My penchant for perseveration has had no boundaries. My ability to maintain the 'continuation of something usually to an exceptional degree or beyond a desired point' and its' relationship to food goes back as far as I can remember. Which for me is aged five, the year I entered the first grade (for some unknown reason the great unsolved mystery in my life is that I never went to kindergarten). I didn't live far enough from my elementary school to stay for lunch, however, on those rare days when I could, my lunch was always the same thing: a bologna and yellow mustard sandwich on white bread. I would continue to have this same sandwich until I graduated from high school. Or in other words, twelve years of my 'school life' were spent eat the same lunch. Even today one bite of a bologna sandwich takes me back to the days of my youth (hmmm, maybe I should start eating them again!).
On my recent trip out east I wanted to take as many photos as possible. On a day trip to Maine, my first stop was York. My first destination was not my favorite antique store, but instead was the Cape Neddick 'Nubble' Lighthouse. I can still hear myself laughing and saying out loud 'so how many times are you going to photograph this lighthouse, the same lighthouse'? 'Less than the number of Colorado aspen photos' I said under my breath. When you spend a part of your life on the perseveration end of a continuum there really isn't a good answer to that question. If you are someone who has taken more than your fair share of sunset, fall landscape, or 'selfie' photos (all perseveration tendencies) you know none of them are never exactly the same. More than place or weather/sky conditions, the proverbial 'lens' you see these things through continually changes resulting in photos having different nuances to them and all evoking a different memory.
I have been feeling very autumnal which may or may not explain why I am having a serious yearning for all things pumpkin (for the record this doesn't meet my definition of perseveration, yet). The Pumpkin Squares made last wee seemed to open up a 'making all things pumpkin Pandora's box'. Several months ago I came across a recipe for a pumpkin pie swirled with caramel. Pumpkin and caramel combined together in a pie, oh my, be still my heart, was all I could think. As anxious as I was to try this recipe, I thought it best to hold off for a more seasonably appropriate time of the year. For some reason pumpkin pie made and served in the sweltering heat of summer doesn't necessarily bode well for the majority of the world. And making a pie for solely for my own consumption was not an option.
With my pie crust making comfort and confidence levels in a relatively good place, the anticipated official arrival of fall, and the need to put all of those cans of pureed pumpkin to good use, the time had finally come for me to make the Brûléed Pumpkin Pie with Caramel Swirl. Spoiler Alerts: I should have have made this pie months ago. This pie could seriously cause canned pumpkin puree shortages.
After deciding which pie crust to make, I saw many recipes recommending an overnight, instead of the usual couple hour, chilling time. Having put off making this pie far too long and being unable to wait just one more day, I went with a six hour chilling time. No culinary reason for the six hours, it was just as long as I could wait.
To partially blind bake the crust for 10-15 minutes in a preheated 400 degree oven or not was my first decision. After a short period of going back and forth on this, blind baking won. Filling the pie plate up to the rim with dried beans helped to keep the crust from slipping during pre-baking. I would have to wait until I tasted the pie to decide whether or not this decision was a good one.
While on my east coast trip, I brought back a dozen fresh eggs and a jar of the unbelievable Fat Toad Farm's caramel with the anticipation of using some of it for this pie. The combination of caramel and the sweetened condensed milk is lethal. The result is a pie with a creamy, velvety texture that can only be described as sublime. If a pumpkin filling made with caramel and sweetened condensed milk wasn't enough, there was more. The brûléed added yet another dimension of flavor and texture. I seriously think I could overdose on this Brûléed Pumpkin Pie with Caramel Swirl.
Cinnamon is the only spice in this pie. Next time (and there will be a next time) I will add a scant 1/4 teaspoon of ground cloves (or ground ginger) as the combination of cinnamon and cloves or ginger in a pumpkin pie works for me. However, if you are making this pie for the first time, please know the cinnamon all on its' own works.
Before the filling went into the partially baked pie crust, the edges were brushed with an egg wash and sprinkled with demerara sugar (any coarse sugar would have the same effect on taste). If, like me, you have never added the egg-sugar finish to the edge of a pumpkin or fruit pie crust, I would strongly recommend you consider doing this.
A semi-generous 1/4 cup of the caramel is poured over the pie filling then swirled using a knife.
With the oven temperature reduced to 375 degrees, this pie bakes for 40 to 50 minutes or until the filling is set. Note: This baking time here is for a 9 inch pie plate. If you are using a larger pie plate, your baking time most likely will range from 35 to 45 minutes or until the filling is set. The concept 'baking until just set' means different things to different people. For me, it means there is very little jiggle in the pie 'custard' although there is usually some ever so slight movement in the center of the pie.
To brûlée or not to brûlée was the second decision. It wasn't much of a decision. As beautiful as the un-brûléed finished pie was, it just beckoned to be brûléed. Instead of using granulated sugar, there was not other option (for me) than using the demerara sugar.
For whatever reason pumpkin pie seems to been placed into the very narrow baking window of fall until early winter. In some families it makes an appearance only at Thanksgiving. (What is up with that?) If there was ever an opportunity to change this, it is this Brûléed Pumpkin Pie with Caramel Swirl. If you can't find Fat Toad Farm Caramel, use the best caramel you can find (Fran's makes a really caramel sauce too).
The decision to partially pre-bake the pie shell and brûléeing the top of the pie turned out to be (whew) good ones. Don't feel you have to brûléel this pie. I wouldn't want that step to what stops you from making it.
I had eaten a sliver of this pie when it was room temperature and another after it had been refrigerated overnight. And honestly I can't decide which one I like better. I might just have to find any plausible reason to make another pie, all in the spirit of making a decision.
Brûléed Pumpkin Pie with Caramel Swirl (pie filling inspired by a recipe from Crepes of Wrath and pie dough recipe shared by Yossy Arefi)
Ingredients
Dough (this recipe makes enough for two pies; freeze any unused dough up to 2 months for later use or roll out, cut into shapes, apply egg wash, and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and bake 15-20 minutes at 375 degrees)
12 ounces all purpose flour
8 ounces cold unsalted butter (recommend KerryGold), cut into pieces
4 ounces ice water
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
Filling
1 15 ounce can pure pumpkin puree
1 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons Saigon cinnamon
scant 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves or ground ginger (optional)
Generous 1/4 cup caramel (highly recommend Fat Toad Farm caramel)
1 large egg, lightly beaten (for the crust)
Couple of teaspoons of coarse sugar (demerara or turbinado for the crust)
1 to 2 additional Tablespoons of coarse sugar
Directions
Dough
1. Place the flour and salt into the food processor to mix.
2. Add half of the butter and process slightly. Add remaining butter until mixture is still crumbly.
3. Add cider vinegar to the ice cold water. Slowly pour the vinegar/water into the flour/butter mixture until the dough comes together (be careful to not over process).
4. Press the dough together, divide in half (forming each one into a disk), wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours (but overnight is recommended).
5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
6. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface and place in pie plate. Place pie plate in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes.
7. Remove from the refrigerator, line the plate with parchment paper and fill will pie weights or dried beans.
8. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until very lightly golden. Remove parchment paper and beans from pie shell.
9. Brush edge of pie shell with a beaten egg and sprinkle with demerara (or other coarse) sugar.
9. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees.
Filling
1. Whisk together the pumpkin puree, sweetened condensed milk, eggs and spices. Set aside.
2. Pour filling into a prebaked pie shell
3. Pour the caramel sauce evenly over the top of the pie. Using a knife or chopsticks, swirl the caramel around.
4. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until the pie fillng is set. Note: Baking time is for a 9 inch ceramic pie plate. Baking time may be slightly decreased with a larger pie plate or metal pie pan.
5. Sprinkle top of baked pie with 1 to 2 Tablespoons of demerara sugar. Using a culinary torch, brûlée the sugar.
6. Allow the pie to come to room temperature before slicing.
Option: Place cooled pie in the refrigerator and serve chilled.
Over the past two years, I had taken the ferry to Martha's Vineyard four or five times. Either renting bikes or taking the bus, the time there was mostly spent exploring Edgartown and Vineyard Haven. On this recent trip, I decided I needed to rent a car to see up close the Gay Head Cliffs and the 1856 brick Lighthouse in Aquinnah I had read about but had seen only through the eyes of others. The lighthouse is considered to be in danger of falling over the edge of the Gay Head Cliffs as a result of more than a century of erosion and the impact of climate change. Efforts to 'save the lighthouse' have been underway for years. Finding lighthouses compelling (and taking more than my fair share of the photos of the same lighthouses on the east coast), the forty minute drive to the lighthouse seemed to take what felt like an eternity. And the closer I got, the greater the anticipation.
My (im)patience was beyond rewarded. On this day, the skies were various shades of blue and filled with an assortment of cloud formations. The sky and clouds were mesmerizing all on their own making for a 'first sighting' perfect backdrop to the cliffs and the lighthouse. Once there, time suddenly seemed suspended as I took it all in with my own eyes. I may have needed to remind myself to breath.
In replaying the images and feelings of the day on the return ferry trip, I remembered one of my favorite quotes on perspective. "What you see depends not only what you look at, but also, on where you look from." If there was one more thing I could give myself this year, it would not be something tangible. Rather it would be the intangible capacity for a continuously evolving, dynamic perspective on everything from food to life to love. Perseverating on this thought would be one reason why perseveration might not completely be such a bad thing after all.
