It’s Turkey Day. You are no doubt putting the finishing touches on your meal prep, but I wanted to share this recipe with you despite its eleventh hour publishing. You might need more pie later in the weekend, after all.
What’s not to like about pie? It is superior to cake in almost every way, after all. I’ve always been a fan, but one day in high school, in the kitchen of a dear friend, from a Midwestern grandma’s special recipe, came that first bite of handcrafted, still warm Strawberry-Rhubarb pie… and my life changed forever. We’ll be talking about that pie one day soon, friends, but not today. Today we are talking about Thanksgiving pie. I used to regularly pick up store bought pie, before the days of caring what was in it. Sadly, there is crappy pie out there friends. Don’t settle, you deserve better. Handmade homemade or just don’t bother. It’s neither hard nor time-consuming. It’s easy, fast, and so worth it. You may debate about roasted pumpkin vs. canned pumpkin for texture and flavor. I’ve made each and both are delicious. And about 10 years or so ago, I came across a recipe for a great sweet potato pie, and that shifted the Thanksgiving pie game for me. I’ve concocted a filling that is half sweet potato and half pumpkin in this paleo recipe. You could choose all one or the other and still have a delicious dessert, but why not mix it up and create a new family favorite?
Now on to crust. If you are eating paleo and want the best, go to Elena’s Pantry and use this recipe: https://elanaspantry.com/paleo-pie-crust/. It has become my favorite paleo crust.
With rheumatoid arthritis, however, I’ve found it challenging to manipulate the crust as thin as I like in the pie pan to maximize the power of the crust-to-filling ratio. The dough isn’t prone to being rolled out like a “traditional” pie crust and really needs to be pushed into the pie pan thinly. Some days, my fingers don’t make those shapes or have that strength. For hands like mine, a rolling pin can be much more helpful.
On that note, if grains are still part of your diet and gluten isn’t, I’ll recommend you use the recipe for the Traditional Pie Crust from Annalise Roberts’ amazing cookbook Gluten-Free Baking Classics
Thanksgiving Pie
- 1 cup mashed sweet potato
- 1 cup roasted pumpkin
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup coconut milk (or coconut cream)
- ½ cup honey
- 1 T ground cinnamon
- ½ t ground nutmeg
- ½ t cloves
- ¼ t ground ginger
- ¼ t ground cardamom
- ¼ t salt
- pie crust of your choice in an 8-inch pie pan
Using a handheld mixer (or food processor for an even texture), first beat together the sweet potato, roasted pumpkin and eggs until smooth. Add the coconut milk, honey, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, cardamom and salt and mix until just combined. Pour the filling into your prepared pie crust. Bake at 350° for 45 minutes or until the center is just set. Cool on a rack and refrigerate before serving.
Happy Thanksgiving.