As much as I am a totalfreakforpumpkinalmost-everything, I was never much of a pumpkin pie fan. It just … almost always has seemed a little mushy and, honestly, unremarkable to me. And with so many otherpieoptions out there, why bother?
But thanks to this pie, that statement is past-tense. Was never a fan. Totally am now. Of this pumpkin pie.
This vanilla praline pumpkin pie, with its little specks of vanilla beans everywhere. This pumpkin pie with its rich filling and its perfectly sweet, wonderfully crunchy pecan topping.
Two things in particular make this recipe stand out. First, it makes use of both canned pumpkin and fresh pureed pumpkin. By using both, you get all the best qualities of each. This isn’t a discovery I happened across in my own kitchen; it’s a bit of wisdom from Leslie Mackie, author of the Macrina Bakery & Cafe Cookbook.
I have, however, made the pie with only canned and only fresh, and while it was still good, there really is something extra special that happens when you combine the two.
The second thing – the clincher – in this recipe is without a doubt all that sweet, heady vanilla. I use vanilla bean paste (such an awesome product) but you could easily substitute seeds scraped from a vanilla bean and vanilla extract in lieu of the paste.
So, so good. Pumpkin pie perfection. Consider me a convert.
I’m joining TidyMom and Whirlpool for the 4th Annual Love the Pie Party and entered to win a new Whirlpool Gold® Induction Range. How cool is that prize?! I can’t wait to see all the amazing pie recipes the participants have come up with. Come join Love the Pie with TidyMom sponsored by Whirlpool and enter to win a new Whirlpool Range.
Full of vanilla flavor and topped with a perfectly sweet, wonderfully crunchy pecan topping, this pumpkin pie is out-of-this-world. It even won over a pumpkin pie hater!