Yummy Thanksgiving Pies

I wanted to share these yummy pie recipes that I made for our Thanksgiving lunch yesterday. I made a Classic Pumpkin Pie and Chocolate Chunk Pecan Pie. Both recipes come from Taste of Home. In fact, they came from the first Taste of Home Cooking School show that I went to a few years ago. They are scrumptious--enjoy!

Classic Pumpkin Pie

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves 

   **If you just have pumpkin pie spice, you can substitute that in for the spices listed above. Add 1-3/4 teaspoon. The taste will be slightly different since pumpkin pie spice has nutmeg in it.

2 eggs

1/2 cup dark corn syrup (light is okay, too)

1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin

1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk

1 unbaked pastry shell (9 inches)

Mix sugar, salt and spices in a bowl. Add eggs and beat slightly. Add remaining ingredients; blend well. Pour into pie shell. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue baking for 40-50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Allow pie to cool a minimum of 2 hours before serving. Yield: 8 servings.

Chocolate Chunk Pecan Pie

3 eggs

1 cup light corn syrup

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup pecan halves, coarsely chopped

3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chunks (chocolate chips are okay)

1 unbaked deep-dish pastry pie shell (9 inches)

Combine eggs, corn syrup, sugar, butter and vanilla in a medium bowl with a wire whisk. Stir in pecans. Sprinkle chunks over bottom of crust. Pour pecan mixture into pastry shell. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes or until knife inserted 2 inches from center comes out with little bits of filling attached. Cool on wire rack for 2 hours; refrigerate until serving time. Yield: 8 servings.