An iconic recreation of the classic Pumpkin Pie featuring a crisp pie crust, rich pumpkin filling, a crunchy pumpkin spice base, a creamy pumpkin spice ganache, and vanilla cream half spheres for a modern take.
Serves: 8-10 servings
Target Mold Size: 20.5 cm diameter tart ring (Pie Crust)
DAY 1
DAY 11) Vanilla Cream Half Spheres
| Ingredients | Weight (g) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Gelatin Sheet (240 Bloom) | 1 | Approximately 1 sheet, bloomed |
| Egg Yolks | 2¼ | Approximately 2¼ yolks |
| Icing Sugar | 2¼ tbsp | |
| Vanilla Beans | 1½ small | Seeds scraped out |
| Heavy Cream (total) | 285 ml | Split |
| Heavy Cream (to be heated) | 30 ml | |
| Heavy Cream (to be whipped) | 255 ml | Chilled |
Method
- Soften the gelatin: Soak the gelatin in cold water for 5–10 min.
- Prepare base: Whisk egg yolks and icing sugar in a bowl until thick and foamy. Cut the vanilla beans, scrape out the seeds, and whisk the seeds into the mixture.
- Heat cream: Heat 30 ml heavy cream almost to a boil in a small sauce pan. Remove from the heat and whisk the gelatin into the mixture.
- Combine: Stir the gelatin mixture into the egg mixture. Let it cool to lukewarm.
- Whip cream: Whip 255 ml heavy cream to whipped cream with hard peaks and gently fold the cream into the egg mixture.
- Fill molds: Put the cream in a piping bag and fill the cream into half sphere molds of the following sizes: 2.5 cm, 3 cm, 4 cm, and 5 cm diameter.
- Freeze: Tap the molds on the counter to remove air bubbles. Freeze the half spheres overnight / min. 6 hours.
DAY 2
2) Pie Crust (Pâte Sablée)
| Ingredients | Weight (g) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cold Butter | 130 g | Cut into cubes |
| Icing Sugar | 25 g | |
| All-Purpose Flour | 215 g | |
| Egg Yolks | 1¼ | Approximately 1¼ yolks |
| Salt | Pinch |
Method
- Prepare Dough: Mix all-purpose flour, icing sugar, salt, and cold butter (cut in cubes) in a food processor and pulse briefly to combine.
- Bind Dough: Put the dough in a bowl and bring the dough together with the egg yolks. Be careful not to knead the dough too much.
- Chill and Shape: Roll out the dough between two sheets of baking paper and refrigerate for 1 hour / 20 min in the freezer until very cold.
- Line Ring: Cut out a bottom with a 20.5 cm x 3.5 cm perforated tart ring and place it inside the tart ring on an AirMat / piece of baking paper. Cut out long pieces of dough to line the sides of the tart ring.
- Pre-bake: Place a piece of round baking paper in the pie and pre-bake it with baking beans/rice for approx. 7 minutes at 200°C. Remove the baking beans/rice with the baking paper after pre-baking.
3) Pumpkin Pie Filling
| Ingredients | Weight (g) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pumpkin Purée | 175 g | Can be bought or made at home (see instructions below) |
| Eggs | 1¼ | Approximately 1¼ eggs |
| Brown Sugar | 100 g | |
| Cornstarch | 4 g | |
| Cinnamon | 1½ tsp | |
| Ground Ginger | ¼ tsp | |
| Ground Nutmeg | Pinch | |
| Ground Cloves | Pinch | |
| Pumpkin Spice | ½ tsp | (See recipe note below) |
| Heavy Cream | 95 ml | |
| Whole Milk | 25 ml |
Pumpkin Spice Recipe Note: 4 tsp cinnamon, 2 tsp ground ginger, 1 tsp clove, 1 tsp nutmeg, 1 tsp all spice, ¼ tsp cardamom.
Method (Homemade Pumpkin Purée)
- Cut a hokkaido pumpkin in half and bake it in the oven for approx. 45 min at 175°C until the pumpkin is tender. Let it cool. Scrape the pumpkin pulp and hand blend for a creamy consistency.
Method (Filling)
- Mix Base: Mix pumpkin purée, eggs, and brown sugar with an electric mixer until combined.
- Add Spices & Liquid: Add cornstarch, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, pumpkin spice, salt, and lastly heavy cream and milk. Whisk again until everything is combined.
- Bake: Pour the pumpkin filling in the pre-baked pie, filling up the pie 80% with the filling.
- Bake the pie at 180°C for 22–26 minutes until the filling is set, there is no jiggle in the center and a cake tester comes out clean.
- Cool the pie before removing it from the tart ring.
4) Pumpkin Spice Crunch
| Ingredients | Weight (g) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Milk Chocolate | 35 g | |
| Nutella | ¾ tbsp | |
| Pumpkin Spice | ¾ tsp | (See recipe note above) |
| Feuilletine | 50 g | |
| Salt | Pinch |
Method
- Melt Chocolate: Carefully melt the milk chocolate in a small saucepan (possibly over a water bath). Put the saucepan aside.
- Combine Crunch: Stir in feuilletine, Nutella, pumpkin spice, and salt in the chocolate mixture.
- Layer: Carefully spread the crunch on top of the cooled pumpkin pie without pushing it down in the filling. Gently level the surface with a glass or a palette knife.
- Set: Put the pie in the fridge so the crunch layer can set.
5) Pumpkin Ganache
| Ingredients | Weight (g) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Gelatin Sheet (240 Bloom) | 1 | Approximately 1 sheet, bloomed |
| White Chocolate | 155 g | |
| Smooth Pumpkin Purée | 60 g | |
| Heavy Cream | 75 ml | |
| Pumpkin Spice | 1 tbsp | (See recipe note above) |
Method
- Soften the gelatin: Soak the gelatin in cold water for 5–10 min.
- Melt Chocolate: Carefully melt the white chocolate and put it aside in a bowl.
- Heat Cream Base: Heat pumpkin purée, heavy cream, and pumpkin spice almost to a boil. Remove from the heat and whisk in the gelatin.
- Emulsify: Pour the hot cream over the chocolate while stirring in the middle of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
- Blend: Hand blend the ganache to get it even more smooth.
- Layer and Set: Pour the ganache on the set crunch layer and put the pie back in the fridge. Let the pie set for minimum 3 hours in the fridge.
DAY 3
6) Chocolate Decoration & Assembly
| Decoration Ingredients | Weight (g) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Orange Chocolate Ribbon + Chocolate Spiral | 200 g | Tempered chocolate |
| White Chocolate Ribbon | 140 g | Tempered chocolate |
| Orange Food Colouring Powder | – |
Chocolate Ribbons & Spiral (sizes):
| Element | Dimensions | Diameter |
|---|---|---|
| Orange chocolate ribbon | 2 cm x 66 cm | 20 cm |
| White chocolate ribbon | 1.5 cm x 66 cm | 20 cm |
| Chocolate spiral | 5.5 cm x 59.5 cm | 18.5 cm |
Method (Chocolate Decoration)
- Prepare Shapes: Refer to a guide on how to make chocolate spirals and chocolate ribbons.
- Wrap Base: Melt a little white chocolate and place it around the pie where you want to place the orange chocolate ribbon (it will work as glue to fasten the ribbon). Place the orange chocolate ribbon around the pie.
- Second Ribbon: Place the white chocolate ribbon around the pie, fastening the ends with a little melted chocolate.
- Spiral: Place the chocolate spiral on top of the pie.
- Vanilla Spheres: Release the frozen half spheres from the molds. Place the half spheres on top of the pie.
- Garnish: Decorate with flowers.
I’m Chef Mimo, a passionate pastry chef with over 17 years of experience in the world of fine desserts. I specialize in French-style entremets, refined cakes, and creative chocolate work. Pastry is not just my profession—it’s my lifelong passion. Through PastryCrafted.com, I love sharing my recipes, techniques, and inspirations with anyone who dreams of mastering the art of pastry. Whether you’re a curious beginner or a seasoned pro, you’re welcome in my sweet world.