Maple Pumpkin Pie with Brown Butter Graham Crust and Maple Whipped Cream

For the crust:
Place 1 cup of butter in a medium skillet over medium heat, reserving the remaining 3 tablespoons. Melt the butter and let it cook, whisking frequently, until brown specks form in the bottom of the pan. Butter will foam at top and smell nutty as it browns. Take it off the heat as soon as you see brown specks and continue whisking for a minute or two until it cools slightly. Stick it in the fridge to cool completely.

Whisk both flours, the baking soda and salt together in a medium bowl.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the brown butter, remaining 3 tablespoons of butter, brown sugar and honey on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes (scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary). With the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients and beat just until the dough comes together.

Turn the dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a disk. Wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours (or up to 5 days).

Remove the dough from the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes before proceeding. Preheat oven to 350 F. Unwrap the chilled dough, and place it in the center of an 8-inch pie plate. Flatten it out with your hands so it’s 1/4-inch thick, and no thicker, covering the entire bottom and edges of plate in an even layer. You will likely have extra dough. Remove the extra and set aside to do with as you wish (bake into graham crackers). Bonus: you can eat as much dough as you want; it’s egg-free!

Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown around edges and set in the middle. If edges brown prematurely, wrap foil around them. When done, remove it from the oven and let it cool completely.

For the filling:
Mix condensed milk, maple extract, cinnamon, ginger, salt and nutmeg with a wire whisk until well blended; set aside.

Sprinkle gelatin over water in a medium saucepan; let it stand 1 minute. Then cook on low heat for 2 minutes or until gelatin is completely dissolved, stirring constantly. Add milk mixture; stir until well blended. Continue cooking for 5 minutes or until slightly thickened. Remove from heat. Stir in pumpkin and spoon into cooled crust. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or until firm.

For the whipped cream:
In a large mixing bowl, beat cream, powdered sugar, maple syrup, and extract using a mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form. Make sure it is thick and not runny. But take care not to over beat, or you’ll have butter. Taste test it to decide if you’d like more sugar and add accordingly.

Slice the chilled and set pie and serve with generous dollops of whipped cream. Pie will keep in fridge for up to 5 days; whipped cream will last for 2 days.

Crust recipe is adapted from Tracey’s Culinary Adventures who adapted from Sweet Cream and Sugar Cones. Filling recipe adapted from Kraft.