Pumpkin Pie is a traditional North American sweet dessert associated with Thanksgiving Day and has a 400 year history. Here in The Riviera Woman kitchen, Jane Ireland shows us how to make Pumpkin Pie...

Equipment and ingredients:

23-26 cm loose-bottom tin - greased.
Mixing bowl
Hand whisk

1 sheet of ready-made or home-made shortcrust pastry ("brisé")
Mixture of ginger nut biscuits and pecan nuts (enough to cover the pastry base)
1½ cups pumpkin pureé
¾ cup sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ginger
1 cup evaporated milk
2 eggs
1 vanilla pod (or vanilla essence)

Method:

Lay the pastry in the tin, pressing well into the corners.

Put into the fridge for half an hour to prevent pastry shrinking when baking.

Place all the other ingredients into the bowl and mix by hand. Do not use a blender as this may cause the pie to crack while cooking.

Pour the mixture into the pastry and bake for 35 minutes. Check after 20 minutes and continue to bake.

Gas 4

350°F

180°C

Serve with whipped or pouring cream.

Jane is a trained chef. She trained by going to evening classes whilst working by day in a publishing company. And in 2006, Jane and her husband left the UK and launched a yacht charter business where she worked as the yacht chef all over the Med. During the winter months, she continued to chef at luxury chalets. Now with her husband they spend time working in a large villa and on yachts. Jane also teaches people with very different cooking desires- for those who want to work on yachts and to expand their portfolio and for those who just want to improve their cooking skills.