My friend Paula from A Table Provence was here to stay for a couple of weeks recently. She is Canadian and it just so happened that Canadian Thanksgiving fell on a day that she was visiting. Of course we had to celebrate with her and she prepared a traditional Thanksgiving meal for us with all the trimmings including a herb stuffed Chicken (should be Turkey but since there were only 3 of us it seemed a bit crazy!) with roast yams, fresh orange glazed carrots, creamy mashed potato & gravy. It was simple but delicious fare! We finished with this Pumpkin Pie & Chantilly cream. I love the spices and the almost biscuity texture of the pastry. It really is worth making the Chantilly Cream as it complements the pie so well. I loved it so much that I demo’d it at My Chef at Home’s event at the beautiful kitchen showrooms of Ray Shiels and at the ICA’s headquarters in Termonfeckin!
Ingredients for the pie filling:
- 2 eggs
- 235grms fresh cream
- 400grms pumpkin puree
- 165grms mucovado sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp each grated orange zest, salt, all-spice, cloves, ginger and nutmeg
Preheat oven to 220°C, 425°F, Gas Mark 7
To make the custard/pie filling:
Start by cutting the pumpkin in half and clean out the seeds. Once clean, cut the pumpkin into small pieces. Place on a baking sheet and bake in oven for 30-45 minutes, or until soft. Let cool, then remove flesh from skin and puree or mash the flesh with the back of a fork. Leave the pulp in a fine meshed sieve for a minimum of 2 hours or leave overnight over a bowl to allow excess water to extract itself.Meanwhile, make the pastry.
For the Pastry:
This recipe makes two portions. You can freeze one and the hard work is done for next time! For this, you will need a 9” flan dish.
250grms white flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
230grms unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
60-120mls of iced water
Directions
- In a bowl combine flour, salt, and sugar. Add butter, and quickly process by crumbling butter into the flour with your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs.
- Stir in water, a tablespoon at a time, until mixture forms a ball. Wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight.
Once puree is ready, mix all ingredients together until the mixture is smooth.
Roll out pastry and place in a 9″ pie dish. Crimp the edges between your fingers. Place the custard inside the pastry.
Bake at 230°C,450°F, Gas Mark 8 for 15 minutes; reduce heat to 180°C,350°F, Gas Mark 4 for 25 minutes more or until the tip of a sharp knife inserted comes out clean. Let cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.
Serve with Chantilly whipped cream.
Chantilly Whipped Cream:
235mls fresh cream
2-3 tablespoons icing sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, vanilla powder or vanilla paste
Whisk the cream, sugar, and vanilla in a large bowl until soft peaks form. The cream should hold its shape but still be satiny in appearance.