Pumpkin Pie

This is the recipe I mentioned for my brother's favorite pie, Pumpkin Pie! I made it for the first time a few weeks ago as a gift for his 24th birthday. His birthday is during such a fun time of year because it's right before the holidays! And everyone loves the holidays because who doesn't enjoy a good excuse to cook a lot, eat a lot, and laugh a lot? Anyways, since I don't eat pumpkin pie I'm not sure if this recipe was any good but here is the one I followed. If you happen to try it out, let me know how it tastes! 

Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients

• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups canned pumpkin, mashed
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg plus 2 egg yolks, slightly beaten
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) melted butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger, optional
• 1 piece pre-made pie dough
• Whipped cream, for topping

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place 1 piece of pre-made pie dough down into a (9-inch) pie panand press down along the bottom and all sides. Pinch and crimp the edges together to make a pretty pattern. Put the pie shell back into the freezer for 1 hour to firm up. Fit a piece of aluminum foil to cover the inside of the shell completely. Fill the shell up to the edges with pie weights or dried beans (about 2 pounds) and place it in the oven. Bake for 10 minutes, remove the foil and pie weightsand bake for another 10 minutes or until the crust is dried out and beginning to color.

For the filling, in a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese with a hand mixer. Add the pumpkin and beat until combined. Add the sugar and salt, and beat until combined. Add the eggs mixed with the yolks, half-and-half, and melted butter, and beat until combined. Finally, add the vanilla, cinnamon, and ginger, if using, and beat until incorporated.

Pour the filling into the warm prepared pie crust and bake for 50 minutes, or until the center is set. Place the pie on a wire rack and cool to room temperature. Cut into slices and top each piece with a generous amount of whipped cream. Eat and Enjoy! 

Oh, and here are some pretty pictures of Pumpkin Pie or related things. . .

one.

two.

three. 

xoK

Pecan Pie

Pecan Pie is one of my very favorite fall desserts! I make it every year for Thanksgiving and Christmas with my family. Here is the recipe I used today:

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 cup corn syrup
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups pecans
• 1 (9 inch) unbaked pie shell

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place pie shell in a 9 inch pie pan.
2. In a medium bowl, gently beat eggs. Stir in sugar and flour, then the syrup, butter and vanilla. Fold in pecans. Pour mixture into pie shell. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes; knife inserted in center of pie should come out clean.

One of these is for my brother-in-law for his birthday and the other is for our Thanksgiving Leadership at YoungLife. Thanksgiving Leadership is also probably my favorite for a number of reasons. I really enjoy the family style dinner, which we always have for leadership, but this one is special because we are contribute. Rather than one person making the meal for every, it's fun to see everyone walking in carrying a dish that they put so much energy and love into. I also enjoy Thanksgiving Leadership the most because my first experience at Thanksgiving Leadership 2 years ago is what made me feel like I was part of the YoungLife family for the first time. We "passed the thanks" and I was passed it twice. I wasn't even on a team yet but it made me feel extremely loved and valued. I've been a fan of YL ever since.