Homemade Pumpkin Pie From Fresh Pumpkin

Did you ever want to try to make a pumpkin pie from a fresh pumpkin but thought it was waaaaay too much work?  Well I grew 2 cute little pumpkins in my garden this year and thought I'd show you how easy it actually is! First, I stuck my two sugar pie pumpkins in the oven WHOLE. Yep, just throw 'em in there, bake at 300 degrees.  I don't know how long they were in there but I watched 2 episodes of Big Bang Theory while sipping chardonnay so, I guess an hour or so. When you can poke them through with a knife, they are done.
Take them out and cool till morning.   Now, there are a lot of recipes online that say to cut raw pumpkin, scrape out innards and bake in a little water. That works too, but I think this is easier.
I ripped cooked pumpkin in half, scooped out stringy stuff and seeds and peeled skin off. This literally took 5 minutes. See how easily the skin peels off???

So, then I took the hunks of pumpkin and threw them into my food processor. A good blender might work.

Blend until smooth...:) I think I added a tiny bit of water to get a nice consistency.

Then add 2 cups of this (I actually had almost 4 cups from 2 small pumpkins (Bonus! Another pie for Christmas will be made with the rest!)

Then you just add pretty much the same ingredients that the Libby's canned stuff calls for:

Whisk or blend all this together and pour into unbaked pie shell. Easy peasy, right???

Warning! Although my pie crust tastes wonderful, it looks like a hot mess. Don't let vanity get a hold of you here, people! I have never had my family or anyone else look a homemade pie in the face and worry if it was cute! Everyone knows your not flippin' Martha Stewart!  Just make sure it tastes amazing and don't look back!! Remember, your gonna cover the darn thing with whipped cream anyway, right?  Bake at 400 f. for about 40 mins till you can stick a knife in the center and it comes out clean. There ya go. Try it, I tell ya. You'll feel a little proud of yourself :)

Oh, btw...Handy tip so your crust doesn't burn. (I forgot this step and mine almost did, but it's fine) Cover the edges with strips of foil. It'll still cook, just won't burn.

By the way, scratch pie crust is really easy, too. If I didn't have a Kitchenaid  mixer I think I'd just call it a day and buy pre-made crust, but if you have one, it's super duper easy. Here's the recipe I use. Got it from Pioneer Woman so, yea, it's good.
2 C. all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 C. vegetable shortening (I know this is gross, but it does make an incredible crust)
1 egg
5 T. cold water
1 T. vinegar (no idea what the heck this does, but I never skip it)
Dump everything into mixer and then (using dough hook) mix just until incorporated. This makes 2 full crusts. You can also press the ball flat in a lg. freezer bag and freeze for later use. Roll it out on a floured board with more flour on top. I put plastic wrap on my counter and after rolling, set pie pan over crust and gently lift by the edges of plastic and flip over. peel plastic off and press into pan. :)