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This Classic Pumpkin Pie Recipe is the one my mom has made for Thanksgiving my entire life. It has a smooth, creamy pumpkin custard filling with warm spices and a flaky pie crust, and it’s still the pumpkin pie I want on my Thanksgiving table every year. Did you know you can make pumpkin pie with regular milk? It works perfectly!
Pie is where Crazy for Crust began, so I’ve made a lot of pies over the years, but family recipes like this one are the ones I come back to again and again. My mom makes the filling with regular whole milk instead of evaporated milk, along with both brown and granulated sugar, which gives i the creamy texture and classic flavor I grew up with.
You can make it with my homemade all-butter pie crust or take a shortcut with a refrigerated of frozen crust; I’ve done both. The most important thing is knowing when the filling is finished: it should look set but still have a slight jiggle in the center. Let it chill completely, add plenty of whipped cream, and you have the pumpkin pie my family has been making for decades.
Pumpkin Pie Ingredients
- Pie Crust: Use my homemade pie crust recipe or store-bought (you can use one from a refrigerated pack of two or a frozen pie crust).
- Canned Pumpkin Puree: Not pumpkin pie filling
- Milk: Regular milk, NOT evaporated. Use whole milk for best results.
- Pumpkin Spices: You can also substitute pumpkin pie spice if you don’t want to buy all of them separately. The spices give so much flavor to the pie and it tastes like Thanksgiving!
- Sugar: My mom used both packed brown sugar and granulated sugar, so that’s what I use too.
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Dorothy’s Expert Tips and Testing Notes
- Be sure to use whole milk, not heavy cream, not evaporated – just plain old whole milk. Nonfat or 2% milk will make the pie much more liquidy and cause it to take much longer to set.
- Cover the edges of the pie with a pie shield or strips of aluminum foil so that the crust doesn’t cook too much.
- To make sure the bottom of my crust bakes, I bake at a high oven temperature (425°F) for about 10 minutes, then lower the oven temp until the pie is done.
- Pumpkin pie is done baking when it no longer rolls when tapped – it will be just slightly jiggly and might have a small crack in the center.
- Serve the pie at room temperature with whipped cream or cool whip.
Homemade Pumpkin Pie Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 all butter pie crust, from scratch or from a pack of two
- 1 ¾ cups (425g) pumpkin puree, (1-15 ounce can)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ¾ cups (415ml) whole milk
- 3 large eggs
- ⅔ cup (134g) packed brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar
- 1 ⅓ teaspoons Ground Cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon Ground Ginger
- ¼ teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon Ground Cloves
- ¼ teaspoon Ground Allspice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Place your pie crust in a 9-10-inch pie plate. Please note: this pie gets very full. It’s pictured made in a standard 9” pie plate.You can use a 9-inch, 9-inch deep dish or 10-inch pie plate, or two 7-inch pie crusts. If you’re using anything smaller than 9-inch there will be extra filling. Use any extra filling to make mini pumpkin pies (see below). Place pie plate on a cookie sheet for baking.
- Place all ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk until smooth. Pour into pie plate.
- It’s best if you cover the edges of the pie crust with aluminum foil or a pie crust shield before you start baking. Remove the foil after 50-60 minutes of bake time.
- Carefully transfer pie to oven and bake for 60-75 minutes. I’m giving a large range in time because it depends on what size pie plate you’re using and your oven. My 9” pie plate took 70 minutes. It’s done when the center looks solid. Cool completely, then wrap tightly and chill for at least 4 hours before serving. Serve with whipped cream. Store in refrigerator.
- To make mini pies: use a round cookie cutter or mason jar lid to cut circles out of pie crust. Press into mini muffin pans and fill with about 1-2 tablespoons pie filling. Bake time will be about 20-30 minutes.
Notes
- I vary between using a homemade crust and refrigerated one, and you can also use a frozen pie shell too.
- Be sure to use whole milk, not heavy cream, not evaporated – just plain old whole milk. The eggs and milk work together to create a creamy pumpkin custard filling.
- Cover the edges of the pie with a pie shield or strips of aluminum foil so that the crust doesn’t cook too much.
- To make sure the bottom of my crust bakes, I bake at a high oven temperature (425°F) for about 10 minutes, then lower the oven temp until the pie is done.
- Pumpkin pie is done baking when it no longer rolls when tapped – it will be just slightly jiggly and might have a small crack in the center.
- Serve the pie at room temperature with whipped cream or cool whip. Store in the refrigerator or wrap well with plastic wrap and freeze for up to a month.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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How to Store Pumpkin Pie
Store cooled pie in the refrigerator covered with plastic wrap. It’s perfect to make a day or two ahead! You can also bake and freeze the full pie (once it’s cooled) for several months. Or, freeze leftovers as slices in sandwich bags for easy snacking.
How to make Pumpkin Pie
- This recipe is easy to do with just a whisk and a large bowl (no mixer needed). Whisk together everything but the milk first.
- Once you whisk in the milk the mixture will be very loose.
- This pie will be very full if using a 9-inch pie plate.
Variations
- If you love chocolate, did you know that chocolate and pumpkin go really well together? Check out my Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Pie!
- Looking for something even easier than this? My Seriously Easy Pumpkin Pie recipe uses sweetened condensed milk.
FAQs
This recipe makes two 7-inch pies or one very deep 9-inch pie. You can also use a 10-inch pie plate or a 9- or 10-inch deep dish pie plate.
Whole milk is best when making this pie; it needs the fat to set up. The mixture is very loose until it bakes and fat content in the milk makes a difference. If using less than whole milk, divide it with half and half or something similar.
While it’s not been tested with this recipe, as long as the liquid you’re using has 3-4% fat, it should work okay.
This is the same recipe my mother taught me. She grew up during the depression when regular milk was a luxury and evaporated milk was a cheaper choice so she was happy to find a pumpkin pie recipe with regular milk and this is the one I grew up on. It’s always a favorite with my family.
Really Good.
I literally make this recipe all the time! It is so good! And SO easy! Everyone raves about it when I make it! Thanks for such a great recipe!
I use the all butter pie crust and made this recipe last Thanksgiving and it was a hit, using it again this year.
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