Now that Halloween is over , we can begin to think about the next holidays. Obviously, one of the most popular holidays celebrated by most Americans is the colonial tradition of ‘Thanksgiving.’ It is that time of year when family and friends get together to celebrate the happiness of the past year and anticipate the possibilities of good things to come.
No one can talk about Thanksgiving without those wonderful words like: turkey ( we like Turducken or Ostruducken), feast, cranberries, creamed potatoes , stuffing and various desserts.
For dessert, everyone has their favorites: apple pie, rhubarb pie, chocolate pie, pecan pie and of course my personal favorite the ‘pumpkin pie.’
If you ever chawed into a raw pumpkin, it’s kind of like taking a swig of raw vanilla extract, it is definitely not what you were expecting! So what makes a pumpkin pie so special? The secret lies in the spices and in the crust.
First, there is a prepared spice blend called ‘Pumpkin Pie Spice’ that generally contains some of the following: Nutmeg and mace, ginger, cloves, cinnamon and allspice , cloves. Cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves are the most commonly used spices… and they are cheap. If you really look around you’ll find some recipes calling for small additions of other spices like cardamon. However, with a little practice, i am sure you can come up with a version that will make everyone smile.
As for the crust, you can’t beat a Crisco/ butter blend crust with a bit of mace…
The season of cooking has begun. How will you make yours special?
Roger