Pumpkin pie is one of those desserts everyone has heard of, but very few people in Denmark have actually tasted. Aside from pumpkin soup, pumpkin doesn’t show up much in Danish cooking, so making a dessert with pumpkin can feel a little strange. At least that’s how I felt before I tried my first pumpkin pie and realized how good it actually is. The warm spices and gentle sweetness make it a lovely, cozy dessert that could easily become a tradition.
If you’ve never had pumpkin pie before, the flavor reminds me of a Pumpkin Spice Latte. My recipe is simple and straightforward. No fuss, just a good, classic pumpkin pie that turns out right every time. Serve it chilled or at room temperature with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Notes
In the photos for this recipe, I used a standard Danish 27 cm tart pan which is quite a bit larger than most American pie dish, which typically measure 9 inches (~ 23 centimeters across), but the sides on the Danish one are lower. If you have an American pie dish, you can thus still follow the measurements in this recipe without changing anything.
Steve’s mom has a great tip. If you want to keep the pie crust from turning too brown or burnt around the edges, you can cover the rim with aluminum foil until the last 20 to 30 minutes of baking.
Holiday Recipes from Scandinavia and the US
Recipe: Easy Pumpkin Pie
1
pie (9 inches pie dish)Keep the screen of your device on
Ingredients
- Crust
2 ½ cups flour
2 tablespoons white sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1¾ sticks cold butter (150g)
4-6 tablespoons ice water
- Filling
1 can pumpkin purée (15 oz, 425 g)
6 tablespoons brown sugar (a little more than ⅓ cup, 150g)
6 tablespoons white sugar (a little more than ⅓ cup, 150g)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ginger
⅓ teaspoon nutmeg
⅓ teaspoon cloves
½ teaspoon salt
3 eggs
1 cup evaporated milk (240 ml)
Directions
- Make the crust
- Mix flour, sugar, and salt. Add the cold butter and rub it into the flour until the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs with pea-sized pieces of butter.
- Add the water a little at a time until the dough just comes together. Work fast, and be careful not to overwork the dough. Shape into a disc and chill in the fridge for at least one hour.
- Roll out the dough and place it in your pie dish. Put the lined dish in the freezer 30 minutes while you make the pie filling.
- Make the pie filling
- Whisk together the pumpkin purée, brown sugar, white sugar, spices, and salt.
- Whisk in the eggs.
- Add the evaporated milk and whisk until smooth.
- Assemble and bake
- Pour filling into the crust.
- Bake 15 minutes at 425º F (220ºC). Then reduce the heat to 350º F (175ºC) and bake for about 40 minutes more until the center has a gentle wobble
- Cool completely before slicing. Serve cold or room temperature with lightly whipped cream.
