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Dessert

Pumpkin Pies

A pumpkin pie made from a four‑pound pumpkin, molasses, cinnamon, ginger, salt, milk, and eggs, baked with an under crust.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By Mary Ronald · From a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg) · 7 ingredients
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Why it works: Cinnamon and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 12,655 recipes. Both carry cuminaldehyde, which smells Spicy, cumin. The science ↓

Pumpkin Pies

five pies

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the pumpkin

  1. Pare a small pumpkin, about four pounds, and remove the seeds.

  2. Steam until soft, then strain through a colander.

Make the filling

  1. Beat in three eggs, three tablespoonfuls of molasses, two tablespoonfuls of ground cinnamon, one tablespoonful of ginger, two teaspoonfuls of salt, and two quarts of hot milk.

  2. If more sweetening is needed, add a little sugar.

Bake

  1. Bake with an under crust only.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

291Calories
14 gProtein
13 gFat
30 gCarbs

Counts 5 of 6 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 5 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Molasses1 tbsp (20g)58
Cinnamon1 tsp ground (2.6g)6
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Pienot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By Mary Ronald. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Cinnamon + milktop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together12,655 recipes

    Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).

  2. Molasses + cinnamontop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together4,928 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

  3. Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together88,785 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  4. Molasses + milktop 21% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together7,243 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  5. Cinnamon + eggtop 28% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together19,058 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).

Cinnamon and egg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 19,058 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Pumpkin (in the method)
Provides the main body and moisture of the filling once cooked and strained.
Eggs
Set the filling into a firm custard as they cook.
Milk
Adds liquid and richness, giving the custard a smooth, tender texture.
Molasses
Adds sweetness, deep color and a caramel-like flavor.
Ground cinnamon
Adds warm aroma and spice that complements the pumpkin.

The step that matters

Steam, then strain the pumpkin. Excess water thins the filling and can stop the custard from setting firmly. Cooking the pumpkin until soft and straining it well keeps the eggs able to set the filling properly.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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