Spiced Chai Pumpkin Pie

November 16, 2012
 

Many people over the years have told me that the chai my family makes smells a lot like pumpkin pie!  I often fought against this description, not wanting my family’s amazing chai to get roped up into the realm of pumpkin spice lattes and the such.  However, some time ago, I was brainstorming creative twists on classic Thanksgiving dishes, and getting some messages from other folks who had made the chai masala recipe and wanted suggestions on how to use up the massive quantity of chai masala that they had.  I put two and two together, and decided to make this lovely spiced chai pumpkin pie!

Before we get to that, though, let’s talk about pie crust.  I’ve had a long love hate relationship with pie crust.  It was finicky to make, inevitably broke apart during the rolling process, and never was quite buttery/flaky/delicious enough to merit making it regularly.  Then I read this article by the amazing J. Kenji Lopez-Alt and my pie making life changed forever.  It completely elucidates every frustration I’ve ever had with pie and creates an easy recipe that takes minutes to make and has worked flawlessly for me every. single. time.  The Lion and I have been eating a LOT of pie lately.  The recipe also defies all common pie logic–the dough is completely over processed in a food processor and it still rolls out perfectly and creates just the flakiest, most delicious pie crust ever!  Please, please, PLEASE read the article if you’ve ever been frustrated with pie crust.  Your belly will thank you later.

Back to the pumpkin pie…I decided to amp up my pumpkin pie a bit by using the chai masala blend instead of traditional pumpkin pie spices.  In reality, most traditional pumpkin pie spices are similar to the spices in the chai masala, except that our chai masala contains a wallop of a dose of black pepper and ginger.  I was a bit nervous at first, and more so when I added 5 tsp of the stuff to the pie, but it ended up delicious!  At first it is smooth and creamy and tastes exactly like pumpkin pie, as you begin to chew the chai flavor creeps up, and there is a slight heat at the end as the black pepper and ginger sing through the sweet, creamy, pumpkin flavor.  You could, of course, add slightly less masala to the pie, but where’s the fun in that?  Try this pie if you’d like an interesting twist on a very traditional Thanksgiving dessert.  I promise you won’t regret it!

 

Spiced Chai Pumpkin Pie

From at

Prep: Cook: Yield: 1 pieTotal:

Add a little heat and spice complexity to your favorite pumpkin pie recipe by making this spiced chai pumpkin, it's absolutely delicious and lends a wonderful, warmth to a delicious dish.

You'll Need...

  • For the Pie Crust:
  • 6 and 1/4 oz all purpose flour
  • 1 Tbsp sugar
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1 stick butter, cubed and chilled
  • 3-4 Tbsp cold water
  • For the pie filling:
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 15 oz pumpkin puree
  • 12 oz evaporated milk
  • 3-5 tsp chai masala (depending on how spicy you like it)
  • 1 pinch of salt

Directions

  1. Make the pie crust:
  2. Place 2/3 of the flour into the bowl of a food processor along with the sugar, salt, and butter.  Pulse until the mix looks like wet sand and begins to significantly clump up.  This will take about a minute of pulsing.  Loosen up the larger clumps with a rubber spatula and add in the remaining flour.  Pulse about 5 times.
  3. Dump everything into a large bowl.  Sprinkle with 3 Tbsp of water.  Carefully fold the mixture together.  If it still seems really dry, add the last Tbsp of water in small sprinkles.  Wrap in plastic and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
  4. When the dough has cooled, remove from the fridge and roll out on a well floured surface.  Roll until large enough to cover a 9 inch pie pan with about 1/2 inch of overhang.  Carefully drape onto the pie plate.  Trim any excess dough.  Bake this and eat it.  It tastes like shortbread with a better texture.  Fold the 1/2 inch overhang under, and pinch to create a pretty border.  Let it rest while prepping the pie filling.
  5. Make the pie filling:
  6. Preheat the oven to 450F.
  7. Beat together the eggs and the sugars until frothy.  Add in the pumpkin puree, chai masala, and salt.  Stir to thoroughly combine.  Add the evaporated milk and whisk to thoroughly combine.
  8. Carefully pour into the pie pan.
  9. Place in the oven and bake at 450F for 8 minutes.  Reduce the heat to 325F and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the pie comes out clean.  This is usually 25-35 minutes.
  10. Allow the pie to completely cool before slicing and serving.
  11. Enjoy!

Additional Notes

Pie crust adapted from J. Kenji Alt's awesome article on pie crust

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6 Comments

  • Reply Suresh November 16, 2012 at 4:24 pm

    I love the way you describe it; it adds that extra flavor to everything you cook. Love your passion; keep it up. May be we, as a family, need to find more uses for a simple -yet great- chai masala. Love.

  • Reply Damayanti November 17, 2012 at 5:02 am

    Mami, I feel like making just a crust than the whole pai but I want to make a crust with a pinch of chai masala.you really write well. Love may think about some good recipe for children with diabetes.

  • Reply Vijitha (Spices and Aroma) February 5, 2013 at 7:24 pm

    I loved reading the post. Pie spiced with chai is a delicious combination.

  • Reply Subhie Arun February 7, 2013 at 5:42 pm

    wow ..that was v inviting n super tempting click!!…frst time here ..hapi to follow u..glad if u do d same

    http://subhieskitchen.blogspot.co.uk

  • Reply Anonymous August 28, 2014 at 2:57 pm

    Dear Tanvi,
    How much is a "stick" of butter for us non- Americans?
    Thanks! Linda

    • Reply tanvilu@gmail.com August 29, 2014 at 9:11 am

      Hi Linda! A stick of butter in the US is 1/4 pound of butter or about 113 g of butter. I'm sure you could get away with using 100 or 110 g!

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