Marion’s Best Pumpkin Pie

Preheat the oven to 170C/340F and line a large baking dish with greaseproof paper.

Carefully remove the skin and seeds from the pumpkin, then cut the flesh into roughly 4cm (1.5”) pieces. Add to the lined baking dish, drizzle with oil and toss to coat. Spread pumpkin out evenly. Next, cover the dish tightly with foil and transfer to oven. Roast for 35-40 minutes or until soft and tender. Remove from oven (keep the oven on for later) and set aside to cool.

In the meantime, to make the two-minute sweetcrust pastry, place the flour, icing sugar mixture, salt and butter into a food processor. Pulse for about 20-30 seconds or until you can see a breadcrumb consistency. Now turn the food processor onto medium speed and slowly drizzle in the cold water. Continue blending until a loose dough forms.

Tip the mixture onto a lightly floured surface and press the dough together. Divide the dough into two (one portion will be for the pie crust and the other will be for the decorative braid). For the braid, take one-third of the dough and set aside. Press the remaining portion into a thick disc, wrap with cling film and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Now it’s on to the pastry braid. Take a large sheet of greaseproof paper. Using a 28cm (11”) pie dish, make a template by turning the dish over onto the paper and tracing its circular outline. Remove the pie dish. Take a 23cm (9”) plate and place that within the circle you’ve traced on the paper and trace a smaller circle to form a ring template. Flip the paper over so you don’t get any ink on your pastry and place onto a chopping board or baking tray that will fit in your freezer or fridge.

Take 3 walnut-sized portions of dough and roll each into ropes roughly half a centimetre (3/16”)  in diameter. Transfer the ropes to the greaseproof paper and use them to form a braid (it helps to start in the middle). Don’t make it too tight, as the pastry will expand while it cooks. Place the braid onto the ring template. Roll out 3 more pieces of rope and attach them to the braid you’ve started, making sure you have a nice seal. Continue the braid around the circular template. Repeat with remaining dough until the circular braid is completed (watch the video here to see how it’s done). Transfer the entire board or tray to your freezer for 15 minutes or your fridge for 30 minutes to firm up the dough.

To make the pie crust, take the remaining pastry out of the refrigerator and bring to a cool room temperature. Spray the pie dish with oil. Sprinkle some flour on a bench top and roll out the pastry to about 3mm (about ⅛”) thickness. Roll onto a rolling pin to make it easier to transfer to the greased pie dish. Gently allow the pastry to fall into the dish. If you have some cracks you can fix them by squishing the pastry back together (it is a very forgiving pastry). Cut off any excess pastry from the lip of the pie dish. Chill the base in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Once chilled, brush the pie crust rim with the egg wash (keep what’s remaining for later) to act as a ‘glue’, then carefully top with the braided ring. Line the pastry with baking paper and pour in baking weights and/or raw rice. Bake for 30 minutes. Once done, remove the weights and paper and return the pie case to the oven for a further 15 minutes until the pastry is golden brown.In the meantime, place the cooked and cooled pumpkin into the bowl of a food processor along with the brown sugar, condensed milk, cinnamon, ground ginger, nutmeg, cloves and salt. Blend on high speed until smooth. Pour out into a sieve over a large mixing bowl. Use a spatula to pass the mixture through the sieve to remove any lumps. To help with the *no cracks situation*, you want to add the eggs in gradually so you don’t incorporate lots of air into the mix. Crack one of the eggs into a small bowl and whisk lightly. Add to the pumpkin mix, then whisk very lightly until just combined. Repeat with remaining eggs.

Reduce the oven temperature to 125C/260F. Pour the spiced pumpkin filling into the cooked pie crust. Brush the braided crust with the remaining egg wash. Once the oven has lowered to the correct temperature, bake the pie for 1 hour and 20 minutes or until the filling is set at the edges and just slightly wobbly in the centre.

Allow to cool until room temperature, then place in the fridge overnight before serving. Serve with whipped cream.