A Year in the Making, Day 86, part II

Today, I made my first (almost) from scratch pumpkin pie. I cheated with a pre-made crust, but made the filling. I started with sugar pumpkins:



Now, I only made one pie, so the remainder will be finally made into that pumpkin butter I mentioned some weeks ago.

I spent about 20 minutes scooping out the pumpkins and chopping them up into chunks.



These were simmered on the stovetop till they softened and separated from the rind, then mashed. I used the recipe straight out of the Joy of Cooking, which has been my kitchen bible since my mother gave me a copy when I moved into my first apartment.

The resultant pie, which doesn't look all that, but was quite tasty if I do say so myself:



And a gratuitous breast shot:



The bird took about 3 hours less than expected. Something about brining seems to speed up the cooking time. It was a little dry, but still nummy. Frustrating, though, because to have it ready at the time I had told company to come over meant I was up at 6am prepping it for the oven.

And now I believe it's time for a nap.