Clockwise from top right: Pumpkin pies from The Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook; Flying Apron’s Gluten-Free & Vegan Baking Book; Allergy-Free Desserts; and puddings with the left overs from the Allergy-Free Desserts recipe. 

I still have pumpkins on my counter.

And in my garage.

They are everywhere.

Are you wondering what to do with all your lovely pumpkins? Don’t throw them out just because December is here and you need to move the fall orange out to make way for winter’s blue and silver or green and red… Pumpkins are winter squash. They are usually harvested in fall, but they have a storage life of one to six months, provided you keep them nice and cool and out of direct sunlight (that’s why most of mine like to stay in the garage).

Pumpkin flesh and seeds are super nutritious. They are heavy on carotenes, providing a great defense against many cancers. They are also great sources of vitamins C, B1, B6, niacin, folic acid, pantothenic acid, potassium, and dietary fiber. They are versatile vegetables, as you’ve probably noticed by my recent posts – I love to use them in pastas, salads, rice dishes, purees, smoothies, breads and other baked goodies. The most popular use of pumpkin, however, may just be in the form of pie. I can easily say it trumps the turkey for me every Thanksgiving.

I started working out my *perfect* crust/filling combination in early November – giving myself plenty of time to mess with the recipes before our Thanksgiving day feast. There are so many pumpkin pie recipes, some of which are a bit more complex than others – but let’s face it – all pumpkin pie is, is a sweetened pumpkin puree in a crust. It is not a difficult pie to make. Or at least it shouldn’t be. I wanted to share a pie recipe with you that would be both simple and delicious, and one that really features pumpkin – not a bunch of distracting additives. Initially tried three different versions from three different gluten-free cookbooks.

We took the pies to a family dinner that night and everyone voted and gave their feedback on each pie. All three were so very different. I took the suggestions and combined the filling of one with the crust of another and we ended up with a real crowd pleaser. The recipe below features the unbaked filling of Elizabeth Gordon’s Allergy-Free Desserts version, and the Standard Pie Crust featured in Jennifer Katzinger’s Flying Apron version.

Standard Pie Crust 

from Flying Apron’s Gluten-Free & Vegan Baking Book, Jennifer Katzinger

1 1/2 C brown rice flour

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/2 C plus 3 Tbsp palm oil (or coconut oil will work, too)

3 Tbsp agave syrup or maple syrup

1-2 Tbsp cold water (put it in the freezer while you’re gathering the other ingredients)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the rice flour & salt in a large owl. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the palm oil until softened, about 1 minute. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture slowly until incorporated. Add agave syrup and water and mix until a soft dough has formed, about 5 minutes. If dough is dry, add additional water 1 Tbsp at a time until the dough is smooth.

Dust your work surface (12×18″ cutting board or piece of cardboard covered in parchment paper) and hands liberally with brown rice flour. Dough will be very wet. Place dough on surface and sprinkle the top with more brown rice flour. Roll dough into an 11-inch disc. Place 9″ pie plate on top of the rolled out dough. With one hand under the work surface and the other on the pie plate, flip them so that the cutting board is on top. Set pie plate on counter, removing the cutting board, and gently press the pie dough into the pie plate.

Bake the pie crust for 25 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool.

To prepare the filling:

(adapted from Elizabeth Gordon’s Pumpkin Pie recipe)

30 oz pureed pumpkin (make your own, or use two 15 oz cans of pure solid-pack pumpkin – we tried it both ways)

1 C oil, in liquid form – either coconut oil, palm fruit, or canola

2/3 C packed dark brown sugar

1 Tbsp vanilla extract

2 tsp ground cinammon

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground allspice

1/2 tsp ground ginger

pinch of freshly ground black pepper

Place all filling ingredients into the pitcher of a high-speed blender. Blend on high for 1 minute. Scrape down sides and then blend for another minute. Pour filling into cooled pie crust and chill for 3 hours or overnight so it sets well before serving. Keep pie refrigerated until just before serving. Store pie, covered and refrigerated, for up to 2 days.