Pumpkin Pie with Pecan Crust

My friend Joe is gluten intolerant, and not very dairy tolerant either which makes making dessert for him a pain in the ass but I love him so here is my best, Joe friendly dessert recipe! It uses pecans for the crust and we still have some from last year’s harvest needing to be used up, and we also have some very early pumpkins.  Otherwise the ingredients are all things you are likely to have in the pantry.

The Recipe:

In a food processor, blend together

• 2 cups pecans
• 2 big dessertspoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon rind
• 1 egg

Blend till it binds together. I like it a bit textured, not smooth, but if you make it too textured the crust has trouble holding together.  If you look at the picture, the edge of the crust is starting to crack, which means I didn’t blend this one quite enough. Don’t try to reduce the amount of sugar – it turns toffee-ish and helps the crust hold together. It’s not overly sweet anyhow, but if you want less sugar, reduce it from the filling.

Oil a pie dish with a bland tasting oil and press the nut crust mix into it.  Decoratively pinch the edge.

Wide out the food processor and blend together:

• 1 ½ cups cooked pumpkin
• 2 dessertspoons brown sugar
• a little vanilla
• 2 eggs
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• pinch nutmeg
• pinch allspice
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon rind

Blend until smooth, then pour into the shell.

Bake in a medium oven for around 45 minutes till the centre is just set and the crust is golden.

It’s good just as it is, but for dairy tolerant people, it’s lovely with  greek yoghurt and strawberries, or glorious warm with  icecream.