The Pilgrim Pumpkin Pie

The Mayflower left Plymouth, England in September, 1620, with 102 passengers and 30 crew members on board. During the 66-day voyage, the Pilgrims faced treacherous storms, two deaths and one birth.

On November 11, 1620, the Mayflower reached what is now Provincetown Harbor on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Winter set in quickly, during which time more than half of the pilgrims died. And those who survived had only 5 kernels of corn a day on which to live.

In early autumn of 1621, the 53 surviving Pilgrims celebrated their successful harvest with what is remembered as the “First Thanksgiving in Plymouth.” Their celebration included the great Indian king Massasoit and 90 of his men.

While pictures of this celebration usually include pumpkin pie, there were no milled flours for making a fine pie crust, no sugar and no spices. Their “Pumpkin pie” was most likely served as custard baked inside a pumpkin.

My family traditionally enjoys this kind of pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving. My youngest started clamoring for one when Halloween pumpkins first hit the market. These are easy to bake and impressive to serve.

1. Start by selecting a small sugar (baking) pumpkin. If your pumpkin is too big it will take too long to bake the custard through. Since you will be eating the pumpkin, be sure to wash the outside of the pumpkin as well.
2. Preheat your oven to 350. You need a moderate oven so the pumpkin won’t burn before the custard is cooked through.

3. While the oven is heating up, prepare your pumpkin and your custard:
   • Carve off the top nicely- you’ll want to put the top back on for baking and serving.
   • Clean out and scrape the inside lid & walls of the pumpkin very well. You will end up eating any stringiness you leave inside the pumpkin.
4. Make your favorite custard recipe or combine in a pan:
   
   • 6 eggs
   • 2 cups heavy whipping cream
   • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
   • 1 tablespoon molasses
   • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
   • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
   • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
   • 1 tablespoon butter
5. Cook over a low heat stirring constantly until warmed (but not cooked or thickened) and then pour the mixture into the pumpkin. This helps the custard cook evenly without overcooking the pumpkin.


6. Replace the lid on top of the pumpkin and stand the pumpkin in a shallow baking dish with a small amount of water at the bottom. Place in the center of your preheated oven. It should take 60-90 minutes to bake through. You will need to check the custard for doneness to be sure. The custard should look mostly set when you remove it from the oven.

It’s most impressive to serve the pumpkin warm but can also be made a day ahead and refrigerated. When you serve it, you slice it like an apple. Each slice has some custard in the center and the fresh baked pumpkin on the edge. It’s not nearly as sweet as the pumpkin pie we’ve come to know, but this “pie” will make your friends and family thankful they came to your table for this celebration.

My wish is that you and your family have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Eat Well,

Dawn