Easiest Ever Pumpkin Pie

Homemade Pumpkin Pie Ingredients

Before diving into the delightful process of crafting this seasonal favorite, let's ensure you have all the ingredients on hand or know what to pick up at the store. Each component plays an important role in creating the perfect pumpkin pie so, let's take stock of what you'll need before making your very own pumpkin pie.

Pie Crust: For this recipe we recommend utilizing a baking shortcut: pre-made frozen pie crust. Thanks to Pillsbury™ Deep Dish frozen pie crust, you can save time vs. having to bake one from scratch!

Spices and Sugar: Bring out classic pumpkin pie flavors with a combination of ground spices like cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. For convenience and ease, we recommend using a pre-made pumpkin pie spice blend. You'll add sugar and salt along with this blend to round out the flavor profile for a filling that’s neither too sweet nor overly savory.

Canned Pumpkin: Canned pumpkin is the key to a perfectly smooth pumpkin pie filling without any fuss. Make sure you grab plain canned pumpkin instead of pumpkin pie mix at the grocery store. Be aware that the packaging is usually similar, so read the label carefully.

Evaporated Milk (Or Half and Half): Evaporated milk is a pantry staple we always like to have on hand. In this recipe, it helps thicken up the filling for a homemade pumpkin pie that boasts a rich, creamy texture. However, half and half will work similarly if you have it on hand or simply prefer it.

Eggs: The 2 beaten eggs add much-needed moisture while acting as a binding agent to hold your pumpkin pie filling together.

What Are the Best Spices for Pumpkin Pie?

There’s nothing like pumpkin pie spice to give your homemade pie that classic, cozy and subtly spicy flavor profile you know and love. Pumpkin pie spice is a balanced blend of warm-tasting spices sourced from dried bark, roots, seeds or even chiles. These spice blends use cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg as important players, although every commercial blend may vary in the ratio of each. This easy pumpkin pie recipe uses a pre-made pumpkin pie spice blend to make things easier, but you can always substitute your own mixture of these spices if you’d like.

How to Make Pumpkin Pie

Now that you know or have all the needed ingredients, let's cover how to make your own pumpkin pie in 3 simple steps.

Prep

While your oven heats, grab all the ingredients and tools you’ll need to make this easy pumpkin pie. If you don’t have the pre-made spice blend on hand, you can make your own using a combination of ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Customize the ratio of spices to your liking, and feel free to experiment with other ground spices like cardamom.

Fill Crust

The tasty pumpkin pie filling comes together in a snap so you’ll just need to beat the sugar, salt, canned pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice, evaporated milk and eggs together until everything’s well blended. Place the frozen pie crust into your pie tin. No need to flute the edges—this handy crust is ready to go! Pour in the filling and place the cookie sheet in your preheated oven.

Bake

Finally, bake your homemade pumpkin pie to perfection, reducing the oven temperature partway through as directed. Let your pie cool before serving, and you’re all set!

Delicious Pumpkin Pie Toppings

Pumpkin pie tastes yummy on its own—but adding special toppings never hurts! Here are some of our favorite ways to enjoy a finished pumpkin pie.

With Ice Cream: One of our favorite ways to eat pumpkin pie is à la mode, or “served with a scoop of ice cream.” Top your slice of pie with a hefty scoop of refreshing vanilla ice cream to complement the pumpkin spice flavors.

With Whipped Cream: Fans of sweetened whipped cream, unite! This pairing is always a major hit at potlucks and family gatherings. Want to make your own? Try beating whipping cream and sugar with a mixer until soft peaks form. Add a ring of whipped cream swirls around your homemade pumpkin pie, and finish it off with a sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice for a presentation that rivals your favorite bakery-made pie.

With a Crunch: If you’d prefer something crunchy, a generous sprinkling of homemade streusel topping might be just your style. Or, try adding some crushed pecans to complement the creaminess of the pumpkin filling.

Toasted Marshmallows: For something classic yet decadent, we love adding lightly toasted marshmallows to our homemade pumpkin pie. You’re sure to impress with this tasty pairing! You can toast marshmallows by broiling them on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Keep an eye on them, as they can burn very quickly.

Whether you add toppings or enjoy it on its own, this easy pumpkin pie recipe will make your taste buds sing. Serving up a full spread of Thanksgiving desserts? Our Perfect Apple Pie is another crowd favorite you won’t want to skip. Try out a topping bar for friends and family to customize their slices of each!

Festive Pumpkin Pie Decorations

Want your pumpkin pie to look extra special? This easy pumpkin pie recipe uses a frozen pie crust for a quick, convenient and homemade-quality result—but there are plenty of ways to decorate a pumpkin pie for some extra flair. Here’s how to make a big impression using simple pie crust decorating methods.

Pie Crust Cutouts: This easy pumpkin pie recipe features a one-crust pie, which means there’s plenty of room for fun pie crust cutouts! We love using a cookie cutter on scraps of leftover homemade pie crust to create fun cut-out shapes, like fall leaves, pumpkins and other seasonal designs. If you’re following this recipe exactly, we’d recommend baking the cutouts separately and placing them on top of your fully baked pie before serving.

Decorated Edges: Decorating a refrigerated or homemade crust instead of the frozen one used in this easy pumpkin pie recipe? Finishing off a pie crust with decorative edges is a super quick and easy way to switch up the presentation. Common methods include scalloped, pinched and forked edges. Learn more about these techniques with our handy pie crust decorating how-to guide, and your professional-looking pumpkin pie is bound to get some compliments! (Bake times and temperatures vary for different crust methods, so make sure to adjust accordingly.)