Perfect Pumpkin Pie
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After more than 25 years of cooking professionally—and hosting plenty of Thanksgivings—I’ve made a lot of pumpkin pies. This is the one I make every year, and the one my family looks forward to most.
Pumpkin pie is a Thanksgiving classic, and when it’s made well, it’s hard to beat—a silky, warmly spiced pumpkin filling baked into a buttery, flaky crust. But for a dessert that seems so simple, pumpkin pie can be surprisingly finicky. Over the years, I’ve tried at least a dozen recipes and run into just about every issue: fillings that won’t set, unsightly cracks, and soggy crusts. Let’s just say the person who coined the phrase “easy as pie” had clearly never baked a pumpkin pie!
The good news is that all that testing paid off. This pumpkin pie recipe turns out beautifully, with a flaky crust, rich pumpkin filling, and smooth, crack-free top. And the best part? It’s truly easy to make.
If you’re planning your holiday dessert lineup, don’t miss my pecan pie, sweet potato pie, and apple pie—they’re all wonderful alongside this pumpkin pie.
“I’ve been baking pumpkin pie for what seems like an eternity. The custard always cracks. Not this time…it’s absolutely delicious!”
What You’ll Need To Make Homemade Pumpkin Pie
- Pie Crust: Use a homemade pie crust or store-bought—whichever you prefer. If using store-bought, opt for the frozen kind in an aluminum pie pan; it’s easier to blind bake and less likely to shrink.
- Pumpkin: For the best results, I recommend Libby’s canned pumpkin purée.
- Egg & Egg Yolks: The whole egg helps set the filling, while the extra yolks add richness and give it a silky texture.
- Granulated Sugar & Light Brown Sugar: Using both gives the filling a more complex sweetness, with a subtle molasses note from the brown sugar.
- All-Purpose Flour: Slightly thickens and stabilizes the filling, which helps prevent cracks.
- Spices (ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves & black pepper): This classic blend gives the pie its warm, spiced flavor, with just a hint of heat from the black pepper.
- Evaporated Milk: Gives the filling its rich, creamy texture without making it too heavy.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
How To Make Pumpkin Pie
Blind bake the crust: If using a store-bought crust, follow the package directions for pre-baking the crust. For homemade dough, fit it into a deep-dish pie pan and chill it. Line the chilled crust with parchment, fill it with pie weights (or dried beans), and bake until the edges look set.
Remove the weights and bake a bit longer until the bottom looks dry and lightly golden. If the crust puffs up, gently press it back down with a flat spatula. Blind baking gives the crust a head start so it stays nice and crisp once the wet pumpkin filling is added.
Make the filling: Whisk the filling ingredients together until completely smooth, making sure there are no pockets of flour or spices. Pour the filling into the pre-baked crust.
Bake and serve: Bake the pie at 325°F so the custard cooks gently and evenly. It’s done when the filling looks set and dry around the edges but still has a slight jiggle in the center when you nudge the pan—don’t worry, it will continue to set as it cools. If the crust edges start to brown too much before the filling is done, loosely cover them with foil.
Let the pie cool completely before slicing. Serve at room temperature or chilled, with whipped cream if you like.
Make-Ahead Instructions
Pumpkin pie is ideal for making ahead. You can bake it a day before serving, let it cool completely, then cover and refrigerate it overnight. For longer storage, the baked pie can also be frozen; see the recipe card below for full freezing instructions.
Video Tutorial
More Holiday Desserts You’ll Love
Perfect Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
- 1 homemade pie crust or 9-inch deep-dish frozen pie crust shell thawed
- 1 (15-oz) can pure pumpkin (about 1¾ cups)
- 1 large egg
- 3 large egg yolks
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup (packed) light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1¼ cups evaporated milk (you'll need one 12-oz can but you won't use all of it)
Instructions
- Blind Bake the Crust: If you’re using a store-bought frozen crust, follow the pre-baking instructions on the package. If you’re using a homemade crust, roll out the dough and gently fit it into a 9-inch deep-dish pie pan, making sure it’s snug against the bottom and sides. Chill the crust for at least 30 minutes.Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Place the chilled crust on a baking sheet (it makes it much easier to move in and out of the oven). Line the crust with a piece of parchment paper and fill it about three-quarters full with dried beans or pie weights.Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the crust from the oven, lift out the parchment and weights, and tent the edges with a few strips of foil folded in half lengthwise to keep them from getting too dark. Return the crust to the oven and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes, until the bottom looks dry and lightly golden. If it puffs up a bit, just press it down gently with a flat spatula—try not to puncture it. Remove the foil, but keep it nearby in case you need it again later.After blind-baking the crust, reduce the oven temperature to 325°F.
- Make the Filling: In a large bowl, combine the pumpkin, egg, egg yolks, granulated sugar, brown sugar, flour, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, pepper, and evaporated milk. Whisk until smooth, then pour the filling into the pre-baked crust.
- Bake and cool: Bake the pie for 50 to 60 minutes (at 325°F), until the filling is just set. It should look dry around the edges, but the center should jiggle just slightly if you nudge the pan. Keep a close eye on the pie as it bakes; if ever the crust looks like it's browning too quickly, tent the edges with foil strips. Let the pie cool on a rack (leave it on the baking sheet) to room temperature, a few hours. Slice or refrigerate until ready to serve.
Notes
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Do you suggest cooking the filling before putting it in pie crust to bake?
I made this recipe in 2018, turned out perfect no cracks. Made it again in 2019, same way and had a crack. Any suggestions this time around? We loved the taste and texture of both pie crust and filling and would love to make it again this year.
No, you don’t need to cook the filling prior to putting it in the crust. And regarding the crack, it could be that your oven is running a little hot. The low temperature really makes a difference. There’s always whipped cream 🙂
It hurts my heart to leave a negative comment because I absolutely love your recipes, I own two of your cookbooks and recommend you anytime someone is looking for something fabulous, however, I did not love this pie. It was too much, I don’t know if it was the pepper or too many spices. I made this as a trial run after reading a few of the comments and I am relieved that I did because I will stick with a more traditional recipe. Still a fan of your work, just not this pie.
My first time trying pumpkin pie in years and it came out so yummy, thank you for sharing this recipe 🙂
I used Bob’s Red Mill GF substitution flour and Gluten Free on a Shoestring’s Pie crust recipe. Baking took about 75-80 mins total for me, but GF baking usually takes longer anyway!
I love the taste of the pie. That said, I made the recipe to a t and I also have a food blog so I do all my baking from scratch. The pie came out of the oven beautifully and it still jiggled. I’m serving it this evening and there is a 2-in crack in the middle. I am so very disheartened. I wish I could send you a picture 😔
Hi Nancy, I’m sorry that your pie had a crack in it! I’d ask you to email me a picture but it sounds like you’ve already served it. It’s really important that this bakes at a low temperature so I’m wondering if your oven runs a little hot. Here are some tips for checking the accuracy of your oven. Also, perhaps you already figured it out, but if you have a crack in your pumpkin pie a good solution is to cover it with a bit of whipped cream. 🙂
Absolutely awful recipe. Just use the one on the can.
I think you did something wrong. We ate almost all of it when it came out of the oven, saving barely any for the rest of the family. 😬 Oops.
SO DELICIOUS
The instructions on the back of the frozen pie crust say to thaw the crust only for a pumpkin pie. Is blind baking the crust first necessary?
Hi Jen, I still recommend blind baking it.
I have utilized this recipe as is, over a dozen times and it’s perfect. Creamy texture, no cracks, and just the right amount of spice to pull it together. It works great with fresh or canned pumpkin and is even better on the second day.
My first pumpkin pie that I made ever, and from pumpkin grown in my garden! It was just the best and my grandkids and I loved it. Thank you!
can i use fresh pumpkin in place of canned? If so does amount of pumpkin or anything else change?
Hi Rita, a few readers have commented that they’ve used fresh pumpkin successfully, but I’ve never prepared it that way. You’d need the same amount of pumpkin and don’t need to make any other modifications. Please LMK how it turns out if you try it!
Absolutely delicious. This is my family’s favourite pumpkin pie recipe. As a shortcut, I did use frozen pie crusts but next time I will make the crust.