Gingersnap Pumpkin Pie

*This recipe comes to us from Alison Roman. Original recipe can be found here.

I'm not a pumpkin pie lover. In fact, in a battle between all pies and cakes, I would choose cakes every time. My best friend Jaq and I were just having this conversation actually and we both came to the conclusion that cake is simply superior. But there's something about the holiday season that just warrants pie.

It wasn't until recently that we really became a "pie after dinner" type of family on Thanksgiving. My mom started making delicious pecan pies and sweet potato pies, and my sister-in-law requires pumpkin pie on Turkey Day. Non-negotiable.

I've never been a huge pumpkin pie person. I always felt like the crust was too soggy, the center was too mushy, and the whipped cream topping out of a can just doesn't do it for me. But when I stumbled across this photo of a gingersnap crust pumpkin pie on Pinterest, I knew I had to try it. And it was so good! It fixed all the problems I have with pumpkin pie by replacing a soggy pie crust with a delicious, buttery cookie crust. The use of eggs and cream help solidify the mushy center. And homemade whipped cream takes it completely over the top.

This is the perfect pie for those of us who are creatures of tradition and want that classic pie sitting on the dessert table.

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Ingredients

For the Crust:

• 8 ounces spiced cookies such as gingersnaps, graham crackers, Biscoff

• 6 tablespoons/3 ounces/ 85g unsalted butter, melted

• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar (optional, depending on your cookies)

• ½–1 teaspoon kosher salt (depending on your cookies)

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For the Filling:

• 1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree

• ⅓ cup granulated sugar

• ½ cup light brown sugar

• 1 ¼ teaspoon kosher salt

• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger or ½ teaspoon ground ginger

• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

• ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg

• 3 large eggs

• ¾ cup heavy cream

• Lightly sweetened whipped cream, for serving

Whipped cream:

• 2 Cups of chilled heavy cream

• 1 tablespoon powdered sugar

• 2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Make the Crust: Preheat the oven to 350°F/177°C (no fan).

2. Smash the graham crackers with your hands until you’ve got coarse crumbs (alternatively, use a food processor). You should end up with about 1 ½ cups crumbs.

3. Place crumbs in a medium bowl and add melted butter, brown sugar (if using) and salt. Using your hands or a spoon, mix well until you’ve got really moist crumbs, almost like wet sand.

4. Spray a 9-inch pie plate with nonstick cooking spray (or grease it with softened/melted butter). Add crust mixture in an even layer, first pressing up the sides, then onto the bottom (a measuring cup is helpful here to make sure it’s evenly packed with nice edges).

5. Place pie plate onto a rimmed baking sheet and bake until the crust is baked through, set on the bottom, and starts to lightly brown around the edges, 12–15 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool (leave the oven on if continuing right away to the next step).

1. Make the filling: Reduce oven temperature to 325°F/162°C. In a medium bowl, combine pumpkin puree, both sugars, kosher salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg, and whisk to combine. Add eggs and whisk until they’re fully incorporated, then add cream and whisk until combined.

2. Pour the filling into the prebaked crust, return the pie to the oven and bake until filling is no longer jiggling and appears set and slightly matte on top, 35–45 minutes.

3. Remove from oven and let cool completely at room temperature before chilling. Top with lightly sweetened whipped cream, a bit of flaky salt and a crumble of a few extra gingersnaps (you can also serve from room temperature in a pinch, but will be much easier to slice if chilled)

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