Unbaked homemade pastry crust for a 9-inch pie plate
5 ginger snap cookies, finely crushed
For the filling:
3 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 cups butternut squash puree
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a 9-inch pie plate with pastry dough (recipe here), and crimp the edges in some decorate fashion. Spread the ginger snap crumbs over the bottom of the crust.
Tip the eggs into a large bowl, and beat them thoroughly with a wire whisk. Then, one by one, beat in the sugar, spices, salt, vanilla, cream, and squash puree. Pour the mixture into the pie shell.
Bake, on a baking sheet, in the preheated oven until the filling is set -- the center should barely shimmy when shaken -- 45-50 minutes. Cool to room temperature on a wire rack. Serve with or without whipping cream or ice cream.
The pie will stay fresh and wonderful for 2 days when covered and stored at room temperature. For longer storage -- up to a week -- cover and refrigerate the pie.