The Boho Baker’s Pumpkin Pie Brûlée

• 6 servings
• 30-35 minutes to bake, 15 minutes to prepare

Instructions

The Boho Baker describes herself as “Baker. Writer. Forager. Wanderer. Organic ingredient and edible floral Enthusiast. Member of the Guild of Food Writers.” Very local to our HQ in Preston, she’s kindly agreed to do a series of recipes for us, celebrating the best of our local produce. Follow her on instagram @thebohobaker.

There is no need to waste any pumpkin flesh from your jack-o-lanterns this year: These creamy desserts are essentially a crustless pumpkin pie sealed with a crème brûlée lid. Think lightly spiced custard, with the indulgent hard caramel top that you cannot wait to crack open. The autumnal spices cloak the earthiness of the pumpkin, meaning these will no doubt be eagerly gobbled up by even the pickiest of eaters.

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4. Mash or blend the pumpkin flesh until it reaches a puree consistency. It is almost impossible to get the pumpkin perfectly smooth, but this is nothing to worry about as it will soften so much in the oven that the pumpkin will be completely indistinguishable.
2. Whisk the eggs together in a separate bowl before gently stirring in the pumpkin, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Add the condensed milk, whole milk, vanilla, and pinch of salt, and then whisk vigorously until well combined. The custard mixture will be quite thin and watery, but this will thicken up during the cook.
3. Distribute the mixture between 6 ramekins and place in a deep baking tray. Pour boiling hot water into the baking tray around the ramekins to a depth of about one inch. This will create a Bain Marie effect, helping distribute the heat evenly around the custard.
4. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the centre is fairly set with only a hint of wobbliness. Remove from the water bath and place on a wire rack to cool. If you prefer a soft baked custard then you can serve it up warm at this point, just dust with a dash of cinnamon to finish.
5. If you’re going all the way, preheat the grill to a medium setting whilst the custards cool slightly. Sprinkle the tops of the custards liberally with brown sugar, and then place directly under the heat of the grill. Keep a close eye on this, as the sugar can “catch” very quickly and should caramelise and brown in under 90 seconds. Remove from the grill and set aside for two minutes for the brûlée top to set. Please note that the topping will not harden whilst under the heat, and needs the setting time to create the sheet of caramel glass on top of the creamy custard. Enjoy warm as a wonderfully autumnal dessert.

Hints/Tips/Troubleshooting:

• You do not need much pumpkin flesh for this recipe: I found that the flesh from the lid of the jack-o-lantern provided more than enough for all six desserts.
• Don’t fancy planting all those pumpkin seeds? Boil them in a pan of water to soften, then fry them in a pan with some bacon to make a delicious snack.