Jamaican-Spiced Pumpkin Pie
Pumpkin pie with a hint of the islands. Enjoy a seasonal favorite with a twist, flavored with coconut milk and rum.
I’ve been seeing pumpkin recipes popping up left and right for well over a month now. I’ve been protesting posting anything pumpkin related simply because I felt it was too soon. There wasn’t enough apple love. I was seriously sad with the lack of new apple recipes floating around. October is apple month after all so clearly people should have embraced the fruit of the month and had a blast with it. Pumpkin was the obvious winner and has been in so many eyes. That’s definitely not how I feel (eh hem… I have a serious obsession with apples) but now that we’re less than a week from Halloween I’m totally okay with making and sharing pumpkin recipes.
I’ve had my eye on this recipe for a while. In fact, I tore it out of a magazine and stashed it in my baking binder a while back. If I remember correctly, it’s also been featured on the main page of the Fine Cooking website. It called out to me, needing to be made (when the time was right). You see… I’ve only made one pumpkin pie in my life. It wasn’t the best. Something strange happened while baking and a funny film formed. You won’t be seeing that recipe appear here anytime soon. Normally I stick to making a pumpkin cheesecake because it’s easy and well loved. Why bother with a pie if I know the cheesecake is a winner? But, I think everyone needs a good stash of pie recipes which meant I still needed a go-to pumpkin pie recipe.
I had issues with the pie crust from the recipe so I used my favorite easy recipe. Butter only fans may cringe that I made crust with shortening and that’s fine. Make whatever crust you’re happy with. We all have a favorite. I’m sure the original recipe would have worked if I had pie weights. I don’t. That caused a huge issue since the recipe called for the crust to be baked prior to making. In the end I cheated using a different recipe and *gasp* not even baking it prior to baking the actual pie. I know I say this all of the time but trust me – this worked fine! In fact, it reduces the overall prep time by over an hour! Big plus if you ask me.
Having only made one pumpkin pie before I haven’t the slightest clue how liquid they usually start out. I’m sure they’re all very different depending on the ingredients – obviously. This one was very soupy going into the oven. Thankfully not a drop spilled from the pie plate. A trip or a nudge the wrong way and we would have had serious problems. Even when the baking sheet in the oven popped I was a big scared. I quickly turned on the oven light and sighed in relief – it was okay.
The end result was fantastic according to the Mr. Even the girls approved. I definitely give it a big thumbs up knowing that it was a hit and turned out so well… even with the issues or concerns along the way. If you want a pumpkin pie that is a little different from the traditional, do try this. I guarantee you won’t be disappointed.
Jamaican-Spiced Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
Crust:
- 1 1/2 C all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 C shortening
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3-4 Tbsp ice water
Filling ingredients:
- 15 oz pumpkin puree
- 1 1/4 C unsweetened coconut milk
- 3/4 C light brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 3/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg
- 4 large eggs room temperature
- 2 Tbsp spiced rum
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- To make the pie crust; in a small bowl add flour and salt, cut in shortening. Using a fork or pastry cutter, work the ingredients until it is blended together. Add vanilla followed by 3-4 tbsp very cold water. Mix until just barely tacky. Roll out dough between sheets of plastic wrap or wax paper until it is large enough around to fit your pie plate.
- Carefully remove one side of plastic wrap or wax paper. Place your hand under the covered side of dough, flip onto pie plate. Push gently to pie plate and remove remaining plastic wrap or wax paper. Trim edges as needed. Make decorative edge if desired. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix together the first seven filling ingredients (pumpkin, coconut milk, sugar and spices). Add eggs and rum. Mix until smooth. Pour into pie crust.
- Bake at 425°F for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350°F. Bake an additional 45 minutes or until center only jiggles slightly.
- Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
