Freshly-baked pumpkin pie, and home concert in Dubai

I finally got around to hosting an event for our Home Concerts meetup, and what a party it was! My apartment was filled with nearly twice as many people as I have ever hosted at the same time, who I was able to accommodate only through creative furniture-moving. We had a bunch of guitarists, a couple of keyboard/piano players, and a conversation-stopping cellist (who, by the way, will be among the local musicians playing at The Courtyard Playhouse during the 4B street arts night later this month). And, of course, many fellow listeners to chip in, chime in and applaud the talent and guts of those who played and/or sang in my makeshift Xmas-light-delineated stage corner.

To sweeten the deal, I baked a belated seasonal treat: pumpkin pie. A very simple one too. I prepared a quick crust by mixing 240g cooled melted butter with two tablespoons each of vegetable oil and sugar and a half teaspoon of salt, then folding in 340g flour to make the dough.

After pressing the dough evenly into the baking tin (I used a large tart tin; the recipe quantities should be halved if using a regular pie tin) and chilling it for half an hour, I poured in the filling, which was comprised of a mixture of 850g canned pumpkin purée, 850g canned sweetened condensed milk, 4 eggs, 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon, half a teaspoon of ground cloves, and a teaspoon each of ground nutmeg and salt.

Baking it at 180C for about an hour, I let it cool before serving. Unfortunately, the whipped cream slipped my mind, though, yes, I would strongly recommend having it on hand. The pie was summarily annihilated nonetheless, and it was a pleasure seeing everyone enjoy it.