Pumpkin pie is cranked up a notch with a splash of bourbon and a highly addictive salted brown butter pecan streusel.
You know how I got all crazy enthusiastic for Thanksgiving and posted a Balsamic Raspberry Cranberry Sauce the other day? Well I was just getting started. Today I have a pumpkin pie recipe!
I honestly think it’s too bad that pumpkin pie is only out and about for Thanksgiving. Why can’t we have it for Christmas or Easter? Canned pumpkin is around all year round, right?
And who doesn’t love pumpkin pie? It is so creamy and cool, and not too heavy after all of that turkey. And full of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger…the most comforting, delicious spices! And it is so flipping easy to make. After making a turkey, I have no time for complicated frou frou fancy pants stuff. Just a good old simple pumpkin pie.
This year, I decided to amp up the usual pumpkin pie with a splash of bourbon, and a sprinkling of the most amazing, addictive streusel you will ever taste.
These photos…. I chose the darkest morning ever to photograph this pie, then of course after I had cleaned everything up, the sun came out. Whyyyyy.
So my ISO was cranked to an embarrassingly high number and I am so not happy with these photos but I don’t have the time/energy to make another pie {that would make four pumpkin pies in two weeks…just no}. So to distract you from the grainy underexposed disastrous photos, here’s a GIF:
My first pumpkin pie creation was actually a pecan-pumpkin pie, but it was just not right. The pecan pie top part of the pie sank into the bottom pumpkin pie and it was a gooey yucky mess. Not good.
Instead I decided to make a streusel, and to make sure that it doesn’t sink into the pumpkin pie while it bakes, I added it towards the end of baking. So you end up with two separate pie identities. Very important stuff.
So here’s the Cliff Notes version of this pie:
Bourbon + Pumpkin pie. Not too much bourbon, there is just a teeny tiny hint of it. Feel free to leave it out if your kiddos will be eating it.
The streusel. I die. Brown butter + brown sugar, some flour and pecans. Sprinkled with sea salt. It’s like crack…you will be fending off wayward streusel-chunk-seeking-hands, and wondering if streusel is similar enough to granola that you can get away with sprinkling it on your breakfast yogurt. Maybe that last one is just me?
Guys: Best. Pumpkin. Pie. Ever.
End of story.
{pie outtake}
Bourbon Pumpkin Pie with a Salted Brown Butter Pecan Streusel
- One 9-inch unbaked pie crust {in a 9-inch pie plate}
- 2 eggs
- 1¾ cup pumpkin puree
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp bourbon
- ½ cup evaporated milk {or heavy/whipping cream}
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- ½ cup pecans, coarsely chopped
- Pre-heat oven to 425°F.
- In a large bowl, beat the eggs. Mix in all remaining pie ingredients and mix until smooth and completely combined.
- Pour into pie crust.
- Bake for 15 minutes at 425°F for 15 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350°F and bake for another 30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, sprinkle with the streusel {see directions below}, then return to the oven for another 10 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the middle of the pie comes out clean.
- Allow to cool.
- In a small pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Continue to cook the butter, swirling and occasionally scraping the bottom of the pan with a spoon, until it bubbles and turns a light golden brown color. Butter should smell nutty and have small brown bits.
- Transfer to a new dish, making sure to get all the little brown bits. Allow to cool slightly.
- Add the brown sugar and stir until no lumps remain. Add the salt and flour, and mix until well combined. Stir in the pecans.
- Using a couple of forks, 'crumble' the mixture over the pumpkin pie before returning it to the oven for the last 10 minutes {see above}.
Pumpkin pie filling recipe adapted from e.d. Smith
