Jennifer Causey; Food Stylist: Rishon Hanners; Prop Stylist: Audrey Davis
If you’re looking for a new pumpkin pie recipe to complete your Thanksgiving feast, say hello to your family’s new favorite. This easy pumpkin pie recipe is simple enough for novice bakers hosting Thanksgiving for the first time but impressive enough for the seasoned hostess. This pumpkin pie starts with refrigerated piecrust, which saves tons of time. If you can’t stand the thought of a Thanksgiving that’s not totally homemade, don’t worry: Our Single-Crust Pie Pastry is our go-to universal piecrust recipe. The rest of the ingredients for this pumpkin pie are much like any other, but there’s one element that sets this recipe apart. Instead of adding whole eggs to the filling, this recipe separates the yolks and whites. After the yolks are mixed into the filling with the rest of the ingredients, the egg whites are beaten until soft peaks form and folded into the pumpkin filling mixture. This bit of extra effort gives this pumpkin pie the dreamiest texture. Your guests will notice the difference in every light bite. If you need to refresh an old pumpkin pie recipe, this one doesn’t add any intricate steps or expensive ingredients. With one easy tweak, you can serve the fluffiest pumpkin pie your Thanksgiving crowd has ever enjoyed.
How to Make It
Step 1
Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll piecrust out on a lightly floured work surface to a 12-inch circle. Fit piecrust inside a 9-inch pie plate, pressing into bottom and up sides of plate. Fold crust edges under; crimp as desired. Place a piece of parchment paper over crust in pie plate, leaving a 3-inch overhang. Fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake in preheated oven 15 minutes. Carefully remove parchment paper and pie weights. Bake an additional 5 minutes. Remove from oven. (Do not turn off oven.)
Step 2
Beat pumpkin, egg yolks, sugar, milk, flour, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, salt, and cloves with an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment on medium speed until smooth, about 1 minute.
Step 3
Beat egg whites in a separate bowl with an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment on high speed until soft peaks form, about 2 minutes. Fold into pumpkin mixture. Pour into piecrust.
Step 4
Bake at 350°F until center is set, about 55 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack, about 1 hour.
