November 23, 2009

White Dog and Steve made pumpkin pies for Thanksgiving. She is crazy about that pie, as is Steve, and over the past few years have eased me out of the process making it their own. This is the first "real" project on Steve's newly tiled counter (which turned out just grand and makes us feel so modern in our 1930's kitchen). First the crust is made and rolled out...all of the odd shaped scraps saved off to the side on a cookie sheet. Then the pumpkin is mixed and their "secret blend" of spices is added. This is when the kitchen begins smelling heavenly! White Dog and Steve each do a spoon test of the mix to make sure that the seasoning is just right and both peer at the bowl to make sure the custard is the correct color (their recipe yields a rich brown, not orange, mix mostly due to the cloves and allspice added). Final adjustments are made and then the filling is poured over the crust. Once the pies are in the oven (sending the most wonderful smells throughout the house), White Dog and Steve finish the scrapings the bowl using it for their creation, "We Can't Wait Munchers" made up of the crust scraps coated with a smear of the pumpkin custard. White Dog and Steve bake these like cookies so they can be enjoying their work before the pies even come out of the oven.