A pie for Roy

Roy is not anyone that I personally know.  I just know of him.  More about Roy later.

Pumpkin Pie Spectacular
from November 2009 Southern Living, adapted to the way I made it

1 deep-dish 9-inch pie crust (buy it or make your own)

2 cups crushed gingersnaps (about 40 gingersnaps)
1 cup pecans, finely chopped
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 (15-oz.) can pumpkin
1 (14-oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger


Pecan Streusel (see below)
Ginger-Spice Topping (see further below)




Preheat oven to 350°. Fit piecrust into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate according to package directions; fold edges under, and crimp.


Stir together crushed gingersnaps and next 3 ingredients. Press mixture on bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of piecrust, to make a crust-within-a-crust.  Yum.


Bake at 350° for 10 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack (about 30 minutes).

Watch the rerun episode of The Office where Jim and Pam start dating.  Sigh profusely and wish the happy couple lots of joy.


Stir together pumpkin and next 6 ingredients until well blended. Pour into prepared crust. Place pie on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet.  If there's extra batter, pour it into little souflee cups or a smaller pie pan to bake with the rest.


Bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Sprinkle Pecan Streusel around edge of crust. Bake 40 to 45 minutes more or until set, shielding edges with aluminum foil during last 25 to 30 minutes of baking, if necessary. Let cool completely on a wire rack (about 1 hour). Dollop slices with Ginger-Spice Topping.


PECAN STRUESEL
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter, melted
3/4 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

Stir together flour, brown sugar, melted butter, and chopped pecans.

GINGER-SPICE TOPPING
1 pint heavy whipping cream
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Beat whipping cream with mixer at high speed until soft peaks form.  Stir in cinnamon and ginger.  (Substitute frozen whipped topping if desired - just stir in the cinnamon and ginger).

I made this pie for Thanksgiving (yeah, so I'm a little late in posting the recipe).  It was definitely a process (3 hours of process actually), but worth every minute.  The gingersnap crust-within-a-crust is incredible, and the struesel on top is like candy.  Hmmm.  So good.

I would like to dedicate this pie to Mr. Roy Blount Jr.  The name may sound familiar to those of you who listen to Wait Wait Don't Tell Me, the NPR news quiz that airs on weekends.  He's an occasional guest on there, as well as appearing on Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion every so often.  He is perhaps the dryest, funniest Southerner I've ever heard.  I encourage you to google him or find him on youtube, just for the sake of hearing a genius with a Southern accent (they're not as rare as some think).  My favorite essay of his, and the reason I'm dedicating this pie to him, is called "The Way Folks Were Meant To Eat." 

Try it out (the pie or Mr. Roy Blount Jr., I don't care which).

And let me know what you think.