upper crust

Once the month of November arrives it's difficult for me to think about anything other than food. Particularly difficult is keeping my fingers away from the dessert category in my cookbooks or my cursor from wondering the many dessert recipes I have bookmarked online. If you know my penchant for pastries, you would not be surprised to find my many recipes for pie. Baking pies with the bounty of an Autumn harvest seems an essential part of life this time of year, especially in New England. To not partake in this annual ritual would just seem un-American. 

An old favorite I keep returning to this time of year is pumpkin pie. Though I'm a sucker for a golden flakey crust, this year I thought I'd freshen things up by making a gingersnap cookie crust. Besides adding a sweetly spicy element to the pumpkin taste, the cookie crust will do away with any fears of a soggy, under-baked bottom crust. The flavor of this gingersnap crust would substitute wonderfully as the foundation for many pies and cheesecakes. It's a delicious way to update an old favorite.

GINGERSNAP CRUST
1 1/2 cups finely ground ginger snaps
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon minced crystallized ginger
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Combine cookie crumbs, sugar, and ginger in medium bowl. Add melted butter and stir until mixture is evenly moistened. Transfer crumb mixture to 9-inch-diameter pie dish. Press crumbs firmly and evenly onto bottom and up sides of dish. It's helpful to use a second pie dish to place inside to tamp down the mixture. Bake until crust is firm and slightly darker in color, about 8 minutes. Cool crust completely.

image via mccormick