This delicious recipe will help you get into the holiday season! Fall desserts have so much to offer with delicious cheesecakes, pies, breads, muffins, brownies, pastries, and more. 

I’ve found the perfect pumpkin pie recipe, that is perfect for the fall season. 

Pie dough instructions:

Whisk the flour and salt together in a large bowl.

Add the butter and shortening. Using a pastry cutter or two forks, cut the butter and shortening into the mixture until it resembles a coarse meal (pea-sized bits with a few larger bits of fat is OK). In this step, you’re only breaking up the cold fat into tiny little flour-coated pieces; you’re not completely incorporating it. Do not overwork the ingredients.

Measure 1/2 cup (120ml) of water in a cup. Add ice. Stir it around. From that, measure 1/2 cup (120ml) of water, since the ice has melted a bit. Drizzle the cold water in, 1 Tablespoon (15ml) at a time, and stir with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon after every Tablespoon has been added. Stop adding water when the dough begins to form large clumps. I always use about 1/2 cup of water, and need a little more in dry winter months. Do not add any more water than you need.

Transfer the pie dough to a floured work surface. Using floured hands, fold the dough into itself until the flour is fully incorporated into the fats. The dough should come together easily and should not feel overly sticky. Avoid overworking the dough. If it feels a bit too dry or crumbly, dip your fingers in the ice water and then continue bringing dough together with your hands. If it feels too sticky, sprinkle on more flour and then continue bringing dough together with your hands. Form it into a ball. Use a sharp knife to cut it in half. If it’s helpful, you should have about 1 lb, 8 ounces dough total (about 680g). Gently flatten each half into 1-inch-thick discs using your hands.

Wrap each tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 5 days.

After the dough has chilled for at least 2 hours, you can roll it out. Work with one crust at a time, keeping the other in the refrigerator until you’re ready to roll it out. Lightly flour the work surface, rolling pin, and your hands, and sprinkle a little flour on top of the dough. Use gentle-medium force with your rolling pin on the dough—don’t press down too hard on the dough; you’re not mad at it! When rolling dough out, start from the center and work your way out in all directions, turning the dough with your hands as you go. Between passes of the rolling pin, rotate the pie crust and even flip it, to make sure it’s not sticking to your work surface. Sprinkle on a little more flour if it’s sticking; don’t be afraid to use a little more flour. If you notice the dough becoming a lopsided circle as you’re rolling it out, put down the rolling pin and use your hands to help mold the dough back into an even circle. Roll the dough into a very thin 12-inch circle, which is the perfect size to fit a 9-inch pie dish. Your pie dough will be about 1/8 inch thick, which is quite thin. Visible specks of butter and fat in the dough are perfectly normal and expected.

Because your dough is so thin, use your rolling pin to help transfer the pie crust to the pie dish. Carefully roll one end of the circle of dough gently onto the rolling pin, rolling it back towards you, slowly peeling it off the work surface as you go. Pick it up, and carefully roll it back out over the top of the pie dish. 

This recipe is enough for a double crust pie. If you only need 1 crust for your pie, freeze the other half 

Pie dough recipe:

2 and 1/2 cups (315g) all-purpose flour (spoon & leveled), plus more for shaping and rolling

1 teaspoon salt

6 Tablespoons (90g) unsalted butter, chilled and cubed

2/3 cup (130g) vegetable shortening, chilled

1/2 cup (120ml) ice cold water

Homemade Pie Dough (full recipe makes 2 crusts: 1 for bottom, 1 for leaf decor)

Pumpkin pie recipe:

egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with 1 Tablespoon milk

one 15oz can (about 2 cups; 450g) pumpkin puree*

3 large eggs

1 and 1/4 cups (250g) packed light or dark brown sugar

1 Tablespoon (8g) cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger*

1/4 teaspoon ground or freshly grated nutmeg*

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves*

1/8 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

1 cup (240ml) heavy cream

1/4 cup (60ml) milk (I use 1% – any is fine)

Pumpkin pie instructions:

Make the pie crust through step 5 according to my directions and video tutorial in my pie crust recipe. Or use your favorite pie dough or store-bought.

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).

Roll out the chilled pie crust: Remove 1 disc of pie dough from the refrigerator. On a lightly floured work surface, roll the dough out into a 12-inch circle. Make sure to turn the dough about a quarter turn after every few rolls. Carefully place the dough into a 9-inch deep dish pie dish. Tuck it in with your fingers, making sure it’s tightly pressed into the pie dish. Fold any dough overhang back into the dish to form a thick rim around the edges. Crimp the edges with a fork or flute the edges with your fingers. Brush edges lightly with egg wash mixture.

Par-bake the crust: Line the pie crust with parchment paper. Crunching up the parchment paper is helpful so that you can easily shape it into the crust. Fill with pie weights or dried beans. (Note that you will need at least 2 standard sets of pie weights to fit.) Make sure the weights/beans are evenly distributed around the pie dish. Par-bake the crust for 10 minutes. Carefully remove the parchment paper/pie weights. Prick the bottom of the crust all over with a fork to create steam vents and return crust (without weights) to the oven for 7-8 more minutes or until the bottom is *just* starting to brown. (Review this how to par-bake pie crust page if you need extra help with this par-baking step.)

Make the pumpkin pie filling: Whisk the pumpkin, 3 eggs, and brown sugar together until combined. Add the cornstarch, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, pepper, heavy cream, and milk. Vigorously whisk until everything is combined.

Pour pumpkin pie filling into the warm crust. Only fill the crust about 3/4 of the way up. (If using a deep dish pie dish as instructed, you should only have a little filling leftover. Use extra to make mini pies with leftover pie dough scraps if you’d like.) Bake the pie until the center is almost set, about 55-60 minutes give or take. A small part of the center will be wobbly – that’s ok. After 25 minutes of baking, be sure to cover the edges of the crust with aluminum foil or use a pie crust shield to prevent the edges from getting too brown. Check for done at minute 50, and then 55, and then 60, etc.

Once done, transfer the pie to a wire rack and let it cool completely for at least 3 hours before garnishing and serving.