One of the main reasons I eat pumpkin pie is the custard filling. So I figured I’d just cut to the chase and make the pumpkin custard.
This is a simple, one-bowl recipe, and it works as breakfast, snack, or dessert. Dress it with whipped coconut cream, a dollop of yogurt, a crumble of nuts, or just have it solo.
As you read the recipe, you will come across the part about creating a water bath for the pumpkin custard. You may be tempted to skip this step, and you could, but your custard will likely crack, separate from the sides of the ramekins, and burn.
Here’s the reasoning: The pumpkin custard is thickened by the egg proteins, and sets well below 212°F (180°C), the boiling point for water. Unless the proteins are protected from the high heat of the oven, they’ll overcook and tighten or shrink, causing the custard to crack or separate into curdled egg and liquid. A water bath insulates custards from the direct heat of the oven because water can’t get hotter than 212°F (180°C), compared to the 350°F (180°C) oven. So the water bath protects the custard from overheating.
Pumpkin Custard
Yield 6 servings
Make sure to use ramekins or oven-proof bowls that can hold between 4 and 8 ounces (between 118 and 237 ml). The water bath is essential to keeping the custard from cracking while it’s baking.
Another option is to bake all the custard in one large baking dish, which may take longer to bake but is easier to use to serve various portion sizes, and creates fewer dishes.
While not sweetener-free, this recipe taps into the sweetness of the squash puree, vanilla and cinnamon to sweeten the custard. If you prefer your custard a little less sweet, you can reduce the sweetener by 1 to 2 tablespoons.
If you’re following SCD, use honey instead of maple syrup.
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups (or about 15 ounces) of roasted butternut squash or canned pumpkin
- 1/4 cup of dairy-free milk (coconut, almond, or substitute with more squash)
- 3
eggs - 1/2
cup honey or maple syrup - 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon allspice
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C, or gas mark 4).
- Prepare a deep baking dish with 6 ramekins or other oven-proof bowls, and add enough water to the baking dish to reach 3/4 of the way up the sides of the ramekins.
- In a mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients and whisk or mix until well blended.
- Fill each ramekin a little more than halfway with the pumpkin custard.
- Bake for 45 minutes, or until the pumpkin custard is set.
- Cool for about an hour and then store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. You can make this a few days ahead as well.
- Serve with whipped coconut cream (see below) or maple whipped cream on top.
Whipped Coconut Cream
Yield 1/2 cup
I use coconut milk in a container for coconut cream, but cans will work also. I make sure there are no other ingredients added to the coconut milk, and I prefer this brand. You can also buy coconut cream separately. Occasionally I open a container that doesn’t have enough cream, so I usually add two coconut milk containers to the refrigerator, just in case.
You can use honey or maple syrup, or any other sweetener you prefer. For SCD, use only honey.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup coconut cream
- 1 teaspoon honey
Instructions
- Place the coconut milk in the refrigerator for 24 hours. This allows the cream to separate from the milk.
- Chill a metal bowl in the freezer 15 minutes before you plan on making the whipped cream.
- The coconut cream will separate on the top of the container. Separate the coconut cream from the remaining liquid and place it in the chilled bowl with the honey (or maple syrup).
- Use a standing mixer (with a whipping attachment) or hand blender to whip the coconut cream for about a minute, or until it is light and fluffy.
- Use the whipped cream immediately, or store in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.
I prefer the filling in pies, too, and would always leave the crust. This custard will be perfect for me and my husband, since we cannot eat the sugar-laden pies. Also, I wanted to mention that I have your cookbook, and love it!
Thanks so much! Happy holidays!
Hi Erica! If you use one large baking dish, how do you go about the water bath? Thanks!
I thought someone might ask 🙂 I haven’t tried it yet, other than when it’s in a pie crust, but I would still set up a water bath. Which means, you’ll need two baking dishes, one slightly bigger than the other.
Can we use the coconut cream that comes in a container instead of refrigerating coconut milk and taking the cream from that? I have some guests coming over and I urgently need to make the coconut whipped cream as they follow SCD diet like me.
Yes, but you may need to add water to the cream to get the right consistency. Check on the container label.
Just made this. It was so good I made a second batch. So nice to find a recipe that does not have gobs of sugar or sugar substitutes. My hubby loves pumpkin so this was a hit. This is a “keeper”!
Thanks! 🙂
I love this recipe Erica! I decided to try it in one dish rather than the ramekins. I used my Princess House ( very old but reliable) clear glass 8×8 baking dish. I used my 9×13 Pyrex lasagna dish for water bath. Now, I had to figure out the cooking time. When all said and done, I baked it for 1 1/2 hours, @ 350, checking every 10 min after an 1 hr and 10 mins. Came out beautifully set and delicious! Thought you and your readers would appreciate the input! Just love Comfybelly and use so many of your recipes!!!
Yay! Thanks so much for sharing what worked, Debbie. Slow and steady wins the race with this recipe. And the water bath!
As Flan/Creme Caramel does really well made in an electric multi-cooker/Instant Pot, this sound like a recipe that would work in one as well! So much easier than dealing with a bain marie in the oven!
Oooh! You are right. Great thinking.