Sharing food is one the most important rituals to gain a sense of community, and Thanksgiving is the ultimate place to practice. The holiday allows for families to simply appreciate the company of one another through the collective gathering and eating of various delicacies. Regardless of the food you choose to celebrate with, this is the time to connect. But what happens when this ultimate connecter is hindered? 

Regardless of this ultimate connecter of food being hindered due to my aversion to gluten, my family successfully pulled off another delicious Thanksgiving this holiday season. In fact, this year took the cake– or should I say pie– in becoming some of the best food we’ve had. Upon another fruitful Walmart find, we stumbled onto a light, flaky Wholly gluten-free pie crust. Unlike last year, this crisp crust allowed for some ease in the baking process as it did not have to be made from scratch. My family members remarked that contrary to the regular, dense pie crust, Wholly’s crust was delicate yet sturdy, suggesting even superiority to a gluten-filled crust when baked to golden-brown perfection.

I paired our two revolutionarily pillowy crusts with two different fillings– one decadent, rich pumpkin ganache from the TikTok famous “Milk Bar” recipe, and the other a classic pumpkin filling from “Tastes Better From Scratch”. Despite both fillings being pumpkin-based, they were quite different to create. The ganache was made by first roasting pumpkin puree to remove moisture, then poured over white chocolate and spice along with boiling temperature heavy cream and butter. We then stirred and emulsified this mixture and let the filling rest. Unlike the classic pie, we baked the crust beforehand and poured the silky smooth filling into the crust, serving the pie cold. The classic pie was simple: combine spices, evaporated milk, and pumpkin puree. Then pour into an unbaked crust and place into the oven for a warm, comforting goodness. Both pies were received well and came down to a matter of personal taste. Each pie contained similar spice profiles, as they were both filled with classic, holiday cinnamon and clove flavors. The pies mainly differed in gooey richness and warmth. Those who preferred the classic pie remained loyal to such pie; however, those less interested in such pie were easily swayed by the mesmerizing nature of the Milk Bar filling, even after ditching the caramel layer within the original recipe.

Pies within our family are an integral part of the holiday, and this year we were able to accomplish near perfection with them, regardless of their gluten-free nature.