HappyTummy              

Two words can sum up this pie: So Delicious. Or even: So perfect. I served this Dorie’s Thanksgiving Twofer Pie as the finale to my first Thanksgiving feast, and boy, I think it’s safe to say that everyone went home very happy. So for that–thank you, Dorie Greenspan!

I should say, though, that this pie didn’t start out very well. After having read many of the comments on the board, I went into this very scared and very skeptical. Everyone seemed to be having problems with their crust…and after making mine, I could see why. First, the pie crust dough was nothing like the pie crust doughs I am familiar with. Dorie’s was heavy, gritty, almost crumbly and very sticky, whereas the ones I’ve made before are lighter, silkier, smoother and very elastic. In comparing the two recipes, I could see why–Dorie’s recipe called for more than double the amount of fat than my regular pie crust dough did. I had made the dough last Sunday, and even after chilling it in the freezer for a few days, it took a LOT of energy to roll it out, drape it over the pin, and transfer it to the pie dish without completely breaking and ruining it. I thought my pie was a goner for sure.

And even when I prebaked the shell, I worried about it browning too fast, as many of the comments suggested it would. So I covered the entire shell with foil, poked some holes in it (didn’t have pie weights) and let it bake for only about 12 minutes–just to get tanned. In fact, when I pulled the crust out of the oven and removed the foil, some of the dough still looked raw, but I figured it would bake some more after I put the filling in.

But…the crust was really the only hard part. After that, everything ended up coming together beautifully. The pumpkin filling was smooth and creamy; the pecan filling was rich and sugary. The pie was convenient in that I made all the components a few days early, and then just put it all together and baked it on Thanksgiving morning.

I baked the pie a smidgen longer than the recipe called for, because I found the pumpkin layer hadn’t cooked through after 40 minutes. Also, toward the end, I covered the crusts with foil so they wouldn’t burn. When I pulled the pie out, the top had ballooned pretty high, but after cooling a bit, the top of the pie sank the the right level. The top pecan layer was beautifully crackly and the crusts looked just right. And when I finally sliced into the pie later that evening, I was happy to see the layers had evenly set.

I was really happy the pie came out well, because I didn’t have a backup plan. Had my pie been ruined, there would have been no dessert. But luckily, it worked out perfectly, and my in-laws were mighty pleased with it! My husband’s family all love both pumpkin and pecan pies–and my mother-in-law especially loves pecan pie–so Dorie’s Thanksgiving Twofer Pie was definitely a hit. I personally loved everything about it–the flaky pie crust, the creamy pumpkin layer, the crunchy pecan layer and the not-overly-sweet taste. This one is definitely a keeper!

Thanks to La Casserole Carrée for such a wonderful pick for this week of Thanksgiving. And thanks to Laurie for the posting extension on this one. Please don’t forget to see how all the other Tuesdays with Dorie bakers did on this one! Happy Thanksgiving!