Maple Pumpkin Pie

Well, hello darling! Don't worry I haven't forgotten you or lost contact with my blog. To be honest, my oven broke a few weeks ago and it took a week to replace and than a week to catch up on kitchen life. And then on top of all that, it has been sunny, gorgeous and so colorful this past week in Michigan. You can just smell the pumpkin deliciousness in the air and the crisp and crunchy apples have been keeping us busy too. I have been thinking about making a few pumpkin treats and I broke-in the new oven with baking off some fresh pumpkins to make some fresh pumpkin puree (a quick instruction below).

And when you bake a whole fresh pumpkin you jumpstart the fall baking inspiration juices as well. You have a whole pumpkin after all, and the smells of fall filling the air will leave you feeling a little weak in the knees. So some things in the recipe forecast... pumpkin donuts, pumpkin cinnamon raisin bread, and maybe a new fall apple cake...looking forward to experimenting and trying out a few ideas...

But for today I made a fresh pumpkin pie- one of my husband's favorite desserts. This on is only sweetened with maple syrup and vanilla goodness. Surprising, yes. But not really once you try it. The maple flavor is a perfect pair to the pumpkin and the not oh-too sweet wonderfulness to a piece of pie will have you thinking you are eating a nice serving of veggies too. So why not? Indulge in some thick, creamy and delectably sweet pumpkin pie.

Minus the dairy, the refined sugars and gluten of course. It is a bit different than my Grandma's thanksgiving pie. Or any canned pumpkin, canned condensed milk kind-of-pie for that matter. It is fresh tasting, lots of flavor, and did I mention you feel like you may be indulging in vegetables too much. Maybe, just too much.

Yes, it may be a little too soon for a Thanksgiving treat, but as I turned the calendar this morning to be greeted by the lovely month of October, I feel no remorse or shame in breaking out the fall favorites early this year. What else is a girl to do?

Fresh Maple Pumpkin Pie Recipe
{gluten, dairy, soy, nut and refined-sugar-free}

crust:
1/2 cup of freshly ground buckwheat flour (grind buckwheat groats in a food processor or high powered blender to come up with a powdery flour mixture)
1 cup of Bob's Red Mill GF all-purpose flour blend (or a favorite GF flour mix or baking flour works)
2 TB of pure maple syrup
2 TB of apple cider vinegar
1/2 ts. of sea salt
1/3 cup of softened coconut oil

Mix the flours and salt together and then drizzle in the vinegar and maple syrup. Lastly add the oil and use a spoon or your hands to make a thick and sticky pie dough. Then roll in a ball and plop in a 9 inch pie pan. Use a 1 cup measuring cup bottom to spread evening through out the pan and basically you are using your hands to form a perfectly even pie crust. Make the edges nice with your finger or with a fork and then put in a preheated 400 degree oven for 15 minutes. Take out immediately and let cool completely before adding the pumpkin filling for baking round two.

If you have a favorite pie crust, you can use that in place of my above recipe. I really like the above combo because it makes a nice crust that sticks together and still seems a bit flaky and crispy too. 

pumpkin filling:
2 cups of fresh pumpkin puree
1 cup of coconut milk beverage (I used So Delicious) (or canned coconut milk works too)
1 TB of pure vanilla
2/3 cup of pure maple syrup
1/4 cup of melted coconut oil
2 fresh farm eggs (or chia/flax egg replacement)
1 TB of pumpkin pie spice mix
1 ts. of ground ginger
1/4 cup of tapioca flour
1/3 cup of freshly ground buckwheat flour
2 ts. of baking powder
1/2 ts. of sea salt

If you are curious on how to get some fresh pumpkin puree, google it :) or it is pretty simple by slicing in quarters, scooping out seeds (save for roasting and eating), and then baking in the oven for 1-2 hours depending on size. Once the pumpkin is soft to slice with a butter knife, pull from the oven and let cool.  Use a spoon to scoop out the soft pumpkin into a blender or food processor and then blend until it is a thick and creamy puree. You may need to add water to the blender to get the pumpkin to start blending. I usually end up adding close to 1/2 cup of water to the pumpkin while blending to get a nice puree. 

Then in a large bowl, add the 2 cups of pumpkin along with all of the other wet ingredients, including the eggs. 

NOTE: You can use chia-eggs as a sub for the real eggs, but the pie will turn out much more gel-like and gooey, so make sure you are aware of that beforehand. 

Then whisk in quickly the melted coconut oil so that is does not get cold and clumpy. Then add in the dry ingredients and whip up well again. Let sit for 10-15 minutes for the wet and cold ingredients to gel together and it should look like a nice thick and creamy pudding mix. Then pour the pumpkin filling into the prepared and cooled pie crust. 

Then gently place the pie into a preheated 350 degree oven for 60-80 minutes depending on your oven and elevation. What you are looking for is a few cracks on the pie top and also for there to be no liquid movement in the center of the pie. You should shake the pie gently and see if there is any giggle. If there is you need to keep baking till there isn't. 

When you are done baking, let cool on the counter for 1 hour and then put in the fridge uncovered for another few hours or overnight for best results. Cover with a top or plastic wrap after a few hours to keep the pie moist. Serve chilled, or with a dollup of fresh coconut whipped topping or other favorite whipped topping. 

I usually like mine cold and with no topping. It is the best way to taste the pumpkin and maple goodness. Here is slice one that I shared with my toddler, so I may need to share another with my hubby tonight.

The pie will serve 8 even slices and will stay best in the fridge up to 3 days.

I hope this pie gets you into the fall spirit if you haven't yet.
It's never too early for pumpkin pie, if you ask me.

Much love as always!