I meant to post this yesterday, but was too busy with Thanksgiving. We had a wonderful day with family and friends. God is so good!

My sister and my sister-in-law called in the morning – a wonderful surprise – and all in all it was a day of shared memories and love.

My parents joined us for dinner – I’m so grateful to the Lord that they are still in good health. My dad watched football with Randy in the afternoon while the boys and my mom and I worked a puzzle. My mom is an expert puzzle doer and we completed one in short order. :)

In the evening, my brother and sister-in-law and Ryan’s girlfriend came for dessert. We had made pumpkin pies from fresh pumpkin the day before – I’ll give the recipe below – and cherry pie – a family favorite.

I have come to realize that many women today don’t know how to make pie from scratch and since I grew up with the tradition – my grandmother taught me the art – I’ll do my best to share my knowledge here. I modify the Laura Ingalls Wilder Cookbook recipe for pumpkin pie. This is my version:

Pumpkin Pie Recipe

First – one small pie pumpkin will make one pumpkin pie. Take the pumpkin and put it in a baking pan. Put water in the bottom and bake in the oven on 350 degrees until the outside skin is soft – maybe 30-60 minutes. (I forgot to time it.) Cool the pumpkin and then skin them and scoop out the seeds, saving the pulp. Measure 2 cups of the pulp and dump into the mixing bowl.

Add the following to 2 cups of the cooled pumpkin:
2 eggs
2/3 cup of brown sugar
1 1/4 cup of evaporated milk (or half & half – or rich milk, like whipping cream)
Salt – a pinch
spinkle generous amounts (maybe 1/2 tsp – 1 tsp) of these spices:
cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and ginger

Prepare one crust pie crust – this is my recipe (double it for a double crust pie)
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup butter or shortening
3-4 tablespoons water

Cut the butter into the flour/salt mixture until crumbly. Add water until mixture forms a ball. Roll pie crust onto pastry sheet for 9 inch pie pan. Place in pan and pinch sides to from a raised edge. Pour pumpkin mixture into crust. Bake at 425 for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 for 30 minutes more – 40 minutes in all. Cool before serving. Add cool whip or other whipped topping and serve.

It’s more work to make the pie from fresh pumpkin rather than canned, but the taste is SO worth it! Enjoy!