Chef notes
I love this recipe because it's like having the most delicious cloud of pumpkin pie. It's light and fluffy yet with all the deep flavors of the heavier classic version. Exactly what you want after eating an indulgent meal.
Technique tip: To roast winter squash, preheat oven to 425 F. Cut the squash in half and remove the seeds. Brush the flesh with 1/4 cup olive oil and season each half with 1 teaspoon salt. Put a tablespoon of butter on top of each, wrap individually in foil, and transfer to the oven. Bake until the squash is fork-tender, 25 to 30 minutes. Scoop out the flesh and puree.
Swap option: You can always use a canned pie filling instead of the roasted squash, but where's the fun in that?!
Ingredients
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling the dough
- 12 tablespoons (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, cold, cut into pieces
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup ice water
- 1 (1/4-ounce) envelope gelatin
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
- 2/3 cup evaporated milk
- 3 large eggs, separated
- 1½ cups pureed roasted winter squash (such as kabocha or butternut) or 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin puree
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- whipped cream, homemade or store-bought
Preparation
For the crust:
1.Preheat the oven to 375 F.
2.In a food processor, pulse the flour, butter and salt until the butter is in pea-sized pieces. Add the ice water and pulse again until just incorporated.
3.Transfer the dough to a floured surface. Work it into a ball with your hands and then roll it out into a 16-inch round about 1/8-inch-thick. Lay the dough over a 9-inch pie pan and remove the excess dough from the edge, leaving about 1 inch to crimp decoratively.
4.Line the crust with foil and fill with pastry weights or dried beans. Bake until the edges are golden, 15 to 18 minutes. Remove from the oven, remove the foil and weights and let cool.
For the filling:
Combine the gelatin, 1/2 cup of the sugar, the evaporated milk and egg yolks in a medium saucepan. Whisk constantly over low heat until the gelatin and sugar dissolve and the mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the squash, salt, nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon and cloves. Chill the mixture, stirring occasionally, until completely cool.
In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or using a hand mixer, whip the egg whites until stiff but not dry. Gradually add the remaining 1/4 cup sugar and then fold in the chilled squash mixture. Pour into the prepared pie shell and chill for at least 4 hours and up to overnight. Serve topped with big dollops of whipped cream.
