Pumpkin Chiffon Pie

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American readers! It is cool this year because I got to have a Canadian Thanksgiving and now I am in the USA for an American Thanksgiving my second year in a row!!! This year I planned to make everything I didn't get to at my Canadian festivities!
My kids like Costco Pumpkin pie (gak) so my Mum's traditional recipe gets set aside until Christmas or turns into muffins, either or! Well this year I get to make it for this Thursday!
The beauty of this recipe is if you do not want it chiffon-y you can stop before the egg white beating, folding, scary parts and just pour your cooled filling into a baked pie crust or a gingersnap cookie crust. I make enough for both options and a batch of muffins. I knew my Mum was a smart cookie but I never questioned her in the kitchen, just observed silently. Ohhhh the things I could say to her now! Did I mention anywhere we were in Martha Stewart's December issue on page 154? Well then you better go buy a copy! My Mum loved Martha and would be so proud to see her eldest (me) in Martha print as Mum watched her everyday and then did what Martha did all the time all by her wee self! How about that for a super mentor I had in my Mum! So here goes and please watch my little notes! Enjoy!

This is what your filling should look like before chiffoning it!

PUMPKIN CHIFFON PIE

• 2 envelope (1 tablespoon) unflavored gelatin
• 1/2 cup water
• 8 eggs, separated
• 2 1/4 cups brown sugar
• 2 1/4 cups pumpkin (one large can)
• 1 tin evaporated milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• or be like Alton Brown and love allspice and use 1 1/2 tsp of that instead of the nutmeg and ginger if you do not like ginger! ( Mum never knew about Alton!)
• my addition this year was 1/4 cup maple syrup in the gelatin mixture and I subtracted 1/4 cup water ohhhh wow! ( I used amber from Michigan that a good friend Lisa sent to me) I <3 her!
• 2 recipes pastry for a 9 inch single crust pie (or 1 gingersnap crust and one pastry crust!)

DIRECTIONS

1. Mix the gelatin and water in a small bowl, and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, beat the egg yolks until thick. Mix in 1 1/2 cups brown sugar, pumpkin, evaporated milk, salt, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg and ginger.
3. In a double broiler, cook the mixture over boiling water, stirring constantly, until thick. Mix in the gelatin. Stir to dissolve. Remove from heat and allow the mixture to thicken until it mounds when dropped by the spoonful. I chill mine overnight!
4. In a clean, dry medium bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually mix in the remaining 3/4 brown sugar, and continue beating until firm. Fold in the pumpkin mixture. Transfer to the pie crust or two Chill until firm, about 1 hour, or overnight. You can reserve enough pumpkin for a non chiffon pie before the beating and folding of the eggs ... often scary for a first Thanksgiving or even a 5th for that matter (I've been there as I lost my Mum at 33 years of age) 
5. Serve with your fave whipped topping and I am hoping it is real whipped cream! This is easy to do, pour whipping cream in a chilled metal bowl, start to beat until soft peaks form and then add your vanilla and tiny bit of sugar. Continue to beat until dollupy (haha) and serve on cold pie