Recently there was a massive wind storm in our area, and it was not pleasant if not almost impossible to be outside. So I thought about different projects that I could do in the house. My thoughts turned to food because after a year of isolation due to COVID-19 and my growing confidence that I am a pretty good home cook. Food has a way of bringing people together. So finally, I came up with the idea of baking a pumpkin pie. It is the Fall and time for warm flavored spiced foods.
As I gathered the simple ingredients for the pie, treasured memories came flooding back. The last time I baked a pumpkin pie. My grandmother, Grace Pearl Hendricks, helped me. She was a good cook and a mentor. We worked together to cook the pumpkins and make the filling, and we made the pie crust. We made several pies.
I was overcome with emotion. I miss my grandmother, and I wish I could remember more of the day and, at the very least, the smell of the freshly baked pies and how they tasted.
My grandmother was an amazing woman! She was born on January 8th, 1887, and she was the youngest of six children. She had four sisters and one brother. The family lived on a farm before there was electricity. So imagine living without electricity, phones, the Internet, cell phones, TVs, social media, and no indoor plumbing. She grew up without the conveniences that we’re so dependent on today.
My grandmother suffered significant losses during her lifetime. Only one of her three children, my mother, survived to adulthood. Unfortunately, my mother and grandmother were estranged, and I tried to fill in the gaps. Nevertheless, through all of the challenges life threw at her, my grandmother was always very elegant, and she was my biggest supporter. She never criticized or belittled my childhood thoughts or dreams.
I remember walking to her house every day after school, and I remember my grandmother always had milk and cookies (home-baked) waiting for me! I also treasure the memories of my grandmother trying to help me with my homework.
When my sons were little, we took my grandmother, their great-grandmother, to see Star Wars. I’m not sure she enjoyed it, but I sat there just marveling to myself that she had grown up in a time, as I said earlier, with no electricity, and now there she was watching a movie about space travel to other worlds with her great-grandsons. She lived to be 100 yrs. I hope the time she spent with my family was pleasurable, but it wasn’t long enough for me.
Well, back to baking the pie. I began searching for that original cookbook, and OMG! I found it.
My version of the Pie Crust:
My Grandmother’s and Betty Crocker’s Pie Crust:
Pie Crust Ingredients:
- 1 cup, plus 1 tablespoon Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup cold shortening
- 3-5 tablespoons ice-cold water
- A medium mixing bowl
- Pastry blender or fork
- Plastic wrap
- Rolling pin
- Knife or kitchen shears
- 9-inch glass pie plate
1. Make Pastry: Mix flour and salt in a medium bowl. Cut in shortening, using pastry blender or fork, until mixture forms coarse crumbs the size of small peas. Sprinkle with the water, 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with fork until all flour is moistened and pastry almost leaves side of bowl (1 to 2 teaspoons more water can be added, if necessary).
2. Chill Pastry: Gather pastry into a ball. Divide in half; shape into 2 flattened rounds on a lightly floured surface. Wrap rounds in plastic wrap and refrigerate 45 minutes or until the dough is firm and cold yet pliable. This allows the shortening to become slightly firm, which helps make the baked pastry flaky. If refrigerated longer, let pastry soften slightly at room temperature before rolling.
3. Roll Out Bottom Crust: Using a floured rolling pin, roll one pastry round on a lightly floured surface into a round 2 inches larger than an upside-down 9-inch glass pie plate.
4. Transfer Pastry to Pie Plate: Fold pastry into fourths and place in a pie plate or roll pastry loosely around rolling pin and transfer to a pie plate or tart pan. Unfold or unroll pastry and ease into plate or pan, pressing firmly against bottom and side and being careful not to stretch pastry, which will cause it to shrink when baked.
The Pie Filling:
My version of the Pie Filling:
My Grandmother’s and Betty Crocker’s Pumpkin Pie Filling:
The recipe for Pumpkin Pie that I found in the original cookbook provides instructions for two different methods to cook the pumpkins. As I remember, my grandmother and I used the first’s choice of boiling the pumpkin.
- Boil the Pumpkins:
- Heat 1 inch salted water 1/2 teaspoon salt to 1 cup of water to boiling.
- Cut 1 1/4 pounds pumpkin into 1-inch pieces (about 1 1/2 cups pair) for 8-inch pie or cut 2 pounds pumpkins into 1-inch pieces (about 2 1/2 cups paired) for a 9-inch pie.
- Add to boiling water. Cover and heat to boiling.
- Cook until tender about 30 minutes; drain.
- Mash pumpkin until no lumps remain – 1 1/4 or 2 cups mashed cooked pumpkin.
Filling Ingredients:
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 cups of mashed pumpkin
- 1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk
In a medium bowl, beat eggs slightly with a wire whisk. Beat in remaining filling ingredients. Place pastry-lined pie plate on oven rack to prevent spilling the filling. Pour filling into pie plate—cover edge of crust with 2- to 3-inch strips of foil to prevent excessive browning.
Bake:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees, and bake for 15 minutes.
Reduce heat to 350 degrees, and continue to bake for 35 minutes (for an eight-inch pan) or 45 minutes (for a nine-inch pan).
Cool for 2 hours, and then serve or refrigerate.
My current pumpkin pie was better than I expected, but without a doubt, I am sure that the pies I made with my grandmother’s help were much more flavorful!
I want to share more about my grandmother with you in a future blog. Take care and hold your family close.