The Milk in Pumpkin Pie Debate
[Photograph: Robyn Lee]
Since it's never too early to start talking pumpkin pie, here's a question: the milk part. The piemakers over in Talk are split as to what kind of milk should go into the filling. While some recipes skip milk altogether, others range from whole milk to sweetened condensed to evaporated to even coconut milk. Usually the answer has something to do with whatever your mom or grandma did. Anyone especially passionate about a certain type of milk?
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30 Comments:
evaporated... just like mom and nana... hmm, coconut or almond sound nice.
honeybea at 8:52PM on 11/02/09
I prefer making a traditional custard with whole milk or cream and eggs. Not a big fan of condensed or sweetened condensed milk.
WickedGoodDinner at 9:00PM on 11/02/09
Soy milk. I SWEAR by soy milk. It gives it the thickness like whole milk but it doesn't spoil the pumpkin-ness of a pumpkin pie.
fritesandfries at 9:06PM on 11/02/09
i use evaporated milk because ma did but i'm not married to the idea. I don't make it in a crust and prefer it with the meal rather than after so I'm certainly open to new recipes.
christopher at 9:09PM on 11/02/09
I swear by whole milk and eggs as well. Makes a beautiful pumpkin pie...
FriedaW at 9:16PM on 11/02/09
Heh, I always end up using cream in my pumpkin pies. (It's what the recipe calls for and I've never questioned it)
blisseau at 9:41PM on 11/02/09
Soymilk. It's good and great if you're like me and can't "do" milk.
greenteacups at 10:14PM on 11/02/09
i actually recently saw a recipe that used melted vanilla ice cream as the milk element! haven't tried it yet, but it certainly caught my gluttonous attention :)
rebeccadiamond at 10:19PM on 11/02/09
I use Egg Nog. It's awesome.
Patrick_777 at 10:21PM on 11/02/09
I must live under a rock because I never heard about using sweetened condensed milk for pumpkin pie. I love the stuff, so I will try it.
In the past, I have used cream or evaporated milk.
LearP at 11:34PM on 11/02/09
i use cream ... but coconut milk sounds good..... i love pumpkin pie!!! with a touch of orange rind .....
pooch at 11:53PM on 11/02/09
I use 3/4 cup light cream and four eggs. Plus fresh ginger, cardomom, and dark rum.
The pie in the photo looks like wedge of shortbread with orange icing.
salpico at 12:13AM on 11/03/09
Before the Internet and the Food Network came along, I had never heard of using anything except evaporated milk for pumpkin pies. Since then, I've tried whole milk, cream and half-and-half and always come back to evaporated milk. I like the subtle creamy flavor it imparts and I love the body it gives to the pumpkin custard--dense without being heavy. Plus it's cheap.
But now I'll have to try it with egg nog. It sounds too good to pass up. Thanks, Patrick_777.
I quit adding any spices except cinnamon and a dash of nutmeg because I like my pies to taste like pumpkin. I save the ginger and cloves, etc. for gingerbread and gingersnaps.
betteirene at 12:59AM on 11/03/09
I stand by my original contention in the other thread - sweetened condensed milk makes a very rich, velvety pie... my mom and I have tried evaporated but didn't care for it as much. It's hard to put a finger on it, but the sweetened condensed just does something wonderful for it IMHO. Of course, I'm open to other ideas that I haven't yet tried - pumpkin pie rocks in most any incarnation! (Like melted vanilla ice cream? *swoon*).
PinkCupcake at 1:17AM on 11/03/09
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dongdong at 3:16AM on 11/03/09
I've never used anything but evaporated milk, though the other options sound interesting, especially sweetened condensed milk.
IndyGal at 4:40AM on 11/03/09
Used milk only once - it was a mistake. Use evaporated whole milk. Wouldn't use condensed milk because I use honey to sweeten the pie.
I'm intrigued by the idea of soy milk, because I think chocolate silk makes absolutely the best chocolate pudding.
lemonfair at 6:27AM on 11/03/09
Santini evaporated milk. Look for it in Whole Foods and sometimes Trader Joe's has it. I will have to try the soy and see how it comes out. That would be nice for vegan guests.
angelfood at 6:30AM on 11/03/09
Looking at the picture, I'm wondering if we need a crust discussion too. That's an awful lot of crust for the amount of filling.
I make a thin pastry crust for guests or for taking places. For myself I just put a layer of crushed graham crackers on the bottom (no added butter or sugar) and pour the custard on to the crackers very carefully. The graham crackers meld with the custard and help the pieces come out cleanly, while making the "pie" more of an everyday pudding.
lemonfair at 6:37AM on 11/03/09
Honestly, it doesn't matter to me. At the end of the baking does the pie taste good? Yes? You have succeeded no matter what you used.
feep at 7:54AM on 11/03/09
Cream. Evaporated milk sounds like an intriguing alternative...
avaryne at 8:22AM on 11/03/09
I have some "real" pumpkins I am going to try this year. First time ever. So we will see if there really is any big difference. The recipe I use is loaded with spices and Cream, yep, real cream so I doubt the real pumpkin will shine through any more brilliantly than a can of Libby's real pumpkin. We will see. Unless, I decided to back off the variety of spices???? That is the question bumping around in my brain. Anyone have any great recipes using the real thing please send them to me at Amy@AmyRuthBakes.com. I love all the ideas shared. Thanks
AmyRuth
AmyRuth at 8:46AM on 11/03/09
Evaporated milk. Crosby's molasses. And One-Pie brand pumpkin from Maine. (There was a massive crop failure with the one-pie growers, so I grabbed last year's cans as soon as I heard--it is impossible to find now.)
minddancez at 9:08AM on 11/03/09
Always have used evaporated milk like my mom and gramma. Am intrigued by the idea of coconut milk -- but my family hates it when I experiment on the holidays!
Jilly at 11:45AM on 11/03/09
Heavy cream, and if I can't find it in the store, half and half is the second choice. The taste and mouthfeel can't be beat. Evaporated milk, IMHO, has a chemical/tinny taste that even the spices in pumpkin pie can't hide.
I've been using this riff on the recipe on the back of the Libby's can for years, and I've gotten nothing but raves:
Use 1/3 cup dark brown sugar & 2/3 cup white sugar instead of all white
Use 1-1/2 cups heavy cream instead of evaporated milk (half & half is OK)
Double the spices, and heap the spoons a bit & add a teaspoon of nutmeg
Use 3 eggs instead of two
Add a teaspoon of vanilla
MMinNYC at 5:22PM on 11/03/09
I like half and half or evaporated milk. I also like to play around with the crust--ginger snap or a cream cheese pastry crust. Sometimes I'll incorporate nuts into the crust also--depends on my mood and what's in the pantry.
dhorst at 5:34PM on 11/03/09
My husband's great-grandmother's recipe (definitely now my go-to recipe) uses both evaporated milk and whole milk and way more spices than I've ever used in any other recipe. The result is rich and spicy--everyone who's tried it loves it.
jennusf at 7:42PM on 11/03/09
Pumpkin pie isn't a tradition in my family, so I can change it up however I want. But I generally prefer coconut milk.
piccola at 7:51AM on 11/04/09
Purists use double cream (whole milk reduced by half), but evaporated milk is a good choice too. Plain pumpkin pie is very boring. Experiment with some different crusts and amendments. I like a layered apple-pumpkin pie with fresh whipped vanilla cream and a nutty crust.
ChefR0bert at 11:36AM on 11/04/09
My 7-spice pumpkin pie = sugar, salt, cardamom, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon. Add some pure vanilla extract as well.
ChefR0bert at 11:38AM on 11/04/09