Pumpkin Pie

Before making this pumpkin pie I had never even tasted it. I wanted to make it purely to try it, and it turned out I really like it. Pumpkin pie is very popular in America but in this country it seems very few people have tried it. When asked what it tasted like I've described it as a cross between an egg custard tart and carrot cake...sounds strange, but trust me when I say it's good and you should at least try it! It is a very seasonal treat for Autumn and especially around Halloween when we see so many pumpkins around. If you don't go to the effort of making your own shortcrust pastry, this is very quick and easy to put together.

You will need:

400g Ready-made Shortcrust Pastry
425g Tin of Pumpkin Puree
340g Evaporated Milk
2 Eggs
¾ cup Granulated Sugar
1 ½ tsp Cinnamon
¾ tsp Ground Ginger
⅜ tsp Ground Nutmeg
⅜ tsp Ground Allspice

Method:

Preheat your oven to 220 C. Start by lightly greasing a 9-inch tart tin. Dust flour over a clean work surface and roll out the pastry in a circular shape until it is about half a cm thick. Wrap the sheet of pastry around your rolling pin and use it to lift the pastry onto the tin. Lower the pastry into the sides of the tin without stretching it and lightly press into the corners. Trim any excess pastry off leaving about 2 cm around the edge. Fold the edge back on itself. Using a fork, carefully prick the pastry on the base of the tin.
In a large mixing bowl measure out all of the remaining ingredients. Using a hand or electric whisk, mix all the ingredients together. Pour the mixture into the pastry lined tin, leaving about cm gap at the top of the pastry. (I had a small amount of pastry and a small amount of filling left, so if you have a small tartlet tin you can make a mini pie with the leftover.)
Put the pie into the oven. After 15 minutes turn the temperature down to 175 C. Leave the pie in the oven for a further 50-55 minutes. The filling should still be wobbly when it is done. Take it out of the oven and leave to cool completely before taking it out of the tin. Store in the fridge, as it is best eaten chilled.