Pumpkin Pie Tart With Vanilla Bourbon Icing

Pumpkin Pie. 

You just can’t do Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie. In fact, I’m reasonably sure it’s illegal not to have a pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving. 

But, that doesn’t mean you can’t shake things up a bit with a new version of pumpkin pie, right? Which is just what we’re going to do today. 

classic pumpkin pie filling> meets buttery shortbread style tart crust

And guess what? This is seriously a match made in heaven! Add a little drizzle of vanilla burbon icing, and we’ve got a serious winner here. 

Hope you enjoy this one as much as we did! Happy Thanksgiving!

Pumpkin Pie Tart- Yields one tart in a 9.875″ X 1.75″ pan. 

Crust:

• 1 and 1/2 sticks butter
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• pinch of sea salt
• 2 and 1/4 cups all purpose flour

Pie Filling:

• 2 cups pumpkin puree
• 2 whole eggs + 1 egg yolk
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1 1/2 cups cream
• 2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon cardamon

Icing:

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1-2 teaspoons burbon or whiskey, to taste
• 1-2 teaspoons milk, as needed

1. Prepare a tart pan with a removable bottom by lightly greasing with spray oil or butter and set aside. Preheat oven to 425*.

2.  To make the crust: Cream together the butter and sugar using either an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer. Add the egg and vanilla and blend in throughly using the mixer. Add the pinch of sea salt, and flour about 1/2 cup at a time and mix, making sure all the flour is well incorporated before adding the next half cup. When all the flour has been incorporated, use your hands to shape into a disk. Wrap the disk in saran wrap and chill in refrigerator for 15 minutes. 

3. While dough chills the filling can be made. In the (clean) bowl of stand mixer or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, blend together, pumpkin puree, eggs, sugar, brown sugar, salt, 1 tablespoon of flour, cream, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and cardamon. Mix until well blended. The mixture will be very runny, this is ok. Set filling aside.

4. After the dough has been chilled remove from the fridge. Divide the dough reserving about 1/4th of the dough if you wish to make decorations on top of the tart. Rewrap the reserved dough and return to the fridge. If you do not wish to make decorations on top of the tart all the dough can be used for the bottom crust. On a lightly floured surface roll the dough out into a circle about two inches larger then the diameter of the tart pan. Gently drape the dough over the tart pan, and use your hands to gently press the dough into the pan. Trim any excess dough so that none overhangs the tart pan. Gently using one finger, work your way around the tart pan, pushing the edges of the dough down so that it sits only 3/4s of the way up the sides of the pan. (If the dough reaches all the way to the top of the pan the crust will end up quite a bit taller then the filling.) 

5. Pour the prepared filling into the prepared tart crust. It should fill the entire crust, but not overflow. 

6. Bake at 425* for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 350* and cook for 35 min.

7. Meanwhile, if decorating the top of the tart, roll out the remaining dough on a lightly floured surface. Use cookie cutters or a butter knife to create leaf shapes. Note that the filling will expand and contract during cooking so large shapes (like those pictured in the photos) may crack while baking. Smaller shapes will not crack as easily. Finished shapes should be refrigerated until it is time to add them to the tart.

8. After the 35 min at 350* has passed, open the oven and gently place shapes on the filling. The filling will be only partially set and the shapes should fit into it without sinking. Close the oven and cook for an additional 20 minutes. (If not decorating the tart just continue cooking the tart for the additional 20 minutes.) 

9. When the time is up the tart should be cooked, though the filling may look slightly jiggly; though it will continue to set after it is removed from the oven. The filling can be checked for doneness by inserting a toothpick in the filling if you are concerned. It should come out clean if the filling is fully cooked. When done remove the tart from the oven and cool uncovered for two hours before icing (if desired) or serving.

10. To make icing: in a small saucepan over low heat melt together powdered sugar, vanilla, burbon, and 1 teaspoon of milk. Stir until a thick glaze is formed. Sugar will clump at first, but should melt into glaze. Add additional milk if needed if glaze is too thick or stays clumpy. Drizzle over tart or use a pastry bag to decorate as desired. (The icing is a great way to disguise any cracks that may have formed in the shortbread decorations.) Allow icing to cool fully before storing the tart.