This fall I ended up freezing a lot of pumpkin puree. Freezing pumpkin puree is not ideal, or so I understand, but when life gives you a dozen pie pumpkins (or your sister- and brother-in-law do— thanks, guys!), you do what you gotta do! I've been making pumpkin pie filling from fresh pumpkin since middle school, and while my first attempts were variously watery, cracked or stringy, the flavor was often (although not always, I assume due to variation in my pumpkins) sublime. Over the years, I think I have managed to come up with a pretty decent method for managing fresh pumpkin puree, which is the key to perfect pie texture.

My secret? Removing the excess water. No matter how you cook your pumpkin, it usually ends up with way too much water in it (although it depends on the breed of pumpkin). I just put the cooked pumpkin pulp in some cheesecloth and give it a good solid squeeze. I get as much water out as I can: I suppose it might be possible to remove too much water, but it's never happened to me!

I like to cook my cut-up and de-seeded pumpkin at 350 degrees in a foil-covered roasting pan with a little water in the bottom. The water reduces scorching and also steams the pumpkin a little, which cooks it more evenly. I'm not sure if the steaming results in a less flavorful pumpkin (I should do a taste test), but I like to use the water method because I have a tendency to wander off to do laundry and end up cutting off the burnt and blackened bottom inch of pumpkin. When the pumpkin is thoroughly soft, I take it out of the oven and let it cool and remove the hard rind by pulling it between my fingers to separate it from the pulp— then it's time for the cheesecloth.

I usually use a food processor to smooth out the puree, but after reading this recipe from Smitten Kitchen (and Cook's Illustrated), I am definitely planning to try using my sieve too. I generally think that the pumpkin pie recipes are like mouse traps— you can't beat the tried and true— but all the other tricks in this one look worth trying as well.