out the dough to a circle, approximately 12″ in diameter to line a (9-inch) pie dish. Prepare the edges and chill while you prepare the filling.

Prepare the pumpkin puree:

Combine 2 cups of baked mashed pumpkin with all other ingredients and blend into a puree until there are no lumps. Spoon the filling into the chilled crust and level with the help of a palette knife. Bake for about 40 minutes or until the filling is set and the top crust is a nice golden brown. Allow to cool, cut into wedges and serve with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream or sweetened yogurt.

To Bake the pie:

Pre-heat the oven 400 F. and bake for about 40 minutes or until the filling is set and the top crust is a nice golden brown. Allow to cool, cut into wedges and serve with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream or sweetened yogurt.

Sweetened Whipped Cream:

1 cup whipping cream
1 to 2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)

In a small chilled mixing bowl combine whipping cream, sugar and vanilla. Beat until soft peaks form. Do not overbeat!