G Love's Thanksgiving Message/Recipes

What's up y'all!! Or should I say, Happy Thanksgiving. Happy Turkey Day.

Yeah that's right!    
Even for people who tend to shy away from holidays, what's not to love about Thanksgiving? Let's give thanks for all of the positive aspects of our lives. And even though times are tough to say the least, there's nothing like some turkey with all the fixin’s to help ease the pain. And don't forget the pumpkin pieeeeeeeee. Yeah boyeee. I'm coming home Ma! Save me a seat!   

Thanksgiving brings back so many great memories of my grandparents Mimi and Grandpa. They used to live down in North Carolina close to Sanford. We would pack up the station wagon and drive the 9 hours over two days. My Dad would get us a room at the cheapest place possible and my Mom would always have a fit about the "sh!thole dump", "I'm not staying here!" But we always did...I think part of the reason we would stop the night was so my Dad could go by his favorite roadside diner.
Somewhere south of the Mason-Dixon line on the way to the Tar Heel state, there was this down-home, southern, roadside diner called The Cardinal. My Dad would order grits, eggs and fatback. Fatback is just deep-fried fat. My mother would roll her eyes. They had those real home cooked biscuits and they even served brains and eggs. They said they'd make ya smarter.    

After the Cardinal we would drive a couple more hours to Mimi and Grandpa's house. My little sister and I would get out of the car early and sneak up to the house to surprise whoever we could find first and the festivities would begin.  My Grandma would immediately take us to the kitchen and open the oven to show us the featured guest, "Mr. Turk". She would let us baste it and then close it up with a laugh. At dinnertime we would have the classic Thanksgiving spread and after about 3 plates I was ready for my favorite, pumpkin pie. I thought I was full from my toes to my intensities but I was wrong because I was always ready for that pie.
Mimi's pie was a classic old school pumpkin pie that was always perfect. Since those days I've become quite a cook myself and I wanted to share this amazing recipe for Funky Spiced Pumpkin Pie. I can't say I made it up but damn it sure is something else. I hope you enjoy it.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours-
G. Love 

 Funky Spice-kissed Pumpkin Pie Recipe    
This recipe is by Heidi Swanson and inspired by Kathy FitzHenry.
This is a pretty serious foodie recipe. You can go all the way with it or take some short cuts. I personally always like to go all the way. Especially the first time!     
You can use a traditional pumpkin pie spice blend but really, freshly ground spices, make all the difference in a recipe like this. For the filling, you can also substitute roasted sweet potatoes or other roasted winter squash as the base ingredient. If you are pinched for time you can also use canned pumpkin puree (but roasting it yourself is the best. Roastie Toasti) If you used canned puree, be sure it is pure, non-spiced pumpkin puree. You can certainly use a store-bought crust if you like, for a pie like this I use a standard pie dough recipe (pate brisee). I use whole-wheat pastry flour in place of all-purpose flour. You can use the filling in tarts, or for individual pies/tarts as well. I love to use deep, dark muscovado sugar in place of standard brown sugar for its flavor, but some people are turned off by the darker color it lends to the filling.
Oooookaaaaay. Here we go. You can do this! One step at a time. Make sure you're not as roasted as the pumpkin.      
1 partially baked pie crust (of your choice), see head notes    
2 cups hazelnuts (divided), toasted
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice blend*    
1 teaspoon salt    
1 tablespoon arrowroot (or cornstarch)    
1 1/2 cups of roasted pumpkin puree*    
1 teaspoon vanilla extract    
3 extra large eggs PLUS one for glaze, lightly beaten    
1 cup coconut milk  

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, racks in the middle. That's what we call hot cookin'. Now turn on some Special Sauce and rock out. It will taste better later. 
Puree 1 1/2 cups of the toasted hazelnuts in a food processor until they turn into a hazelnut paste, past the 'crumble' stage. Set aside.
Chop the remaining 1/2 cup of hazelnuts and set aside separately, these will be sprinkled on top after the pie is baked.  
To make the pumpkin pie filling, whisk together the brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice blend, salt, and arrowroot. Stir in the pumpkin puree, and vanilla. Now stir in the eggs and coconut milk until just combined. Set aside.  
Before filling the pie crust, crumble the hazelnut paste on top of the pie dough into the pie plate, quickly and gently press it into a thin layer across the bottom creating a layer of hazelnuts that will sit between the dough and the filling.
Using the last egg gently brush the decorative edges of the pie dough.
Use a fork to prick the pie dough a few times to prevent air bubbles.
Fill the piecrust with the filling and bake for about 50 minutes--the center of the pie should just barely jiggle when you move the pie--the edges should be set. 
If you've really made this pie I'm sincerely impressed. Please make another one and bring it to sound check. I will get your whole crew into the show. For real! 
Let the pie cool a bit, this makes slicing less messy. Serve straight or with a dollop of bourbon-spiked, sweetened whipped cream or crème fraiche, and a sprinkling of chopped hazelnuts.  Damn that sounds good I'm hungry now.  
Makes one 9 or 10-inch pie. 

*For the advanced chefs...Kathy's Pumpkin Pie Spice Blend  
1 tablespoon freshly ground cassia cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground allspice scant
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger (pre ground) 
 
Use a coffee grinder to separately grind each of the following: cinnamon, allspice, and cloves. Smash the cinnamon a bit before grinding it. The spices should be powder-fine, and sifted into a bowl together. Stir in the ground ginger, and use in any recipe calling for a pumpkin pie spice blend. 

*Roasted Pumpkin Puree  
1 3 lb. sugar pie pumpkin
2 tablespoons olive oil salt  
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Carefully cut the pumpkin into four big wedges - get rid of the stem.
Scoop out the seeds and pulp (you can toast the seeds if you like), drizzle then rub the pumpkin wedges with olive oil, sprinkle generously with salt, and then bake on a baking sheet (middle rack) until tender throughout - about an hour. Scoop flesh out of the skins and puree with a hand blender or mash well by hand.

(Check out G. Love’s holiday track “Christmas Baby” on This Warm December, A Brushfire Holiday Volume 1 – available now on iTunes.)