Honestly, I almost always make The Perfect Pumpkin Pie for thanksgiving and Christmas. But sometimes, I make something extra special, that takes a bit more effort. This is where the elegant pumpkin chiffon pie was born. It’s nice to step out of your comfort zone sometimes! I loved making this, from scratch, pumpkin chiffon pie. It is so light and dreamy. With whipped layers, and millions of tiny bubbles holding all the creamy pumpkin and spices suspended in its’ soft orange cloud!

A piece of pumpkin chiffon pie in the foreground with the full pie behind it. A candle burning in the middle of the frame. An open book off to the side. All on a cream blanket.

Pumpkin Purée

You can use store bought pumpkin purée for this recipe. Make sure it it pure pumpkin and not canned pumpkin pie filling. The pumpkin pie filling will already have added sugar and spices in it, where as the pure pumpkin is just that, cooked and puréed pumpkin.

You can also use homemade pumpkin purée. I typically use a pie pumpkin and roast it in the oven, just as you would for any winter squash.

To make pumpkin purée, from scratch:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
Wash off your pie pumpkin, cut in half and scoop out the seed area.
Place your pumpkin, skin side up, in a pan. Add water to just cover the bottom. (About a cup, depending on the size of your pan.)
Bake for about 1 hour 30 mins, or until the flesh is tender when pierced with a fork.
Remove from oven and let cool slightly, until you can handle it.
Remove the flesh to a food processor, (or you can mash it by hand). Purée.
Dump the pumpkin purée into a fine mesh strainer (or chinois) and remove some of the water.
Separate into portions, label, and store in the freezer until needed.
When ready to use, remove from freezer and let it defrost on the counter top.

Woman cutting the top off of a small pie pumpkin.

Woman cutting a small pie pumpkin in half

How to use gelatine

I have used two kinds of gelatine. Gelatine leaves and gelatine powder. There are vegetarian thickeners similar to gelatine, if you want to make this vegetarian. If you have never cooked with gelatine before, do not be daunted by this new ingredient. It is quick and simple to use.

Gelatine leaves

Remove one leaf from the package and place it in a medium bowl. Add 1/2 cup of cold water. As the sheet softens, bend it to get the entire sheet under the water. Leave it to soak 5 minutes. You only need the softened sheet, so squeeze out as much water as possible before adding it to your hot mixture. Stir, to dissolve the gelatine into the mixture. Let the mixture chill 4-6 hours. It will be completely set.

Gelatine powder

While mixing with a fork, sprinkle 1 Tablespoon of gelatine powder into ¼ cup of cold water. Let the gelatine soak 5 minutes. Add it to the hot mixture. Stir, to dissolve the gelatine. Let the mixture chill 4-6 hours. It will be completely set.

How to store pumpkin chiffon pie

To keep this pie from getting runny, as well as the eggs in this pie recipe, make the refrigerator the best place to store this pie.

Pumpkin Chiffon Pie Crust

You need a single shell for this recipe. If this is one of many pies you will be making, I suggest using this fool proof big batch holiday pie dough the recipe is in this post. If you want a smaller batch, try this recipe.

You can also use a store bought pie crust, a graham cracker crust, or your favourite pie dough recipe.

Make sure whatever recipe you are using you fully bake the crust first, as this pie does not bake in the oven. The pumpkin chiffon pie filling is cooked in a double boiler and then chilled in the refrigerator in a fully baked shell.

Woman placing a layer of aluminum foil overtop of an uncooked pie crust.

Dried chickpeas on top of aluminum foil, inside an uncooked pie shell.

Blind Baking

Blind baking means to bake a pie shell without any filling in it. This is done to prevent a particularly runny filling from causing the dreaded soggy bottom in a pie. To prevent this, you will normally partially blind bake a pie crust. As it will be going back into the oven when you cook the filling.

It is also done when the filling for a pie does not get cooked in the oven. Like cream pies or this pumpkin chiffon pie. For this you will fully blind bake the crust, as it will not be going back into the oven.

To fully blind back the crust:

After lining your pie plate with the dough, and trimming any edges, place it back into the refrigerator to chill at least 30 minutes.
Remove from the fridge and place a layer of aluminum foil (or parchment paper) on top of the dough. Form it to the pie.
Place something inside that will weigh down the pie dough as it is cooking. Otherwise, it will start to puff up and the crust will loose its shape. I use dried beans, but you can also use dried rice or pie weights.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
Bake for about 15 minutes, or until the edges start to brown.
Remove the aluminum foil (or parchment paper) and what you have used to weigh it down.
Place it back into the oven to fully bake for about 10-12 minutes, or until the bottom of the pie crust is golden.
Remove it from the oven and allow to cool, before adding your cold filling.

A white porcelain bowl with brown sugar and spices in it.

Woman with a small bowl of three egg yolks over top of a white porcelain bowl with brown sugar and spices.

Ingredients for Pumpkin Chiffon Pie

1 baked pie shell

1 leaf of softened gelatine or 1 Tablespoon gelatine powder in ¼ cup water (see above for further instructions)

½ cup brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp ginger

½ tsp salt

1 ½ cups pumpkin purée

3 eggs, separated

½ cup cream (10% or above)

¼ cup brown sugar

(optional) ½ – 1 cup whipping cream (35% cream), depending on how much you like with your pie.

(optional) 1 Tablespoon icing sugar

Woman holding gelatine over a clear glass bowl with water in it.

Woman dropping a softened gelatine leaf in to a bowl of pumpkin pie filling.

Method

Prepare and prebake your pie crust according to your recipe.
Place gelatine in 1/4 cup of cold water to soften.
Prepare a double boiler. In the top of the bowl mix ½ cup brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and salt.
Mix in the pumpkin purée and cream.
Separate the eggs. Set the whites aside, in the refrigerator, for use later.
Add the three beaten egg yolks to the bowl.
Mix and cook over the double boiler for about 10 minutes. It will thicken over this time. I used a stick blender to make sure my pumpkin purée was extra smooth for the pumpkin pie filling.
Remove from heat and add in the softened gelatine. If you are using the gelatine sheets make sure to squeeze out any extra water, before adding it.
Stir to dissolve into the warm pumpkin mixture.
Chill for 1-2 hours.
When the pumpkin mixture is ready, beat the egg whites to soft peak.
While slowly beating, add in the last ¼ cup of brown sugar. Once incorporated, turn the mixer up and beat until the egg whites will hold a stiff peak.
Gently, fold the egg whites into the pumpkin mixture. Try to keep as much lightness from the egg whites as possible.
Pile this mixture into your prepared pie crust. Smooth it out and chill for an additional 2 hours.
(Optional) To serve, beat ½ – 1 cup of 35% cream with 1 Tbsp of icing sugar until thick. Add this to the top of the pie, or a dollop on each individual slice. Or serve just as it is!