Classic Pumpkin Pie
I know pumpkin pie recipes are a dime a dozen these days, what with it creeping closer to Thanksgiving here in the States and all, but I wouldn’t be any kind of friend if I didn’t share my personal favorite recipe.
I’ve been tweaking it over the years but the last time I made it a few weeks ago, we pretty much all declared it in the category of: perfected (or in other words, don’t keep messing with a good thing).
It’s creamy, lightly sweet, perfectly spiced, and well, it’s just my favorite pumpkin pie recipe.
In the interest of full disclosure, pumpkin pie isn’t really the food of my dreams (like, I don’t crave it in March and would probably rather have a decadent chocolate pie or maybe even banana cream pie any other time of the year) but when it comes to Thanksgiving, pumpkin pie better be there.
And it better be good.
And, since I now have pie on the brain, here are a few of my other much-loved pie recipes:
Banoffee Pie
Toffee Crumble Caramel Apple Pie
Coconut Cream Pie
Bittersweet Chocolate Pudding Pie
Sour Cream Lime Tart {or Pie}
In other news, stay tuned tomorrow for a life changing Thanksgiving recipe that totally took me by surprise (as in, I had no plans to post a recipe like this but couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t).
Also, if you are wanting an extra boost in pie making confidence, check out my Pie Boot Camp Series HERE! The series includes:
All About Pie Making Equipment Essentials
How to Make Pie Crust (Foolproof Recipe, Rolling Out, Crimping + Video Tutorial)
All About Blind Baking + How to Do It and Why (Bonus: Chocolate Ganache Cream Pie Recipe)
Double Crust Pies and How to Make an Easy Lattice Crust (Bonus: Printable for Easy Reference to Sum Up Pie Boot Camp)
One Year Ago: Smoky Corn Chowder
Two Years Ago: Whole Wheat Blender Pancakes {My New Favorite Breakfast!}
Three Years Ago: New York-Style Crumb Cake
Pie Crust: I like to prebake the pie crust; it helps eliminate some of the gummy bottom crust common in pumpkin pie but if that doesn't bother you, you can forego that step and pour the filling into the unbaked pie shell. If you do that, still refrigerate the pie crust for an hour or so after placing it in the pan so it doesn't shrink while baking. Pumpkin: also, if you are using homemade pumpkin puree, make sure it is as smooth as possible (run it through a blender or food processor again). As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.Classic Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
Crust:
Filling:
Instructions
Notes
Recommended Products
I made my first pumpkin pie ever using your recipe (and pie crust too). I really LOVED this pie! It came out beautifully and was SO delicious. I measured everything for the crust carefully (weighed the flour). I used my food processor shredding disk to do the frozen butter and that worked well. The pictures for the crust were a big help. I didn’t have pie weights or beans, so I used parchment and glass marbles. The filling ended up being a bit more than I could fit in the pie crust, but that didn’t really matter (just ended up discarding some, but I totally should have just made a little crustless pie cup or something). The spices for the pumpkin filling really were spot on! Best flavor pumpkin pie I’ve ever had.
I have never been let down by your recipes! Always the best. Thank you!
So proud of you! Thanks for the detailed comment, Caitlin!
Made this for Thanksgiving it was a hit. I couldn’t find heavy whipping cream, so I just used all half and half. And for the spices I use Trader Joe’s pumpkin pie spice in place of all of the other spices. And I actually put it into a deep dish already made pie crust that I pre baked. It was enough to fill the dish all the way up to the top.
Excellent!
Do you use Light or Dark brown sugar?
I use light but you can use either.
I typically am not a pumpkin pie fan. Something about the texture, the flavor, I don’t know what. Just not a fan. Recently my 15 year old son has become obsessed with pie. Every week he requests a new kind of pie. He requested pumpkin pie a few times and I quickly diverted him to another pie, something I’d find more palatable. I even purchased a pumpkin pie from Costco hoping that would fix his pumpkin pie cravings. Nope. He wanted homemade pumpkin pie. I found your recipe and what I found most appealing was your use of heavy cream and half/half, not canned milk. Since I put in the effort, I thought I’d sample it. Holy Hannah! This is the BEST pumpkin pie I have ever eaten. The texture is pleasant and the flavor incredible. Thanks Mel!
I’m so happy to hear this, Sarah! First of all, I love that your 15-year old is obsessed with pie. I love that so much! And I feel the same way as you do about pumpkin pie. This is the only pumpkin pie that gets me excited about it!
So I’ve read that king arthur says the secret ingredient to pumpkin pie is black pepper. Have you any experience with this?
I haven’t…sounds interesting!
I’m glad this has so many good comments, I don’t know what I missing but I cannot imagine how people aren’t burning the crust. 90 minutes of baking!? My crust was dark before I even turn the temperature down to 350 with 45 min to go. And good luck keeping foil strips on a hot pie! The taste is great but my mind boggles at how 90 minutes works for any crust. I’ll take a soft bottom over a black top any day. I’ll try it again another time, with a better pie shield I guess.
Ok, I just finished your recipe. I followed it to exactly. When I took it out of the oven it was beautiful. Just a few minutes later there was a crack. I only mixed in the milk and eggs until just mixed in. Did I over cook it, I cooked it 55 minutes? You said to cook until set. What did you mean? Have not tasted it, but it smells good.
Hmmm, it’s hard to know for sure, but yes, it might have been over cooking, even by just a few minutes that was the culprit for cracking. The good news is you can cover it up with whipped cream!
(forgot the star rating) My husband took one bite and said this was the best pumpkin pie he has ever eaten. After each bite he kept saying we have to save this recipe! Thanks for making me look good:)
So happy to hear that!!
My husband took one bite and said this was the best pumpkin pie he has ever eaten. After each bite he kept saying we have to save this recipe! Thanks for making me look good:)
When making your own pumpkin purée, have you ever used a white pie pumpkin? Curious how it would compare in taste.
I haven’t tried that so I’m not sure.
I made your classic pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving and my son requested it again for Christmas. Your crust method – prebake with the pie weights, then remove the weights and bake a little more to “cook” the center is perfect. I never realized this baking method could make such a profound difference, but it does. The pie is fabulous and I love that the crust is totally baked. High Five, Mel!
Why are the pie crust directions so different on this recipe and your Perfect Pie Crust recipe?? This one says 425 degrees for a shorter time and the the other says 350 degrees for a longer time. It’s very confusing and I ended up burning my crust because of it.
I’m sorry about that, Erin! It really just boils down to a different method for blind baking – the higher temp for shorter vs lower temp for longer. I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you…I’ll add a note to the recipe since I generally use the lower oven temp method more than the higher temp.
So, tried this today, but accidentally used homemade APPLESAUCE instead of homemade pumpkin puree–both were in my mason jars. Crazy thing is, it turned out delicious, too! 🙂 I did find that the filling fit into my pie pan without a crust in it (applesauce version), but not WITH the crust, so I had to do a couple ramekins on the side. In short, very good! It does sit rather heavy–like a rock!–thanks to the whipping cream. But, while it goes down it is tasty and smooth and flavorful. Might try it with half and half next time so I don’t feel like I need to lay down after eating it.
Mel, I have a question about homemade pumpkin puree for this pie. Usually it is thinner than canned, do you ever strain your pumpkin puree to make it thicker when you make a pie?
That’s a good question, Olya. If the homemade puree is quite a bit more watery, then yes, I will strain a bit of the liquid off.
Mel, I don’t know if you respond to these posts after they have been posted awhile. ‘U pumpkin pie is currently cooking in the oven. Few questions, when I was precookinf the pie crust (your recipe), I lined it with foil and filled it with beans to weight it down like it says. When I went to remove the beans the crust kind of stuck to it and there was condensation all over then pie crust. Also some of it was puffed up, even using the weight. I used heavy duty foil (I can’t stand the other stuff, it’s so flimsy), wondering if the lighter foil works better for this with the weights. What do you use? And do you get the condensation? Also after removing the foil and putting back in for the 10 minutes before putting in the filling the crust was really brown, I had to tent it before I put it back in with the filling, has this happened to you? Also one more question, when researching your pies I noticed you always have a pie dish. I only have owned a metal one, so I went on a search and could only find 9.5 inch Pyrex pie dishes everywhere I looked (the store and online) are your plates actually 9.5? With that, my pumpkin filling did not fill up to the top of the crust at all, not sure if it’s because it’s the 9.5″ dish or if the dish is too deep. But when I shopped around that was the size of all the pie plates I saw.
Hi Niki – I use a standard 9-inch pie plate for this pie (not a deep dish 9.5-inch pie plate). Here’s the one I have:
https://www.amazon.com/Pyrex-Glass-Bakeware-Pie-Plate/dp/B000EURKG8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1479946496&sr=8-2&keywords=9-inch+pyrex+pie+plate
So I’m guessing your filling didn’t come up as high because you are using a 9.5-inch dish as compared to the 9-inch pie plate I use. I haven’t had that experience with the foil so maybe it is due to the heavy duty foil. You can help the sticking issue by spraying the bottom of the foil with nonstick cooking spray before weighing it in with pie weights/beans. Hope that helps!
This is the best pumpkin pie I’ve had! It has great flavor, and a wonderful texture. I preferred it cold. I had too much filling for my 9inch pie dish , so I put the rest in two small ramekins and baked them. Those were delicious as well. I am about to make another pie right now!
Just made your pumpkin pie recipe for the first time today. I used real pumpkin puree from pie pumpkins (that was a first, too!). Between the fresh puree and your awesome recipe…I’m converted: I’ll never use the canned stuff or it’s recipe again!
Yummy recipe. I did my grandmothers trick for pumpkin pie though. You bake the crust before, cook the filling on the stove as you would a custard. Put it in the finished crust right before serving. No soggy bottom.
Nice!
Thank you, Mel! I made this for Thanksgiving and got “5 stars” from my family. The filling was light and creamy, more like custard than the traditionally dense (flat) canned recipe. Just a side note, every recipe I’ve used from your site has been excellent.
Thanks for letting me know, Jen! Happy Thanksgiving!
Can this pie be baked the night before and stored in the fridge overnight to be served the very next day?
Yes, I think that would work just fine.
My little boy really wanted to make a pie from a real pumpkin, so we did the whole process and used this recipe. We both loved it, but it was even better the next day after being chilled overnight. Perfect to do in advance before the holiday dinner. Thanks for the amazing recipes!
My family too placed this pumpkin pie in the category of perfect! Thank you so much for the instruction to put the pie crust in the fridge for an hour before baking to decrease shrinkage. My crust (actually yours) has never came out of the oven so pretty in much the same shape as it was before putting it in the oven. This will be my covered dish for our first covered dish Christmas party invited to early December. Your gifts of delicious food, humor, and experienced motherly wisdom add such wonderfulness and delight to me and my family.
Love you, Sheila! Thanks for all of your sweet comments all of the time.
Same recipe my grandmother would make. Her secret though was to make the filling on the stove top like a custard.chill in fridge. On thanksgiving she would put it in the baked crust right before serving. No more soggy bottom crust.
my sweetie says: absolutely the best pie i have ever had and the crust (yours mel) is superb!
Not my fave, but do enjoy this time of year if it’s really cold and topped with whipped cream. Hubby loves it along w/his fave Pecan! Usually do the Libby’s recipe, but will try yours this year
Could I use Pumpkin Spice instead of spices listed? And if so, how much?
I’m not sure; you’d have to experiment since each brand of pumpkin pie spice is a little different.
Thank you for adding vanilla to your pumpkin pie recipe. That was always my mom’s “secret ingredient”, and it made the pie taste so much better than any I have ever tasted. I will definitely try your recipe this Thanksgiving, and I am so sure it will not disappoint! Thanks, Mel.
Your pies are the very best! Two of our very favorites are the Banoffee Pie and the Sour Cream Lime Tart. Decisions, Decisions! I was going to make your Toffee Crumble Caramel Apple Pie but maybe now I should make this highly recommended pumpkin pie. I don’t have time to do both. How can you be so wonderful, Mel, yet cause such upheaval in my life?? 🙂
That pie looks really similar to my Grandma’s recipe, which is my absolute favourite pumpkin pie recipe! This looks really close though which is kind of funny!
My kids didn’t like pumpkin pie, until Aunt Myrtle told me how to make it yummy. Follow the recipe on the Libby pumpkin can, then melt one stick of butter and stir it in. Now the kids love pumpkin pie. Hope you will try it. We love your recipes.
Mel, I could just hug you right now! I am in charge of making some pumpkin pies for Thanksgiving and checked your blog last week and was panicked when I didn’t find a recipe! When I saw your post today I knew you had read my mind of needing a fabulous pumpkin pie recipe!!! Thank you, thank you!!!
Could I sub all cream for the equivalent (or slightly less) milk? Husband is allergic to dairy, so my go-to milk must be almond, cashew, or coconut. Yes, I could probably sub full-fat coconut milk but the results would be coconut pumpkin pie, not pumpkin pie. 😉
Thank you, Mel! Your recipes are repeat winners! 🙂
I haven’t tried it that way but I think you could definitely try it. The cream definitely gives a luxurious creaminess so I wouldn’t sub that out.
There is nothing like the classics. However—- I can’t stop thinking about pumpkin cheesecake, since you posted that a little while ago.
We adore pumpkin pie all year long, so this one looks like a must try….and if it’s as perfect as your perfect yellow cake, well, it must be wonderful!
Thank you! I don’t prefer pumpkin pie, but my husband loves it. We are doing Thanksgiving with my family this year, and we never have it, but he had begged me for it. I asked my MIL for her recipe, and it turns out she just buys canned filling. I am glad to now gave a tried and true recipe from a trusted source! Thanks for saving me and helping me win brownie points:-)
I just love when recipes show up and it happens to be exactly what i need. That happens a lot by the way. You’re amazing!
I feel the same way… pumpkin pie is not my top choice of pies, but the month of November isn’t the same without a big ole’ slice. My brother, on the other hand, loves pumpkin pie, in fact it is the *only* pie he will eat (so it often makes an appearance in the spring at Easter dinner)!
Mel, i know you found the perfect pumpmpkin pie and i will try your recipe. But, i recently made a pumpkin pie that used mascarpone cheese in place of the usual evaporated milk or cream. Totally sublime! I thought that i found my new favorite pumpkin pie recipe. However, your recipes have never ever failed me and now i must ,in the interest of fairness, try your pie. My thighs do not thank you, but i do.
Yum, that sounds amazing, Cyndi!
This looks delicious, Mel! I’m not a huge pie fan, but my Thanksgiving menu wouldn’t be complete without pumpkin pie. I usually buy one, but I’m going to make your recipe this year! Thanks for all the hard work you do perfecting your recipes!