Dough (for 1 pie shell)

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 sticks cold butter, cut into small pieces
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons cold water

On cutting board, combine flour, butter, sugar, and salt by quickly working mixture with hands or pastry cutter until it forms pea-size pieces. Add water and mix lightly. Work with heel of hand to form dough. Do not overwork; visible pieces of butter are desirable.

Lightly flour surface of cutting board and roll dough into 12-inch circle (approximately 1/4-inch thick). Transfer dough to 9-inch pie plate. Fold edges of dough to make a 1/2-inch rim above pie plate. Flute or make decorative edge if desired. Chill piecrust until very cold.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line pie shell with enough aluminum foil to cover edges. Fill shell with rock salt or uncooked rice or beans and bake for 30 minutes. Reserve.

Pumpkin Filling

16 ounces canned pumpkin
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves (optional)
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Combine all ingredients and mix well. Pour into baked pie shell, and bake for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until filling has set and skewer comes out clean. Allow to cool.

Crunchy Pecan Topping (optional)

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine flour, sugars, and butter, and work with fingers to form mealy, moist dough. Add pecans and mix well.

Pour mixture into 9-inch pie plate or cake pan and bake for 1 hour or until mixture is lightly browned and crunchy. Allow to cool.

Break mixture into pieces, then strew over pumpkin pie.

Brown-Sugar Cream

1 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

In mixing bowl, combine all ingredients. Mix well and refrigerate. After mixture thickens, pour over slices of pie.

Recipe from The Right Stuffing Texas Monthly, November 1991.