On my mom’s side of the family, my Grandpa was the cook! One of the first few years I was married, he shared his secret Pumpkin Pie recipe with me. The two of of us worked on it and tweaked it a bit – the original recipe called for solid pumpkin and you made it into pie filling – but we adapted it, so it can be made with the store bought canned Pumpkin Pie Mix/Filling.
This is not like traditional pumpkin pie, it’s layered with Cool Whip, so it is light and fluffy and is kept and served cold.
The recipe makes 2 pies. Every year I make them and take them to my husbands side of the family. There have been years I’ve made 4 pies, everyone likes it THAT much!! For years there were members on that side of the family that would beg me for the recipe, and I wouldn’t give it to them! LOL So don’t you feel lucky?! I knew if I gave my recipe out, then they would be making it too, and it would no longer be “the coveted pie at Thanksgiving”
**EDITED to add Pictures!
Grandpa’s {Special} Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Walnuts
- 2 Pie Shells
- 1 envelope Unflavored Gelatin
- 1/4 Cup cold Water
- 1 30 oz Can Pumpkin Pie mix (NOT solid pumpkin)
- 2 T Sugar
- 1 small can Evaporated Milk
- 3 Eggs *(you will use 2 yolks, and 3 whites)
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla
- 1 container of Cool Whip
Instructions
- Chop walnuts fine.
- Bake pie shells and cool.(I use the Pillsbury Refrigerator Pie Crus)
- Soften gelatin in water in sauce pan.
- Stir in Pumpkin Pie Mix, 2 egg yolks and milk.
- Heat until boiling.
- Stir constantly.
- Reduce to low heat stirring constantly for another 5 mins.
- Remove from heat, add vanilla and cool and chill until thick. (I usually do up to this point the night before, and refrigerate the filling and egg whites overnight- but I would think a few hours would be fine if you want to do it the same day)
- Beat 3 egg whites to soft peaks adding 2 Tablespoons of sugar one at a time until stiff.
- Fold into pumpkin mix.
- Fold in 3/4 of your walnuts.
- 1/2 of your pumpkin filling into the 2 pie crusts
- 1/2 of Cool Whip on top of filling in each crust and spread with spatula
- Remaining 1/2 of pumpkin filling in each crust
- spread with spatula.
- Dollop several spoonfuls of remaining Cool Whip on top of each pie, then take a knife and swirl them slightly into the filling.
- Sprinkle with remaining Walnuts. Chill until ready to serve.
© TidyMom. All images & content are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to republish this recipe, please re-write the recipe in your own words, or link back to this post for the recipe.
http://tidymom.net/2008/grandpas-special-pumpkin-pie/
Enjoy!
Be sure to see this post to see how we take them to my sister-in-laws house!
I posted this over at The Inspired Room’s Friday Holiday Linky Fun – be sure to go over there and see more great Holiday Ideas!
Stop by Blessed With Grace for more Tempt My Tummy Tuesday.
Stop by I am Blissfully Domestic to join the fun!
I’ve added this post to Holiday Food Fest – Fall Desserts (November 2009)
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How sweet of you to share!
I wouldn’t have told the family either. 
Happy Thanksgiving!
How sweet of you to share!
I wouldn’t have told the family either. 
Happy Thanksgiving!
How is it I never knew of this? I guess thats what I get for being the youngest.
Mandi
How is it I never knew of this? I guess thats what I get for being the youngest.
Mandi
Yummy ! Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Janae
Yummy ! Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Janae
This sounds delicious! I’m looking forward to seeing a photo of your pumpkin pies, this year!
Happy Thanksgiving!
This sounds delicious! I’m looking forward to seeing a photo of your pumpkin pies, this year!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Okay, I might try this for Buddy Budderson, he lurrves him some pumpkin pie, but I am anti-pumpkin in the worst way… it still looks like an awesome recipe. He’ll love it.
Okay, I might try this for Buddy Budderson, he lurrves him some pumpkin pie, but I am anti-pumpkin in the worst way… it still looks like an awesome recipe. He’ll love it.
This sounds so good. I don’t have any “family” pumpkin pie recipes so I am definitely going to try this.
I love your site-the look and style. Very nice!
This sounds so good. I don’t have any “family” pumpkin pie recipes so I am definitely going to try this.
I love your site-the look and style. Very nice!
YUM! I LOVE pumpkin pie! Thanks for the recipe.
Blessings,
Jill
YUM! I LOVE pumpkin pie! Thanks for the recipe.
Blessings,
Jill
Wow this sounds so good! thanks for sharing! Happy TMTT!
Wow this sounds so good! thanks for sharing! Happy TMTT!
Love the layering of cool whip in it.
Happy Thanksgiving and Happy TMTT!!
Love the layering of cool whip in it.
Happy Thanksgiving and Happy TMTT!!
Thanks for participating in TMTT, today. Happy Thanksgiving.
Thanks for participating in TMTT, today. Happy Thanksgiving.
Cheryl, that pie recipe looks scrumptious! I’ll have to try it out.
Wishing you and yours a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!
Cheryl, that pie recipe looks scrumptious! I’ll have to try it out.
Wishing you and yours a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!
That’s beautiful, I can’t wait to try a new version of pumpkin pie. I love your site!!
That’s beautiful, I can’t wait to try a new version of pumpkin pie. I love your site!!
OMGOSH I just gotta try this one, it looks SOO gorgeous and YUMMY
OMGOSH I just gotta try this one, it looks SOO gorgeous and YUMMY
That looks great! And I love that it's a family recipe!
Thanks for joining in the fun at the Holiday Food Fest! I hope you join us next Thurs.
~Liz
That looks great! And I love that it's a family recipe!
Thanks for joining in the fun at the Holiday Food Fest! I hope you join us next Thurs.
~Liz
I love family recipes =D. This one is absolutely amazing! I love the flavours and everything – delicious!
I love family recipes =D. This one is absolutely amazing! I love the flavours and everything – delicious!
What a GREAT!!! recipe. I love the way you do the topping.
Geri
What a GREAT!!! recipe. I love the way you do the topping.
Geri
Carrying on family traditions is so much fun, especially when you tweak them to your needs.
We are all looking for new pumpkin pie recipes to add to our repertoire–thanks so much! I'm one of the hostesses for the Holiday Food Fest and I really appreciate you joining in!
Shirley
Carrying on family traditions is so much fun, especially when you tweak them to your needs.
We are all looking for new pumpkin pie recipes to add to our repertoire–thanks so much! I'm one of the hostesses for the Holiday Food Fest and I really appreciate you joining in!
Shirley
Yummy–I will have to make that. I will be sending over some of our favorites. I'm working through my to do list.
cheri
Yummy–I will have to make that. I will be sending over some of our favorites. I'm working through my to do list.
cheri
This sounds fantastic. I love the top!
What a fun version of pumpkin pie and I love that your grandfather passed this down to you. Nothing better than favorite family recipes.
Oh My! Your crust looks to die for and the filling in this pie sounds delicious. Love the idea of the walnuts in addition to the cool whip.
So nice of you to share the secret recipe
I’m making this pie. I know it’s february and v-day, but I am practicing baking now and if the recipes are good, I will know what to make next fall! I am a beginner at baking/cooking – just started! So I am hoping I got this right:
Small evap milk – that is the 5 oz can right? I hope it is 5 oz.
Pumpkin Pie Mix – that is the 30 oz can right? I hope so, but the can says it makes one pie.
Already made a mistake. I was just reading the directions and I got my 2 YOLKS and discarded the whites….then a little ways down I read that I should have saved the whites – oops!
So it looks like there is no BAKING of this pie right? So is that consuming raw eggs – or is it safe because they are only whites?
I could eat this any time of year!! Lol
Yes, 5 oz sound right for the milk…..and Pumpkin Pie mix only comes in one size, and 30 sounds right it may say for one pie, but you are adding stuff to it, that’s why it will make 2 pies.
The egg yolks get cooked……and the whites, there’s really not much issue because only 0.0003% of all produced eggs contain Salmonella or you could buy cage-free, organically-fed and organically-certified chicken eggs OR you could try Egg Beaters- Egg whites.
But honestly I’ve been making these pies literally for 25 years………NEVER got sick! {wink}
Enjoy!!
Okay, thanks for the reply back. I finished the pie and it is delicious and unique from anything I’ve had at any thanksgiving! Thanks for sharing your recipe!
I got lost on the egg whites into “peaks?” and “until still?” – I just beat them with the beaters and it looked white and creamy. When I folded it into the pumpkin mix, it poured out like eggs on the bottom with foam on top – so not sure if that was messed up.
I made another mistake – I didn’t thaw the cool whip so when I got to the stage to add it, I was adding Frozen cool whip which was hard to spread. Then I served a piece to my hubby immediately upon completion and it was too gooey to cut it out and just fell all over the place. Maybe tmrrw after it has been in the fridge it will have some consistency to it so I can cut it.
Thanks again for sharing and for the quick reply!
Could I please have the original recipe? I always make my pumpkin from scratch and would love the “solid pumpkin” version so I don’t have to try to convert it back
THANK YOU!!