Video: Making a Pumpkin Pie with a Fresh Pumpkin

Yay! Another video! I love making videos, and it sucks that I barely ever have time to make them. But here's a good one! As you know, I love pies. Me and pies are pretty much BFFs now. And you may also know that I have an infinity-long list of things I want to bake in my lifetime. One of those things is a pumpkin pie with a fresh pumpkin. I figured it would be a pretty fun video topic since I'd never done it before. We can learn together!

Whew! Well after all that work, was it worth it? Sadly, no. Don't get me wrong. It was extremely delicious. But it's a totally different flavor than what your mind goes to when you think of pumpkin pie. And personally, I prefer the pie made with canned puree. Not only because it's rediculously easier, but because it's what I grew up on and it's what I'm used to. But hey, if you've got plenty of time and you're curious... go ahead and try it. You won't be disappointed! ;) We ate ours with homemade caramel sauce, which I felt was the best part!! If anything, you'll definitely wanna try that!
Pumpkin Pie with Caramel Sauce (from Bubby's Homemade Pies)
Makes 1 9-inch single-crust pie

Par-baked 9-inch crust (or a fully baked 9-inch graham cracker crust)
1 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
Pinch of ground nutmeg
2 cups fresh pumpkin puree or canned, unsweetened pumpkin
1 1/3 cups heavy cream
3 large eggs
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Caramel Sauce (recipe follows)

To prepare fresh pumpkin, halve the pumpkin lengthwise—stem to bottom—and remove and save the seeds, but leave the pulpy inner lining of brighter flesh they nest in—it's the sweetest part of the pumpkin. Chop the pumpkin in chunks and boil in unsalted water until tender. Drain very well. Remove the skin with a knife, discard the skin, and mash the flesh.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a small bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, blend the pumpkin, cream, eggs, sugars, and vanilla until smooth. Add the dry ingredients and blend just until combined. Pour the filling into the par-baked pie shell.

Bake the pie on a lipped baking sheet for 50-55 minutes, or until just barely set in the center. Wiggle the pie gently to test its doneness—look for a center that jiggles but doesn't slosh. The retained heat in the custard will continue cooking the middle as the pie cools off. Don't overcook it or the texture won't be as silky. Cracks in the custard are signs of overcooking. A cracked custard is still quite edible, but not optimal.

Cool the pie completely on a cooling rack before cutting, at least a few hours, then refrigerate. Serve it cold with Caramel Sauce. Store the pie covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Caramel Sauce
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cubed

Combine the sugar and water in a heavy pot over medium heat (check the heat setting or too much water will evaporate before the sugar has had a chance to melt.) Don't stir it. Clip a candy thermometer to the side so that the tip is immersed in the water but not touching the bottom of the pan.

Whisk together the heavy cream and sour cream. Set aside at room temperature.

Cook the syrup until it is a rich caramel color (340 to 380 degrees F on the thermometer) and remove it from the heat. You can choose how dark and intense you want your caramel flavor—the lower temperatures yield a light, sweet caramel, while the higher temperatures create a darker, less sweet caramel. If the syrup gets hotter than 380 degrees F, the caramel will be burnt and bitter, so start over.

Use caution during the next stage: The butter releases a lof ot steam when it hits the caramel, so be careful no to get burned by the steam. With the caramel pot off the heat, add the butter a little at a time, stirring quickly. Add the cream and sour cream and stir well.

Cool and store the caramel sauce in an airtight container. It will keep for 30 days at room temperature or up to 3 months refrigerated. To reheat, warm the sauce over a double boiler, stirring occasionally. (I reheated mine in the microwave, stirring between 15-second intervals.)