If there is one thing besides Turkey that says Thanksgiving to me, it is pumpkin pie. Am I right? You Too?

No matter how full I am, or how tight my pants are, or how much I want to lay in the fetal position in the corner while the room spins from too much food, I will always, always make room for pumpkin pie.

With as much as I love it- it is always funny to me how the kids are not so wild about it. I guess I could understand- I mean it is a pie made out of um, vegetables, right? The color is um, not so appetizing (let’s be honest.) So what is the real appeal to kids? Hmmm… If only I could get them to “just taste the pumpkin pie!” I know I could change their mind!

I just thought that since there is for sure a kids table at our house this year (they are finally old enough to be slightly less attended to than usual!) that I would make them a mini pumpkin pie that was a little more fun, and a lot more appealing to their funny little senses. You will also notice that to make them mini and child-friendly, I baked them in little cutie-pie mason jars. I just love to bake in mason jars!

Those kids, as much as I love them, are not eating pie off the good china. Should a child (or drunken relative) drop this mason jar, chances are good it’s not going to break. And this allows them to have their very own little pie, (you know how territorial kids get.) Plus I made cute little leaves for the top out of pastry (ok- they could have been better- sorry.) You get the idea…

Mini-Pumpkin Pies, makes 8 mini pies
-1/2 recipe Best Pie Crust
Filling:
-1 can pumpkin puree (15oz)
-1 cup cream
-1 cup brown sugar
-2 eggs
-1 tsp cinnamon
-½ tsp nutmeg
-½ tsp ginger
-½ tsp salt

1) In a food processor add the Flour, sugar and salt.
2) Pulse to combine and then add the butter.
3) Pulse until the dough resembles coarse crumbs.
4) Add the water a little at a bit and pulse until the dough comes together.

(Here, watch Coco. She’s into it.)

5) Empty the dough onto a sheet of wax paper.
6) Gently press the dough into a disc, wrap it in the paper and chill for about 30 minutes.

7) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

8) Take half of the recipe for pie dough, and using a very small amount of flour, roll out the pie dough into a circle in between two sheets of wax paper.

9) Gently peel back one side of the wax paper and cut out leaves with a knife free hand or with a cookie cutter. (Lattice would be cute too!)

Pia is rolling out the dough for “HER” pies…

10) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

11) For the Filling, combine all of the ingredients except the eggs and cream in a medium bowl, mixing them until smooth.

12) In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and cream together.

13) Then add the eggs and cream to the pumpkin and mix until creamy and smooth.

14) Ladle the pumpkin into the mason jars, filling them 4/5 ths of the way up (they will puff up slightly.)

15) Lay the leaves or other shaped pie crust gently over the pumpkin mixture.

16) Place on a baking sheet, and bake in the 350 degree oven for about 40 minutes or until the pumpkin is just set.

17) Let cool completely, or serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream.