Butternut Squash Pie

This is my friend Laura's recipe. It's the pie I made for our Thanksgiving feast and the pumpkin pie lovers raved about it. Laura says she doesn't usually let on that it's not pumpkin until after the skeptics have tasted it.

I used a butternut squash I bought at the farmers market before it closed for the season. It had been sitting in a basket on my kitchen table for nearly a month and it was still perfectly good. Winter squash will keep for months in a cold garage and Kruse Farms still has some to stock up on.

Butternut Squash Pie
(adapted from Libby's Pumpkin Pie recipe)
Makes one 10-inch pie

Pastry for one 10-inch pie pan, unbaked
1 3/4 cups pureed butternut squash (see note)
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (I used freshly ground and I counted 50 swipes across my grater)
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 1/2 cups cream, half-n-half, or evaporated milk (I used evaporated milk)

For the pastry, I made one batch of all-butter pie crust (see Perfect peach pie) and used half for the butternut squash pie and half for the Dutch apple pie.

Preheat oven to 425. Combine pureed squash, sugar and spices. Blend in eggs and cream or evaporated milk. Pour into unbaked 10-inch pie shell. Bake 15 minutes at 425 degrees. Reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake 45 minutes longer or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Note* To prepare the squash: Wash thoroughly, pierce with a sharp knife ( I make a two or three-inch slit in one side) and microwave on high for 5 minutes. Cut in half lengthwise and scoop out seeds. Place cut side down on a baking sheet and bake at 350 for 1 hour, until soft. Let cool, remove skin and puree in blender or food processor until smooth. If not using right away, cooked squash may be refrigerated for up to 5 days or frozen. One 3 1/2 pound uncooked squash yields about 4 1/2 cups of puree.

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