Here's my secret to a GREAT PUMPKIN PIE year after year...

Follow the directions on the back of the Libby's Pure Pumpkin can.  Pick up the boxed Pillsbury's pie crust with the two rolls inside.  And DON'T FORGET to get the can of EVAPORATED MILK!  (I forget it every time.)

In the past, I have roasted fresh pumpkin, pureed it, THEN made it into a pie.  NOBODY EVER NOTICED THE DIFFERENCE. That was disappointing.  Later on, I watched an episode of America's Test Kitchen where they made pumpkin pies with fresh roasted pumpkin and canned pumpkin puree, then asked their test tasters if they could tell the difference.  NOT ONE TASTER NOTICED THE DIFFERENCE.

America's Test Kitchen concluded that it was not worth the time & trouble of carving, cleaning, scraping, disposing, roasting, running the oven longer, for a more labor intensive product that can easily be replaced with a ready made can of pure pumpkin puree.  I COMPLETELY AGREE and have since then been loyal to the Libby label.

As for my decorative pie crust skills, well, I'm still a Padawan or a Grasshopper, depending on which shows you like to watch.

Nowadays, I focus on the crust and try to make it pretty.  That's the fun part for me.  Sometimes, I try to get fancy.  Other times, I totally screw it up and call it "rustic."   In the end, not matter what it looks like, everyone in my family loves the way I make pumpkin pie.

So this year, take it easy on yourself.  Open up the can, buy the box and just have fun!

Happy Holidays!

Libby's Pumpkin Pie Recipe from the back of the can.

NOTES:

1 3/4 teaspoons pumpkin spice may be substituted for the cinnamon, ginger and cloves; however, the taste will be slightly different. Do not freeze, as this will cause the crust to separate from the filling.

FOR 2 SHALLOW PIES: substitute two 9-inch (2-cup volume) pie shells. Bake in preheated 425° F. oven for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350° F.; bake for 20 to 30 minutes or until pies test done.

FOR HIGH ALTITUDE BAKING (3,500 to 6,000 ft.): Deep-dish pie- extend second bake time to 55 to 60 minutes. Shallow pies- no change.

Pick up the NEW book Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day by Jeff Hertzberg & Zoe Francois from Amazon here.

Get out the milk for this rich delight and cut yourself a small slice of chocolate pie.

My friend, Anne, came over and we made this pie together. We usually enjoy lattes together while our kids play. This time, we got together just to eat chocolate. What are friends for, right?

HERE'S ALL YOU NEED

• 2 (5 oz.) Hershey's Milk Chocolate bars
• 2 (5 oz.) Hershey's Dark Chocolate bars, you will use 1 1/4 bars
• 1 (12 oz.) Cool Whip, completely thawed
• 1 Ready made Oreo cookie pie crust

Use a medium size, glass or metal bowl that will fit snugly on top of a medium sauce pan, but will not touch the bottom of the pan. Fill the sauce pan with 1/2 inch of water and heat to a slow simmer.

While the water is heating up, measure out the chocolate and chop into small, even pieces for quick melting; transfer to bowl. Place bowl over top of pan. Do not walk away, melting the chocolate will only take about 2 minutes. Use a spatula to move chocolate around, but try not over stir the chocolate. When there's just a few chocolate lumps remaining, go ahead and remove bowl from heat and set aside.

To incorporate the chocolate and Cool Whip using a spatula, you can fold the Cool Whip into the chocolate. As the chocolate cools, it will become harder to fold, so work QUICKLY.

Another way is to put the cool whip into your Kitchen Aid stand mixer, turn it on to medium speed, then add the melted chocolate. After it's mixed well, transfer the pie filling to the pie crust. Spread evenly, decorate top with chocolate shavings, then refrigerate until ready to eat.

I'm serious about the glass of milk and cutting a small slice. This recipe is rich, but definitely worth making. I will make this again the next time I have guests coming over. That way, I can eat it and not have any leftovers.

Pick up the NEW book Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day by Jeff Hertzberg & Zoe Francois from Amazon here.

This recipe is SO GOOD!  The Granny Smith apples really give a tart freshness that calls out, "This is the way apple pie should always taste!"

There's pie crust on the bottom and a crumble on the top, with hot apple goodness in between.  Below you will see I made mini pies.  They're perfect for those folks that love eating crispy pie crust with every bite.

HERE'S FRENCH APPLE PIE

• 1 prepared pie crust for 9" pie
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• dash of salt
• 6 cups chopped pared apples

Crumb Topping

• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup firm butter

Heat oven to 425F degrees.  Prep pastry.  Mix sugar, flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt in large bowl.  Stir in apples. 

Place crumb topping ingredients in food processor and pulse until crumbly.   

Turn apple mixture into pastry lined pie plate.  Top apple filling with Crumb Topping.  Cover topping with aluminum foil during last 10 minutes of baking.  Bake 40-50 minutes.  When I baked the mini-pies, I baked for 25 minutes.

This post originally written November 2, 2007.

Growing up, my Memaw always made two pies for the holidays: Pecan Pie and some kind of chocolate pie with nuts and coconut blended together.  The chocolate pie was my favorite!  When she passed away in 1998, she took the recipe with her.  No one in our family had the recipe or knew what it was called.  In fact, for several holidays following her passing,  when I brought up the chocolate pie, not one close relative remembered the pie at all.  They only recalled her notorious pecan pie.  Well anyhoo!  I  haven't eaten Memaw's chocolate pie in 10 years and that's just not right.

When I think back real hard, it seems she had the pie baked before I could watch her make it.  Of course, I never had the sense to watch how she made everything.  I can only remember watching it cool on a rickety card table decorated with a festive tablecloth.  I remember the deep chocolate flavor, the chopped pecan and shredded coconut suspended in it's thick pudding texture.  I remember the flaky pie crust.  Yummmm...

I've come across this recipe that sounds like it could be it.  I'm going to bake it, taste it, photograph it and let you know if it's the one.

HERE'S WHAT I  NEED TO DO

• 4 ounces semisweet baking chocolate
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup butter
• 12-ounce can evaporated milk
• 3 egg yolks, slightly beaten
• 2/3 cup flaked coconut
• 1/3 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 unbaked pie crust

Preheat oven to 350ºF degrees.
Combine chocolate, sugar, butter, and milk in a medium saucepan; cook over medium heat, stirring often, until mixture just comes to a boil. Remove from heat.  Temper the egg yolks.  Then stirring constantly, pour egg yolks back into the pan.

Add coconut, walnuts, and vanilla; stir. Pour into pie crust.  Be sure to make a foil pie ring to protect the pie crust from burning. Bake 50 min.-1 hour. Make 2-days ahead of serving.

3 DAYS LATER...

Well, this recipe and my memory match up!  Memaw's pie was thick in texture; thick like a pudding.  The deep chocolate flavor, the ratio of pecans and coconut I got spot on!

This pie gets better with time.  It becomes thicker and deeper with flavor on the second and third day.  Which totally explains why I never saw my grandmother make this pie.  She always had it made it before I was out on school holiday and then she must have hid it from the rest of us until the big day.

So definitely
Make this pie TWO DAYS AHEAD of SERVING for MAXIMUM FLAVOR & a THICK TEXTURE.