Elevate Homemade Pumpkin Pie By Swapping Out Cream With A Tastier Ingredient

With fall in full swing and the holidays right around the corner, many are turning their culinary gaze towards the seasonal desserts many of us know and love. Everyone has their favorite, but one that most couldn't bear to miss out on during annual celebrations is a sumptuous pumpkin pie. This timeless classic is the finale of many a holiday meal, but just because it's a classic doesn't mean there isn't room for improvement.

Many pumpkin pie recipes call for condensed milk to firm up the filling. This ingredient also contributes a bit of sweetness to the dish, but you can achieve both these effects by substituting a creamy eggnog instead. Eggnog embodies the holiday season with its rich, luscious texture and fall spices like cinnamon and nutmeg that add a comforting touch. Baked into a pie, it elevates the dish by imparting just enough of the seasonings in a pumpkin spice blend and transmitting all the custardy goodness of a quality 'nog into your dessert.

Because eggnog and condensed milk have similar textures, you shouldn't need to retool your entire recipe to include this heavenly treat. The 'nog can be swapped in a one-to-one ratio, meaning if you typically use a cup and a half of condensed milk, the same amount of eggnog will suffice. The wonderful thing about substituting this ingredient is that if you forget to pick some up at the supermarket, you can make your own just the way you like it.

For all the subtle flavors it holds, eggnog is a reasonably simple concoction to whip up at home. In its purest form, it is composed of eggs, milk, heavy cream, and sugar. Vanilla extract and rum extract (if you're not already spiking your eggnog with your favorite liquor) are also generally mixed in, as are seasonal ingredients such as clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, and other spices that wake it up.

Some eggnog recipes call for the eggs to be cooked and others don't, but if you are baking it inside a luxurious pumpkin pie filling, you won't have to bother cooking the eggs while making it. It begins with mixing egg yolks and sugar into a thick, custard-like consistency, followed by adding the milk, heavy cream, and spices. Egg whites are then whipped and blended into the mix along with rum and vanilla extracts as desired.

If you want extra to serve alongside the pumpkin pie and you want it spiked, skip the rum extract and use the real thing. The alcohol will mostly (but not totally) cook out as the pie bakes, and what's not used for the dessert will parlay some additional cheer to the festivities. You could even use what's left to make eggnog Jell-O shots to get into the holiday spirit. A homemade version will level up your pumpkin pie and liven the mood at your next holiday get-together, and once you've experimented with tailoring your own with all the ingredients you love, it might be hard to go back to the store-bought version.