I have a confession: Trying new recipes for Thanksgiving is not my thing. In fact, when the time comes to prep my dad's legendary pumpkin chiffon pie, nothing delights me more than the same old same old.
There are certain dishes that pull so hard at our heartstrings, the secrets to conjure the foods that define us and our family traditions, they nearly barrel us over with love. This pie is one of those dishes, a dessert that signifies togetherness. Do you have one of these recipe narratives in your life? What's your family's signature dish?
My dad, Richard, first encountered this recipe while shooting a Thanksgiving spread for Saveur magazine, over a decade ago. He's a photographer as well, although I didn't know this part of the recipe origin story until this year. Known for his images of museums, historic spaces throughout the world and most recently, a body of work addressing incarcerated juveniles, food was about the farthest thing from his repertoire. He shot the pie and accompanying Thanksgiving meal in New York anyway, typifying his photo motto of "Say 'Yes' then figure it out later." He also tasted the pie that would define our family's Thanksgiving meals for years to come.
What's so great about this pie? To put it simply, it's ruined me for every other pumpkin pie out there. I can't eat any pumpkin related confection because it just makes me wish for my dad's pie.
You know the hallmark traits of some traditional recipes for pumpkin pie? High density, low flavor filling met by a pasty white crust? This version trumps tradition with its impossibly light 'chiffon' (just saying the word makes me feel buoyant!) texture throughout the lightly spiced filling and the shattering crusty, vanilla sweetness of a Nilla wafer crust. This pie, it's poetry.
I know I'm being challenging when I declare this pie the best, and probably you have your own dearest pumpkin pie recipe, but Thanksgiving calls for bold statements and it calls for family favorites. If you're looking to change it up this year, throw this recipe into your mix. You'll be pleasantly surprised at the light, mousse–like filling and the strong vanilla crust.
Dad's Legendary Pumpkin Chiffon Pie
adapted from Saveur
makes 2 pies
For the crust:
4 cups crushed Nilla wafer cookies (a rough texture with unevenly sized pieces is fine)
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
For the pie filling:
3 teaspoons unflavored gelatin
1/4 cup Cointreau or Drambuie
1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup sugar and 1/3 cup sugar, divided
3 egg yolks, lightly beaten
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 egg whites
Fresh whipped cream, to serve
Prepare the crust:
Preheat oven to 400°F. In a large bowl, combine the cookie crumbs, butter, sugar and salt. Press mixture firmly into 2 9-inch pie pans (if you have any extra mixture left over, you can press this into muffin tins with great results).
Bake for 10 minutes, and cool on a wire rack.
Make the filling:
In a small bowl sprinkle the unflavored gelatin over 1/4 cup Cointreau to soften for 5 minutes. Set the mixture over a bowl of hot water and stir until the gelatin is dissolved.
In a heavy saucepan whisk together the pumpkin puree, heavy cream and 1/2 cup of sugar, 3 egg yolks, the cinnamon, ground ginger, nutmeg, allspice and salt and cook the mixture over moderately low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spatula for 10 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a bowl, stir in the gelatin mixture, and let the mixture cool.
In a large bowl beat 4 egg whites until they hold soft peaks (see this video for a clear idea of what you're looking for). Beat in the remaining 1/3 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time, beating the meringue until it holds stiff peaks, and fold this meringue into the partially cooled pumpkin mixture.
Assemble:
Pour the filling into the baked shells and chill the pie, lightly covered, for at least 6 hours. Garnish with plenty of fresh whipped cream.
Related: Ginger Pumpkin Pie with Graham Cracker Crust
(Images: Leela Cyd Ross)
A Real Dinner, Fast: 5 Favorite Types of Almost-No-Work Meals
How To Cook Tender, Chewy Wheat Berries on the Stovetop
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Straw Mat from The ...
Must-See Small Cool Homes: Week Two
Beth's Romantic & Retro Residence
Sounds delicious, although I wouldn't serve raw eggs to children or anyone with a compromised immune system. Another option would be to modify with a pasturized egg white product so that everyone can enjoy it.
My boss described her pumpkin pie recipe, which sounds so similar, and was clipped from the paper by her mother as Mamie Eisenhower's!
My thoughts were along the same lines - what happens if you then cook this pie (for ~30-40 min?), instead of immediately chilling it?
I should add, though, that this recipe looks awesome! I'm just a little uncertain about the raw egg whites
Pasteurized egg whites are available at most grocery stores in cartons.
Every year my mother says she is bored of this pie and won't be making it again. Not a chance mom, as far as we are concerned without the pie we might as well cancel thanksgiving!
I have pumpkin pie spice. Can I sub that in for the spices listed?
Follow up: the word from my father is that my mother has been making this pie for over 25 years! No wonder I can't imagine thanksgiving without it!
BeTheBuddha, i don't recommend subbing pumpkin pie spice, i tried it one year and it just didn't taste the same, not as bright in flavor.
If you're worried about raw egg whites just put them and the sugar in a double boiler setup over medium heat, whisk constantly until they come up to 150F, then put into your stand mixer (I use the mixer bowl over the boiler) or use a hand mixer to whip them up to stiff peaks. The result is the same.
This is also how swiss meringue butter cream starts.
I'm definitely thinking about making this delightful pie for Thanksgiving! Thanks for the recipe!
I believe the filling is cooked for at least 10 minutes. I think you might go a little longer if concerned.
When other say "I hate pumpkin pie" they have not had this. They are going back to a memory bank of dense, flavorless filling...This is like manna from the pumpkin gods.
Is 1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree correct--seems like not much pumpkin for 2 pies. Just checking!
I am completely with you! We have a few traditional Thanksgiving dishes that cannot be messed with. In fact, my first Thanksgiving with my husbands family, they humored me and let me make my mom's sage and pork sausage stuffing. It wouldn't have been Thanksgiving without it! The other dish that cannot be messed with is my grandpa's cranberry relish. He's been passed and gone for many years, but we still enjoy his recipes at our Thanksgiving table. :)
Our Thanksgiving dinners also never change, which is unfortunately why this recipe -- as delicious as it sounds -- won't get tried. The family would mutiny if the pies changed.
To those worried about the eggs, just buy pasteurized. Here's a common brand: Safest Choice Pasteurized Egg Store Locator.
Musts: Potato rolls. Oyster dressing (Dad's side of family) AND cornbread dressing (mom's side of family). Old school pumpkin pie AND (ick) sweet potato pie for in-laws. It seems everyone in my crew has must-have carbs. I finally got to ditch the greenbean/Funyun/mushroom soup stuff when that person who had to have it moved far far away.
New Table!
@dadu: the filling is made in 2 seperate steps, then combined. The egg white mixture is not cooked, the egg yolk mixture is cooked, then cooled, then both combined. That alone won't bring the whites up to a 'safe' temperature.
It's not just for Thanksgiving but for all family dinner events--my mom's Lemon Cheesecake. No other cheesecake is the same. I eat other people's cheesecake only out of politeness. ;-)
Really want to make this, but I'm a vegetarian, so I usually skip gelatin. Think this would work with kosher gelatin?
Any suggestions for subbing out the liquor? It's an allergy thing and so I prefer not to cook with it, would a little orange juice, apple cider vinegar, or even water work since it's such a small amount?
Also, being a vegetarian, erg gelatin! haven't tried any kosher gelatins, they're usually made with fish bones. Does anyone have suggestions?
@KatyD - Try using Agar, it's a vegan gelatin substitute made from algae
I made this last night and it turned out great!! The only thing I changed was that I used a vegan option for gelatin and I don't think it worked as well. The pie filling is more like a mousse, but it's still amazing - I served it to my friends last night and they LOVED it!! Couldn't get enough! Thanks for passing along your recipe!! Legendary indeed!
Oh my goodness - just made it tonight and will go into our thanksgiving perma rotation! So delish. I'm celiac so made a crust of gluten free ginersnaps/pecans and it really added a lot to the pie Thanks for the great recipe - raw eggs be damned ;)
This recipe is so much like my favorite pumpkin pie from my youth 60 years ago.. My mom and I made it every year several times along with a similar production, lemon chiffon pie. I haven't made it in several years because of the egg white problem. Do the pasteurized egg whites whip up like raw egg whites do? Do the whites heated to 150 degrees whip up as well? I like to make egg nog during the holidays but hesitate because of the egg white issue.