This is hands down, my son’s favorite recipe “in the world.” Last year for Thanksgiving, he had three small slices and snuck another four, so he confessed the next morning. This recipe, originally from Ina Garten, is also my favorite now that I adapted it to be gluten-free. The inclusion of banana and orange is a perfect companion to the pumpkin. There’s a bunch of cream in here, so the only time I have this is at Thanksgiving. It can be made a day or two ahead of time, with the whipped cream added the day you serve it. Sublime and totally worth the effort!
A note for nightshade allergies, make sure your gingersnaps are potato free 🙂
Prep time: 40 minutes
Total time: 2 hours 40 minutes
Yield: 10 servings
Special Equipment: 11″ tart pan with removable bottom and food processor
For the crust:
2 c. gluten-free graham cracker crumbs (I use about 12 oz of Simple Mills Honey Cinnamon Sweet Thins finely ground in food processor which will yield about 2 cups of crumbs).
1/3 c. butter, melted
For the filling:
1/2 c. half-n-half
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin puree
1 c. light brown sugar, lightly packed
3/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
3 extra-large egg yolks
1 package (2 tsp.) unflavored gelatin
1 ripe banana, finely mashed
1 tsp. grated orange zest
1/2 c. cold heavy cream
2 T sugar
For the decoration:
1 c. (1/2 pint) cold heavy cream
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
Orange slices and zest, optional
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Combine the graham cracker crumbs and melted butter. Mix well. Press evenly into the sides and bottom of an 11″ tart pan with removable bottom. Bake for 10 minutes then cool to room temperature.
- Whisk egg yolks and set aside.
- Mash banana and set aside.
- Dissolve gelatin in 1/4 c. cold water and set aside.
- For the filling, heat the half-n-half, pumpkin, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water until hot, about 5 minutes.
- Stir some of the hot pumpkin into the egg yolks to heat them, then pour the egg-pumpkin mixture back into the double-boiler and stir well. Heat the mixture over the simmering water for another 4-5 minutes until it begins to thicken, stirring constantly so the eggs don’t scramble. Remove from heat.
- Add dissolved gelatin, banana and orange zest to the pumpkin mixture and mix well. Set aside and cool completely, about 30-45 minutes.
- Whip 1/2 c. cold heavy cream and 2 T sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment until soft peaks form. Carefully fold the whipped cream into the pumpkin mixture and pour it into the cooled tart shell. Chill for 2 hours or overnight. (You can do this part 2 days ahead of time and leave covered in the fridge).
- Before servings, whip the 1 c. heavy cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until soft peaks form. Add the sugar and vanilla and continue to whisk until you have firm peaks. Pipe the whipped cream decoratively on the tart and sprinkle with orange zest, arranging orange slices accordingly. Serve chilled.
This looks delicious. I’m always looking for new twists on using pumpkin. Can’t wait to try it out.
Let me know how it turns out. Happy Thanksgiving!