Eggnog Cream Pie

Boy did I have a ball baking up pies for the blog last month. And I have the waste line to prove it. Ha! Here's another holiday gem I just had to share with y'all - Eggnog Cream Pie!

Want guests to die in their pie? Serve them this gorgeous Eggnog Cream Pie!

This holiday pie has a gorgeous Christmas cookie crust, a rich and creamy eggnog pudding filling, and a fresh and luscious nutmeg & rum whipped cream. It's also topped with bright red maraschino cherries and adorable Christmas cookie sprinkles. Want guests to die in their pie (not literally, of course)? Make this one!

This fantabulous pie starts with a bag of store-bought red and green sprinkled Christmas cookies. Zap 'em in a food processor till you have fine crumbs.

The red and green flecks in this Eggnog Cream Pie crust are so pretty and so very Christmas-y.

Reserve a little bit of cookie crumbs for the top of your pie and mix the rest with melted butter. Press the mixture into your pie plate and bake for 8 minutes.

The red and green flecks in this pie crust are so pretty and so very Christmas-y. 

After your cookie crust has cooled, whisk together a box of vanilla pudding mix with full fat eggnog. Also very Christmas-y.



Pour into your crust and refrigerate while you make the whipped cream.

The beautiful whipped cream that tops this Eggnog Cream Pie is spiked with nutmeg and rum. It's quite delectable. Taste with caution as you may end up needing to make a whole new batch just for the pie.

Tada! The finished Eggnog Cream Pie.

Top the pie with puffs of whipped cream and sprinkle with cookie crumbs. Then, top each puff of cream with a maraschino cherry.

Ho, ho, ho! Me-rry Christmas!

Christmas cookie sprinkles and sweet cherries finish off this fantabulous Eggnog Cream Pie.

Eggnog Cream Pie
(makes 1 deep dish pie)

INGREDIENTS
9 oz bag red and green sprinkled Christmas cookies
5 Tbsp melted butter
5.1 oz box vanilla instant pudding and pie filling
2 1/2 cups full fat eggnog
2 cups whipping cream
1 Tbsp boxed vanilla instant pudding and pie filling mix
2 Tbsp spiced rum (optional, but preferable)
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/3 cup powdered sugar
about 10 to 12 maraschino cherries

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Throw the whole bag of Christmas cookies in the food processor and zap until they're fine crumbs.
3. Set aside 2 Tbsp of crumbs and mix the rest with 5 Tbsp of melted butter. Press into pie plate and bake for 8 minutes. Cool completely.
4. Whisk together the box of vanilla pudding mix and the eggnog for 3 minutes until nice and thick. Pour into your cooled crust and refrigerate while you make the cream.
5. In the bowl of your stand mixer (I like to put my bowl and whisk in the fridge so they're nice and cold) pour in the cream, the Tbsp of vanilla instant pudding mix, the nutmeg, the rum, and the powdered sugar, and whip together until stiff peaks form.
6. Cut one corner of a Ziploc freezer bag a little smaller than your piping tip, insert tip, and fill with whipped cream.
7. Pipe puffs of cream all around your pie, sprinkle the puffs with the reserved cookie crumbs, and top each one with a maraschino cherry.
8. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Pipe all the leftover whipped cream into a pretty dish and serve alongside your pie.

* You can also just pile all of the whipped cream on top of your pie all at once like a traditional cream pie.

Carrot Cardamom Pie with Pistachio Cardamom Whipped Cream

Indian food is my very favorite. When my hubby suggested a carrot pie I turned to my favorite Indian dessert for inspiration - spiced carrot pudding. Ever had it? It's like a rice pudding made with shredded carrot instead of rice. Carrots are cooked down with sugar, milk, golden raisins, and cardamom to make a gorgeous pudding that's garnished with nuts. It's totally delish. These are the fabulous flavors I put into my Carrot Cardamom Pie with Pistachio Cardamom Whipped Cream.

Take Thanksgiving to the next level with my Carrot Cardamom Pie and Pistachio Cardamom Whipped Cream.

This Carrot Cardamom Pie is just as creamy and sweet as any ol' pumpkin or sweet potato pie. Roasting the carrots brings out their natural sweetness, and the cardamom adds a happy surprise of exotic autumn flavor to the custard. Oh, and the pistachio cardamom whipped cream? It really is something special. You may end up squirting half the piping bag down your throat. Save some for the pie, will ya!




Start by roasting yourself about 8 large carrots.




Once cooled, zap them in a food processor until pureed. You may need to stop your machine and push down the contents a few times.




I used a sourdough pastry shell for my pie, but a regular one will do just fine - just make sure it's deep dish. I blind baked my crust for 15 to 20 minutes to avoid a soggy bottom.

Mix up your carrot custard and pour into your cooled crust. Wrap foil gently around the edges of the pie and bake for 20 minutes. Then, remove the foil and bake another 25 to 30 minutes until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Get foodie fancy with this Carrot Cardamom Pie and Pistachio Cardamom Whipped Cream.

When your pie is completely cool, make your whipped cream and pipe pretty swirls all around it. Or, you can just heap it all on top like a cream pie. This recipe makes a stabilized whipped cream, so you don't have to worry about it turning into a puddle as it sits on your dessert table.

Pretty swirls of Pistachio Cardamom Whipped Cream top this foodie fabulous Carrot Cardamom Pie.

Go "foodie" this Thanksgiving by serving this spin on the classic pumpkin pie and amaze your guests with the delectable flavors of cardamom and pistachio.




Carrot Cardamom Pie with Pistachio Cardamom Whipped Cream
(makes 1 deep dish pie)

INGREDIENTS
For the Carrot Cardamom Pie:
about 8 to 10 large carrots
olive oil to coat
1 deep dish single pie crust (I used sourdough pastry)
4 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp cardamom
1/2 tsp cinnamon
12 oz evaporated milk

For the Pistachio Cardamom Whipped Cream:
1 pint whipping cream
1 Tbsp pistachio pudding mix
1/3 cup powdered sugar
a scant 1/2 tsp almond extract
1/4 tsp cardamom

another 1/4 tsp cardamom to garnish

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees, line a large baking sheet with foil and lightly grease.
2. Peel and cut carrots into similar sized pieces so they roast evenly. Toss them with a little olive oil, dump onto baking sheet, and roast for 30 to 45 minutes or until a knife easily slides into the chunks.
3. Allow carrots to cool and lower oven temp to 375 degrees.
4. Blind bake your crust. Line the crust with foil, fill with 1 lb dry beans, and bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil and beans, push down any puffiness, and bake another 5 minutes. Allow crust to cool for 10 to 15 minutes. Raise the oven temp to 400 degrees.
5. When carrots are cool enough, put them in a food processor and process until you have a puree. I had to stop the machine and push the mixture down several times.
6. Weigh out 15 oz of carrot puree (or about 1 1/2 cups) and place in a bowl.
7. Beat the eggs into the puree and then beat in the rest of the pie ingredients using a whisk.
8. Pour the custard into your cooled crust and lightly wrap the edges with foil. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 25 to 30 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. If the edges look too brown as the pie bakes, cover them again with foil.
9. Allow pie to cool completely.
10. Beat all of the ingredients for the whipped cream until stiff peaks form.
11. Pipe rosettes or simple puffs all around the pie, sprinkle a little cardamom over the cream, and serve with any leftover whipped cream. You can also just pile all of the whipped cream onto the pie at once for a more cream pie kinda look.