Pumpkin Pie

A loose, honey-sweetened pumpkin custard baked in a single open shell. The ingredient column has run together in printing, so read quantities carefully before you start.

• The ingredient list, untangledAs printed, the two columns have interleaved. The intended list reads: 1½ cups canned pumpkin, ½ cup dark brown sugar, 4 tablespoons honey, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 tablespoon flour, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon salt, 2 eggs slightly beaten, ½ cup evaporated milk, and 1½ cups milk.
• That is a lot of liquidTwo cups of dairy against 1½ cups pumpkin and only two eggs gives a very soft custard — this is a thin, almost flan-like pie rather than the dense modern sort. If you want it firmer, a third egg is the honest fix; more flour only makes it pasty.
• Watch the shellTwo cups of thin liquid in an unbaked crust can soak through. If you are worried, blind-bake the shell 10 minutes and brush it with beaten egg white before filling.
• The 500F blastThe initial 15 minutes at 500F would have the effect of setting the pastry fast. On a modern oven that runs true, 15 minutes at that heat will darken the rim badly; 10 minutes is plenty, and shield the edge with foil for the rest of the bake.
• Total timeSixty minutes at 350F after the blast is at the long end. Start checking at 40 minutes: the pie is done when the outer two inches are set and the centre still wobbles as a single mass. It firms as it cools.
• Honey and browningFour tablespoons of honey plus brown sugar means the top colours much faster than a sugar-only filling. Judge doneness by the wobble, not by how dark the surface looks.
• Cinnamon on topSprinkle the surface cinnamon after the filling is poured but before it goes in; dusted onto a hot, half-set pie it sits on the surface and tastes raw.
• YieldThe recipe names no tin size; the filling comes to roughly five cups, so a deep 9-inch shell will be filled with a fair amount left over. Six to eight slices. Cool at least two hours before cutting; refrigerate leftovers.