Last night I baked another successful fat free vegan recipe from Susan V’s FatFree Vegan Kitchen blog; her Impossible Pumpkin Pie.  Far from impossible to execute, it gets its name from Bisquick’s Impossible Pies which called for mixing the Bisquick in with the pie ingredients.  This would produce a kind of “crust” on the bottom and sides as the pie baked.  As someone who cooks but very rarely bakes, I don’t really get how all this baking stuff works.  It’s not intuitive to me at all – what to add and why and how much – baking powder vs. soda… all that stuff is a total mystery to me.  So I am definitely a recipe follower (and kind of a nervous one) when making baked goods.  The more I do it though, I’m starting to get ideas of what’s essential and where I could make substitutions and get creative.

Anyway, I have to say that the “crust” that formed on its own in this pumpkin pie was like a little miracle to me!  It’s not really a crust – it’s not flakey or crunchy or buttery or any of that.  It’s really just kind of an extension of the pie – but it’s firmer than the rest of the pie so it holds it nicely and gives it its shape on the plate and (as Susan points out) means that one of the most fattening parts of the pie (the crust) can be omitted.

The most exciting thing about this recipe, to me, is its flavor.  It simply has the perfect combination and ratio of spices and it really just sings in your mouth.  The second best thing about it is how healthy it is and a very close third is how easy it is!  You basically just throw everything in the blender, pour it in a pan and bake it.  Pretty awesome for a non-baker like me!

As with the Zucchini Muffins posted previously, I followed Susan’s Recipe for this pie almost to the t.  I used oat flour rather than rice flour and canned pumpkin.  And our blender did a great job – though it was full to the brim by the time I added all the ingredients.  The batter is pretty runny so I didn’t need to use the food processor.  When we pulled the pie out of the oven last night, we let it cool on the counter for about 1 1/2 hours.  It was definitely not ready to be served yet.  It didn’t stop us of course, and the taste was out of this world.  But I was a little concerned about it setting up okay – I thought maybe I had undercooked it (I did 60 mins exactly on cooking time).  But we put it in the refrigerator overnight and this morning it was set up very nicely.  It made a completely scrumptious breakfast!  And we served it with a dollop of fat free cool whip.  I know – totally not vegan.  But as we’re McDougalling, when we occasionally eat non-McDougally food, our priority is to keep it as free of fat as possible.  And for me – the whipped topping is an essential part of the holiday pumpkin pie experience. But before Thanksgiving, I plan to try out a silken lite tofu whipped topping recipe.  I tried one and couldn’t get rid of the tofu flavor.  But I’m going to try it one more time.

As Thanksgiving draws near, I just want to say that I am truly grateful to be discovering healthy ways to reinvent and continue the holiday traditions that contribute to the joy and magic of this time of year for me.  I want to live a long, healthy life and I want to enjoy it along the way.  Too often, I think the message we get is that we can only have one or the other.

Happy Holidays!