Prepping for Turkey Day

I LOVE Thanksgiving. I have always enjoyed getting family together, food choices are excellent, and it's the kick off to the holiday season for me. I do not like to move from Labor day to Christmas or even Halloween to Christmas. There is a very important moment of gratitude and forgiveness to be celebrated in Thanksgiving and it deserves its 15 minutes of fame.

What I have enjoyed recently is that I do not have a home large enough to accommodate a sizeable gathering, which means we're invited to participate in festivities but I don't have to cook the bird. I take care of the half-holiday celebration (half holiday as in 6 months from November to May, not half as in half the fun, have the excitement, half the family) so it's nice to contribute but not be in charge.

This year my brother so lovingly asked me to be in charge of 2 pies or dessert of some kind to feed 12-16 people. I'm excited for a couple of reasons; I'm trying to go without sweets this month but Thanksgiving is one of my four exceptions so I can choose what I want to indulge in. Secondly, I found a great pumpkin pie recipe last year and I'm excited to make it again. So if you're like me and searching for pie ideas, may I suggest the Pumpkin Icebox Pie.

Temporary photo from marthastewart.com

Ingredients:
Crust - You can make the crust up to 2 days in advance just wrap well and store at room temp.

• 16 cinnamon graham crackers, broken into large pieces
• 1 tablespoon dark-brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Filling and Topping

• 3 teaspoons unflavored powdered gelatin (from 2 packets)
• 1 can (29 ounces) pure pumpkin puree
• 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
• 1 cup packed dark-brown sugar
• 3/4 to 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground or freshly grated nutmeg, plus more for garnish (I'm sorry I don't garnish and I still enjoy.)
  
• 3/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar

Ingredients

1. Make crust: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a food processor, combine graham crackers, sugar, and salt; process until fine crumbs form. With machine running, slowly pour butter through feed tube and process until mixture resembles wet sand. Press crumbs in bottom and up sides of a 9-inch square baking dish. Bake until crust is deep golden brown and fragrant, 20 minutes. Let cool completely in baking dish on a wire rack.
2. Meanwhile, make filling: Place 1/4 cup cold water in a small bowl. Sprinkle gelatin on top and let stand 5 minutes. In a large bowl, whisk together pumpkin puree and cream cheese until smooth. In a small saucepan, combine evaporated milk, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt; bring to a simmer over medium. Add gelatin mixture and stir until completely dissolved. Pour milk mixture into pumpkin mixture and whisk until completely smooth.
3. Pour filling into cooled crust and refrigerate until chilled and completely set, about 3 hours (or wrap tightly with plastic and refrigerate, up to 2 days). To serve, whip cream with confectioners' sugar until soft peaks form. Top pie with whipped cream and sprinkle with nutmeg.