Pie

Pumpkin pie? Mmmmm. Made out of a real pumpkin. A really tiny pumpkin I bought at the grocery store that was labeled "pie pumpkin". It gave me instructions to microwave chunks of pumpkin and then scrape them out and mash them up.
I added them to some cream cheese, condensed milk, spices, and egg and made miniature pumpkin pies. Yum.
Recipe to come, once I have tried again to puree, probably using the food processor. It tastes pumpkin-y enough, but its not very uniform in color or texture - the pumpkin is a little stringy.
I did get to use my mortar and pestle to grind up the allspice, which was good for getting out pent up law school aggression.

How do you make pumpkin pie? Real pumpkin, canned pumpkin, or grocery store?

Upside-down pie

I made this pie last night and I call it upside down pie because the topping, which uses applesauce, winds up as more of a dough spread loosely on top, and the graham cracker crust ends up being the crumbly part.
Why make a graham cracker crust pie? A variety of reasons. First of all, its easier. You can keep a graham cracker crust for awhile in the pantry, without losing freezer real estate, having to roll anything, and without people judging you for not making your own crusts. It is also healthier, especially because you can get a low-fat graham cracker crust. My main deciding factor was that I had one on hand and I don't make pie crusts. Personal policy. I just don't do it.
I found this recipe here and I tried it with the apples we picked last weekend. I used Granny Smith, although they are actually still a little tart for the pie. I might try it with a milder apple. I have made some other modifications.
Ingredients:
3-4 apples, sliced thinly (I don't peel them, because its more interesting and healthy if you include the skins.)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Graham cracker crust, prebaked in 9-inch pan
***
3/4 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup applesauce (if you want a more crumbly crust, use 1/4 cup butter, softened but not melted)

Procedure:
1. Combine all pie ingredients in a bowl. Stir to combine. Pour into a graham cracker crust.
2. Bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes, until crust is hard.

PYOP - Pick Your Own Pumpkins

Yes, dear readers, it is That Time of Year - pumpkin patching time, that is!
This weekend, hopefully, I will be out picking pumpkins with the boyfriend and his family. I am also cautiously optimistic that we will be able to pick apples and butternut squash. Hopefully I will have my camera charged and assembled for this event, and then can take pictures.
I hope its just slightly cool so we have to wear jeans and ruggedly outdoorsy jackets and look like an L.L.Bean ad. Weather.com says rainy :-p and 58. But its only a few showers.
I am determined to try making a pumpkin pie from scratch this year. Mark, his family, and my family don't like pumpkin pie, so I'm not sure who is eating my pie.
I am debating whether I will tackle the crust of the pumpkin pie myself. I usually use store bought crusts, for a variety of reasons, the biggest one being that I can't handle rolling the crust dough myself. Also, the amount of butter I have to put in a crust makes me uncomfortable.
I'm considering experimenting with a graham cracker crust for both pumpkin and apple pies. Especially if I use those cinnamon-covered graham crackers...
What is your favorite kind of pie? (And if you don't like pie, what is your favorite thing to do with pumpkins and/or apples?)