Ingredients

Instructions

This pie can be made with a chocolate, graham cracker, or a traditional spice or butter pie crust. My favorite recipe, a chocolate pie crust, is below. A maple whipped cream recipe is also below. Purchase your pie crust or make it prior to preparing the filling.

Filling Preparation
Whisk pumpkin purée, sour cream, bourbon, cinnamon, salt, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, and 3 eggs in a large bowl, then set aside.

Pour maple syrup in a small saucepan. Split vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape out the seeds from half of the vanilla bean then add to the maple syrup (or add vanilla extract) – save the other half of the bean for the whipped cream. Bring syrup and beans to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-high and simmer, stirring occasionally, until mixture is thickened, about 10 minutes.

Remove from heat and add cream in 3 additions, stirring with a wooden spoon after each addition until smooth. Gradually whisk hot maple cream into pumpkin mixture.

Place pie dish (chocolate pie dough recipe below) on a rimmed baking sheet and pour in filling. Bake pie, rotating halfway through, until set around edge but center barely jiggles, 55–65 minutes. Transfer pie dish to a wire rack and let cool.

Just before serving, top with vanilla maple whipped cream (recipe below). This pie can also be brûléed. Simply sprinkle 2 tbsp so granulated sugar over top and melt sugar with a kitchen torch until browned.

DO AHEAD: Pie can be baked 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.

Chocolate Pie Dough
¼ cup plus 1 Tbsp. Dutch-process unsweetened cocoa powder
3-½ tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1-¼ cups plus 1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
8 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 large egg yolk
½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar

Chocolate Pie Dough Instructions
Pulse cocoa powder, granulated sugar, salt, and 1-¼ cups plus 1 Tbsp. flour in a food processor to combine. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal with a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining. Transfer to a large bowl.

Whisk egg yolk, vinegar, and ¼ cup ice water in a small bowl. Drizzle half of egg mixture over flour mixture and, using a fork, mix gently just until combined. Add remaining egg mixture and mix until dough just comes together (you will have some unincorporated pieces).

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface, flatten slightly, and cut into quarters. Stack pieces on top of one another, placing unincorporated dry pieces of dough between layers, and press down to combine. Repeat process twice more (all pieces of dough should be incorporated at this point). Form dough into a 1”-thick disk. Wrap in plastic; chill at least 1 hour.

DO AHEAD: Dough can be made 2 days ahead. Keep chilled, or freeze up to 3 months.

Roll out disk of dough on a lightly floured surface into a 14” round. Transfer to a 9” pie dish. Lift up edge and allow dough to slump down into dish. Trim, leaving about 1” overhang. Fold overhang under and crimp edge. Chill in freezer 15 minutes.

Place a rack in middle of oven and preheat oven to 350°. Line pie with parchment paper or heavy-duty foil, leaving a 1-½” overhang. Fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until crust is dry around the edge, about 20 minutes. Remove paper and weights and bake until surface of crust looks dry, 5–10 minutes. Brush bottom and sides of crust with 1 beaten egg. Return to oven and bake until dry and set, about 3 minutes longer. (Brushing crust with egg and baking will prevent a soggy crust.)

Maple Whipped Cream
1 cup heavy cream, very cold
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, seeds scraped out
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

Maple Whipped Cream Instructions
Place metal bowl and whisk in freezer for 15 minutes. Combine the cream, vanilla seeds, and maple syrup in the chilled bowl and whip on the highest mixer speed until soft peaks form, approximately 2-4 minutes.

Store any unused portion in an airtight container for up to a day.

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Pie filling nutritional info on the left, chocolate crust on the right.