Espresso Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients:

2 shots of espresso
A 29 oz. can of pumpkin puree
1¾ cups (22 oz.) of evaporated milk
4 large eggs
1½ cups of sugar
1½ teaspoons of ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon of allspice
1½ teaspoons of finely ground espresso
2 “deep dish” 9 inch, pre-fab. pie crusts

The secret to making a good, fluffy/creamy pumpkin pie (instead of one that is heavy) comes down to the eggs. Separate the eggs. Put the egg yolks into a large bowl, and the egg whites in a small bowl off to the side. Whip the egg whites to stiff peaks and set them to the side.

In a large bowl, add the pumpkin puree, evaporated milk, sugar and spices to the big bowl, which already includes the egg yolks. Use a spoon to mix the ingredients. In the picture above, I used a turkish coffee hand-grinder to add the ground espresso. Next, I poured in the espresso shots. Keep in mind the following: the recipe on the back of the pumpkin can suggests using 24 oz. of evaporated milk. Since I added 2 oz. of espresso, I subtracted that amount of milk from the recipe on the can.

Fold in the egg whites then stir them in, then use an electric mixer on medium speed to mix the ingredients. This whips a lot of air into the pie filling, which will give the pie a fluffy and light texture after baking.

Bake the pies at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes. After that, lower the temperature to 325 degrees for approximately 40 minutes. Use a clean, dry knife to check the pies. If the knife comes out clean, the pies are done. When the pies have baked thoroughly, pull them out of the oven and cool them on a baking rack for at least 30 minutes before serving.