Pumpkin Chiffon Pie with Cinnamon Vanilla Cream

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by Raisa Aziz, special to EdibleDC

With the holidays around the corner and the market filled with all manner of gourds, it’s time to pull out those pie pans and fill the house with the sweet, warming scents of the season. We’ve partnered with Whisked! to share a pumpkin pie recipe exclusive to Edible DC so you can put those market finds to good use.

Pumpkin Chiffon Pie with Cinnamon Vanilla Cream

Jenna Huntsberger, originally from Oregon, has always had a passion for baking. She started Whisked! in 2011, making old-fashioned American favorites, filling every cookie and pie with real ingredients and baked with the same love and attention you would give to home-baked treats. Although the company has grown considerably since 2011, the menu still changes seasonally and every pie and cookie is baked by hand. She shares a recipe for a pumpkin chiffon pie with cinnamon vanilla cream below, using either market pumpkins or offering a canned substitution. And if you’re in the mood for pie but not the baking, head over to the Whisked! website to order your Thanksgiving favorites by November 16th (available for pickup in DC and for delivery to other states)!

For the Crust:

  • 2 cups (9 oz) gingersnap crumbs
  • ¼ cup light brown sugar
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ cup (1 stick) butter, melted

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Combine gingersnap crumbs with light brown sugar, and salt. Gradually pour in the melted butter until the mixture is the consistency of wet sand. Press evenly into a 9 inch pie pan.

Place pie shell on a sheet pan and bake for 7 minutes, until crust is lightly toasted. Set aside.

For the Pumpkin Chiffon Filling

  • 1 5 lb pie pumpkin (or, 1 ½ cups or 13 oz of pumpkin puree, if you want to skip the fresh pumpkin)
  • 4 eggs, separated into yolks and whites
  • ½ (3.5 oz) + ¼ cup (1.75 oz) sugar, divided
  • 1 tbs cornstarch (.25 oz)
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ginger
  • ¼ tsp cloves
  • ¼ tsp kosher salt
  • ½ cup heavy cream

Increase oven temperature to 375 degrees.

To prep the pumpkin, cut the stem off the top of pumpkin, place the pumpkin stem side down on a cutting board, and cut in half. Clean the seeds out of the middle of the pumpkin. Cover a baking sheet with foil and rub lightly with vegetable or another neutral oil. Place pumpkin halves, cut side down, on the baking sheet and roast until soft when pierced with a knife - 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Pull skin off of the pumpkin halves, cut off any burnt or overly brown bits, and puree in a food processor until smooth.

Set aside 1 1/2 cups of puree - about 13 ounces, for the pie filling.

Lower oven temperature to 325.

Combine pumpkin puree with egg yolks, ½ cup of the sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, kosher salt, and heavy cream.

Meanwhile, beat the egg whites until foamy. Add a sprinkle of the remaining ¼ cup of bsugar and beat until glossy. Continue to beat the egg whites, gradually adding the sugar a sprinkle at a time, until medium peaks form.

Using a whisk, fold ⅓ of the egg whites into the pumpkin filling to lighten it. Then pour the mixture into the egg whites and fold until just combined.

Pour the filling into pie shell and bake until the filling is set - 45 to 50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. If crust browns too much on the edge, cover loosely with strips of foil. Let cool completely before serving.

For The Cinnamon Vanilla Pouring Cream

  • 1 ¾ cups heavy cream
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 3 cinnamon sticks
  • 1 vanilla bean, split down the middle to expose the seeds
  • 1/4 cup + 2 Tbs (2.6 oz) sugar
  • 4 egg yolks

In a medium saucepan, combine cream, salt, cinnamon sticks and vanilla bean. Bring cream to a boil. Remove from heat and let steep for 1 hour. Remove cinnamon sticks and vanilla bean.

Reheat the cream until boiling. In a separate bowl, beat sugar with egg yolks until glossy. Pour ¼ of the hot cream into the egg yolks and rapidly combine with a whisk. Pour the tempered egg yolks back into the cream and heat over medium heat, stirring gently, until the mixture coats the back of a spoon. Strain into a bowl and chill.

Serve pie with chilled cream.