Let's Talk Thanksgiving Desserts

[SparklyUnicorn]

Raw Pecan Pie with whipped cream, ala Carol Alt's recipes (have to Google), except she'd skip the raw whipped cream (which is so, so wrong ;)).

 

Now what is raw pecan pie?  That sounds interesting.

[TravelingChris]

We are doing store bought pumpkin pie (at least one of our guests requested that and my son said he would eat a slice if it is from Publix), a chocolate pecan mousse tart that I am trying this year, and an apple dessert of some kind.  I am thinking of an apple/pear walnut galette but dd may want to make her apple hand pies, which are delicious.

[KungFuPanda]

I think I'll make pumpkin pies and an apple/cranberry crisp. We're more into the savory dishes, so the desserts aren't THAT big of a deal here.

[Night Elf]

I'm in awe of you ladies making homemade pies. The only one I've ever made was lemon ice box pie and I bought the crust pre-made. I always go with Publix pies. In fact, we always keep a dutch apple pie in the refrigerator. I'm about to go there now to see if they have a custard pie. No one in my immediate family likes pumpkin pie.

[Miss Mousie]

Now what is raw pecan pie?  That sounds interesting.

 

Not mamacacia, but my guess is pecans that have not been roasted and/or salted.  That's how I always made it; just didn't call it that.

 

By the way, if anyone is in the market for superb (but expensive!) pecans, Sunnyland Farms is my favorite.  Throughout my childhood, it was my mother's only annual splurge.  She'd order a big box and split it up among the siblings.  They are fabulous.  And now that DS has discovered the joy of pecans, I am considering buying a small amount for him for Christmas.  :)

[Miss Mousie]

It's not the ingredients so much as the technique that is longer to write.  The basic recipe is:

 

for four crusts

 

<snip>

 

This is wonderful.  But I never make pie anymore, so I probably won't use it, but I am compelled to print it and keep it anyway.  :)

 

It reminds me of a boss I had long ago.  He had worked in a bakery, and insisted he made the best-ever pie crust.  "I can only make them 20 at a time, though.  You start with five pounds of lard...." 

[LucyStoner]

He probably did make fantastic crust. Lard makes an excellent crust but I find it difficult to obtain good lard and I tend to prefer the flavor with savory pies. And I make a savory pie, like maybe, 3 times a year. So I stick to butter.

 

I never make fewer than 4 crust discs at a time because it's just as much work to do 1 or 2 as it is to do 4. Even if I'm only making one pie that week, the extra discs can hang out in the freezer for a good long time. Also 4 is what I can fit in my stand mixer.

Edited November 23, 2015 by LucyStoner

[meena]

Flan - this is always DH's #1 dessert request

Apple pie

Maybe homemade vanilla ice cream to go with the pie

[Ali in OR]

I have several pies in my repertoire so instead of doing the same thing every year I do what ever I'm in the mood for. This year:

 

Chocolate angel pie--my aunt's recipe with a merengue crust. This is for Wed. night's pie social at church.

 

Cheesecake--BIL and SIL are coming for T day and they are cheesecake people. Last year I tried mini cheesecakes but this recipe tastes better.

 

Pumpkin pie--I now cheat and buy store-bought. The crust isn't as good as mine but the filling is better. Though maybe I should try homemade again now that I have a new oven that stays at the right temperature...or maybe next year. I do like that I can buy a small pie at the store--we want a little pumpkin pie but not a ton. We'll have a ton of leftover cheesecake as it is.

[momee]

"He probably did make fantastic crust. Lard makes an excellent crust but I find it difficult to obtain good lard and I tend to prefer the flavor with savory pies."

 

I have been almost obsessed with reading about pie crust lately, lol.  I'll say I bought lard from a friend and the crusts I made with it were - amazingly flaky and tasted wonderful.

 

I think the taste could have been off because some folks who do their own burn the bottom and that imparts "off" flavor throughout the whole batch.

 

Just saying - don't give up on lard :)

 

I could talk/read pie all day!

[Night Elf]

Dare I also admit I'm making brownies using a Betty Crocker mix? This is for a picky individual who doesn't do any homemade desserts. Imagine!

[KBadd]

What are your favorite dessert recipes with no dairy? My son is allergic to milk and nuts (except almond). We have a brand of almond milk and margarine we use without a problem.

 

I'd love an apple or pumpkin recipe. :)

[momee]

I just went to a pie class.  The instructor had us roast a sugar pumpkin, puree it and made that into a pumpkin pie.  We also made a cheddar crusted apple pie.  The third one we did was a chocolate pecan.  I don't like pecan pie but it was good.

 

I have also made a bourbon pear crumble which was incredible with fresh whipped cream.  That was from this cookbook

http://www.amazon.com/Four-Twenty-Blackbirds-Pie-Book/dp/1455520519/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1448300931&sr=8-1&keywords=four+and+twenty+blackbirds+pie+book

 

The best, best best I've made so far though was this

http://www.whatmegansmaking.com/2012/08/chocolate-french-silk-pie.html

UHHHHHHmaaazing.

 

I got mine from the Menu cookbook she quotes.  That is one great cookbook too, btw.

[momee]

"By the way, if anyone is in the market for superb (but expensive!) pecans"

 

What makes one pecan better than others?

Maybe I need to try a better pecan and then I'll actually LIKE pecan pie.  As of now though, blech!

[Miss Mousie]

"By the way, if anyone is in the market for superb (but expensive!) pecans"

 

What makes one pecan better than others?

Maybe I need to try a better pecan and then I'll actually LIKE pecan pie.  As of now though, blech!

 

 

I can't say exactly what makes one better than another - it may simply be freshness or variety or something - but these pecans are NOTHING like you'd get in a bag in the baking aisle, or even the "snacking" ones like from Planters or Fisher.  They are worlds apart.

[momee]

"Such fond memories of spending one Thanksgiving week making pies on the internet with you..."

 

What?  What?  Pie making party?  On the internet, so I can stay in my jammies?  Okay, let's do that again.  And invite me this time...?

[barnwife]

MIL is bringing pumpkin pie and pumpkin cake. I am making pecan pie and chocolate pecan pie. We also have Thanksgiving themed sugar cookies (turkeys and pumpkins). 

I'd make a fruit pie or crumble or something, except that's already a lot of desserts for 4 adults and 3 littles.

[LucyStoner]

We're going to a friend's house and they are making pumpkin pie, so I'm making cranberry apple.  Mine is a lot like the link above, but I use less sugar and don't pre-cook the cranberries (just the apples).  They pop in the oven and bubble up, and it looks gorgeous and messy.  I serve it with vanilla ice cream because it is a little on the tart side. 

 

I learned somewhere to skip cutting in the butter and instead to grate frozen sticks of butter very fast on a box grater.  I hold the stick by the wrapper and put it back in the freezer if it starts to get soft.  Then I just fold the slivers of butter into the flour.  Super flaky!

 

I used to grate the butter but found I liked less uniformity in the size of the butter once mixed in as I was forming the layers.  It's a great way to go though if you don't have a stand mixer or if you need to make one a bit faster.  It makes it a great crust!  

[Luckymama]

Same issues here. Do you have either of these recipes in electronic form? Especially the pumpkin pie. I usually make mine with sweetened condensed milk, so I'm unsure how to translate that to a non-dairy milk.

I'll share them later---we have to do lab now :)

[happypamama]

I've used coconut milk in pumpkin pie before, instead of milk or cream. It works really well. Any recipe will do.

[texasmama]

I use almond milk in pumpkin pie.

[Sneezyone]

I can't say exactly what makes one better than another - it may simply be freshness or variety or something - but these pecans are NOTHING like you'd get in a bag in the baking aisle, or even the "snacking" ones like from Planters or Fisher.  They are worlds apart.

 

My husband's aunt and uncle have pecan trees on their land. They always gave us a bag of soft shelled pecans in the fall. They were so stinking sweet (and tasty)! ETA: I think some people call them paper-shelled pecans.

Edited November 23, 2015 by Sneezyone

[Katy]

Pumpkin pie from fresh pumpkin with a pecan crust.

[UCF612]

We do pumpkin pie, apple pie and chocolate cake.  The adults all want all of them hehe.  My oldest has multiple food allergies but I make a safe apple pie for him that we all love.  It is his favorite thing in the whole world and what he requests at his birthday too.  My youngest doesn't like the pies, he asks for chocolate cake.  I just buy a boxed mix so it is simple enough to just whip one up for him.

[AmandaVT]

If I do not make pumpkin pie and apple pie, I am certain there would be mutiny. In our family, Thanksgiving is not a time for experimentation.

 

Yup - this. :-)

[UCF612]

What are your favorite dessert recipes with no dairy? My son is allergic to milk and nuts (except almond). We have a brand of almond milk and margarine we use without a problem.

 

I'd love an apple or pumpkin recipe. :)

I make a dairy, egg, peanut, tree nut free apple pie. I got the recipe from The Food Allergy Mama Baking book.

[happypamama]

So you add milk and sugar? My recipe uses the sugar that's in the condensed milk, so I don't add any other sugar. Looks like I need to find a different recipe.

It's been a while since I have made it dairy free, but I believe the recipe called for milk/cream and sugar added separately. I want to say that it was the Joy of Cooking recipe. I just remember that it was really easy to swap in a different milk, so I'm thinking it didn't call for sweetened condensed milk, and coconut milk gave it a very subtle coconut flavor that wasn't overwhelming (I also must have used coconut oil for any butter or shortening). I bet it'd be really good with almond milk too. This looks about like it: http://www.thejoykitchen.com/recipe/pumpkin-pie

[Rosie_0801]

We also made a cheddar crusted apple pie. 

 

You put cheese in your apple pie?

[Pippen]

The last few years we have moved from pumpkin pie to pumpkin log roll - basically a pumpkin cake with cream cheese filling. 

 

What recipe do you use? I had a slice the other day and it was fabulous. Didn't have time to track down the baker. 

[Pippen]

This is the pumpkin cheesecake recipe I use. It's really good, and it has a nice, light texture, which I love.

 

My mom favors pumpkin cheesecake, but it always seems somehow wrong  to me. I eat it and wind up wishing I had a slice of pumpkin pie or of plain cheesecake instead. 

[Farrar]

You put cheese in your apple pie?

When I visited Utah years ago there were two restaurants where we ordered pie and they asked if we wanted cheese on it, to which dh and I were like, what in the world? I have concluded its some weird Utah thing. Feel free to correct me, Utahans.

[plansrme]

I love pie, and it makes me happy to see so many of them mentioned on this board.  I always make my own crusts, but I've been having a bad run lately with my tried-and-true recipes.  But then, into my Facebook feed, pops this King Arthur recipe.  It works beautifully--super flaky, easy enough to work with, and tasty.  I made a buttermilk pie with it last night just to test the recipe.  

 

My Thanksgiving desserts are always some combination of the following:

 

1.  Banana pudding, and not that disgusting kind with boxed pudding and sweetened, condensed milk.  Blechhh.  Homemade custard, extra wafers (the box has shrunk in recent years--I make up the difference from a second box) and top quality vanilla are critical.

2.  Buttermilk pie.

3.  Apple pie.  

4.  Pound cake with caramel icing.

 

Maybe, I will make a sweet potato pie.  Pumpkin pies have no place my home.

[Luckymama]

Same issues here. Do you have either of these recipes in electronic form? Especially the pumpkin pie. I usually make mine with sweetened condensed milk, so I'm unsure how to translate that to a non-dairy milk.

This is the recipe I use for dairy-free pumpkin pie (it's adapted from my regular pie recipe that I've used for decades):

 

1 1/2 c pumpkin puree

3/4 c sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 - 1 1/4 tsp cinnamon (I always use the high end of the measurements)

1/2 - 1 tsp ground ginger

1/4 - 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 - 1/2 tsp ground cloves

3 eggs, beaten

14 oz almond milk (I use vanilla unsweetened for baking)

1 9-10" unbaked pie crust

 

Mix pumpkin and dry ingredients. Combine beaten eggs and milk; pour into pumpkin mixture and stir well. Carefully pour the filling into the pie crust because it could be very full. Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for about 50 min or until center is set. Do not cut until cool.

 

And here's the gingerbread. It's not the healthiest due to the shortening. I haven't tried substituting dairy-free margarine yet. (from Better Homes & Gardens plaid cookbook):

 

1 1/2 c flour

1/4 c brown sugar

3/4 tsp cinnamon

3/4 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 c shortening

1/2 c molasses

1 egg

1/2 c water

 

Combine all dry ingredients. Add remaining ingredients and mix well until combined, and then beat for 2 minutes. Pour into greased and floured 8 in square baking pan. Bake ina preheated 350 degree oven for 35-40 minutes. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and serve warm.

[marbel]

Re: cheddar cheese with apple pie - I've seen that many times.  First time, I think, was at a Marie Callendar's restaurant in California.  My husband, who is from Georgia, sometimes puts a little parmesan in the crust when he's making apple pie, or he'll sometimes cut a slab of cheddar to eat while he's having a piece of apple pie. 

 

I can't claim to know where it originated, so it could be Utah, but it's not limited to that state. 

 

Oh no, now this is stuck in my head: an apple pie without some cheese is like a kiss without a squeeze. 

[Peaceful Isle]

I made 4 pies. Two are apple, and two are pumpkin. Pretty basic, but that's how I am. Basic. :) 

[Southern Ivy]

Now what is raw pecan pie?  That sounds interesting.

I'd assume it's this: 

http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2007/11/raw-pecan-pie-recipe.html

[KungFuPanda]

I'm now running out of steam and fridge space because I just HAD to make rice pudding last night. I think my apple crisp will have to wait until we eat a few pies. When doing the fridge puzzle I forgot that I was making a vat of cranberry relish. That, and I had a cheesesteak for lunch and I'm falling into a coma. Still, I'm determined to chop veggies and make the pumpkin soup tonight. I love the soup, but my family is meh, so I plan to feed it to my dance students after our 8:30 class. I have a home studio, so we usually socialize and snack in the kitchen after the Tuesday class.

[Ellesmere]

When I visited Utah years ago there were two restaurants where we ordered pie and they asked if we wanted cheese on it, to which dh and I were like, what in the world? I have concluded its some weird Utah thing. Feel free to correct me, Utahans.

I don't know anything about Utah. My mom's family is from New England. Not sure if it's just them, but they all eat apple pie (or apple slices) with sharp cheddar. I grew always being offered sharp cheddar with apples. (Cabot cheddar, of course.) It never occurred to me that this is unusual so I just looked it up and found this blog mentioning it as a New England tradition. It does say it is common in some parts of the midwest.

 

http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/new_england_apple_cheddar_galette/

 

This recipe also uses sausage:

http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/sausage-and-apple-pie-in-a-cheddar-crust-recipe

[rjand6more]

I love pie, and it makes me happy to see so many of them mentioned on this board.  I always make my own crusts, but I've been having a bad run lately with my tried-and-true recipes.  But then, into my Facebook feed, pops this King Arthur recipe.  It works beautifully--super flaky, easy enough to work with, and tasty.  I made a buttermilk pie with it last night just to test the recipe.  

 

My Thanksgiving desserts are always some combination of the following:

 

1.  Banana pudding, and not that disgusting kind with boxed pudding and sweetened, condensed milk.  Blechhh.  Homemade custard, extra wafers (the box has shrunk in recent years--I make up the difference from a second box) and top quality vanilla are critical.

2.  Buttermilk pie.

3.  Apple pie.  

4.  Pound cake with caramel icing.

 

Maybe, I will make a sweet potato pie.  Pumpkin pies have no place my home.

Yum.  My favorite dessert ever.  From scratch.  It is the most requested dessert at our house.  My southern mama used to make it on every special occasion(including my birthday)  And NO you can't use anything except Nilla Wafers(no generics!!) And yes, you will survive the meringue on top.  It will not kill you. :) My mil surprised me one year after my mom died with a graham cracker crust and banana flavored instant pudding with sliced bananas and sugar free cool whip on the side.  What a sweet gesture.  What a nasty dessert. lol

 

Our dessert list:

 

Banana Pudding

Sweet Potato pie

Pumpkin Pie

Chocolate Cream Pie

[Ellesmere]

Our dinner is non-traditional (no turkey) but our desserts are typical Thanksgiving recipes. It varies but we usually do:

Lots of butter pie crusts (King Arthur)
Pumpkin Pie (King Arthur)
Snow Ghost Pie

For my mom's side, and I usually make vanilla ice cream to go with it:

Plimoth Plantation's Slow-Cooker Indian Pudding

 

[texasmama]

I have added a peanut butter pie with chocolate cookie crust to my pie list.  GF, of course.

[Amira]

When I visited Utah years ago there were two restaurants where we ordered pie and they asked if we wanted cheese on it, to which dh and I were like, what in the world? I have concluded its some weird Utah thing. Feel free to correct me, Utahans.

 

I've never had cheese on any sweet pie in Utah.  I do make an apple-feta phyllo galette that I love, but it's not because I'm from Utah. I associate apple cheddar things with New England or Wisconsin.

 

Also, it's Utahns, not Utahans, if Utahns are doing some correcting.  :)

Edited November 24, 2015 by Amira

[Ali in OR]

I'm now running out of steam and fridge space because I just HAD to make rice pudding last night. I think my apple crisp will have to wait until we eat a few pies. When doing the fridge puzzle I forgot that I was making a vat of cranberry relish. That, and I had a cheesesteak for lunch and I'm falling into a coma. Still, I'm determined to chop veggies and make the pumpkin soup tonight. I love the soup, but my family is meh, so I plan to feed it to my dance students after our 8:30 class. I have a home studio, so we usually socialize and snack in the kitchen after the Tuesday class.

 I can relate to the fridge space issues. Tomorrow will be the worst--I will be brining a turkey in the 12 qt stockpot, I have to either remove a shelf or lower one to fit the stockpot in the fridge, I will have one pie chilling for Wednesday night's pie social, and a cheesecake will get made at some point during the day. I remember dh's family would get pies from Marie Callendars and store them in their nice cool Kansas City garage. It's probably cold enough at night here, but I'm not going to risk my desserts!

[MrsMommy]

I'm not making this pumpkin tiramisu for Thanksgiving, but I made it last week, and it's soooo good, if anyone is still looking for inspiration. It also looks fancy, which is a bonus for a holiday!

[4ofus]

We're having pecan pie, pumpkin roll, and crustless coconut pie. The coconut is the most requested & anticipated in our house. I'm pretty sure I could skip the other ones as long as I proved a whole coconut pie per person :).

[Alessandra]

Sweet potato bunds cake with brown sugar frosting

Cranberry upside down cake

Apple-cranberry-ginger pie

Pumpkin pie with graham cracker crust

Indian pudding

Baked pears with dried cranberries

 

(But not all in the same year. We usually have four desserts per year, plus a big fruit bowl.)

[ikslo]

This is the pumpkin cheesecake recipe I use. It's really good, and it has a nice, light texture, which I love.

Thank you! This was a huge hit today!

[MrsMommy]

Thank you! This was a huge hit today!

 

I'm so glad! Happy Thanksgiving!

[Farrar]

Thanks for this thread. I did get lots of good ideas. We ended up with...

 

Apple Cake

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Chocolate Pecan Pie

 

And it was ALL great.

[Caroline]

Waffle House in Millidgeville, GA serves it this way. (Maybe other Waffle Houses, too.)

 

We have butterscotch pie and yellow cake, all gluten free for dessert.

 

When I visited Utah years ago there were two restaurants where we ordered pie and they asked if we wanted cheese on it, to which dh and I were like, what in the world? I have concluded its some weird Utah thing. Feel free to correct me, Utahans.