Maple-Sugar Pumpkin Pie for Thanksgiving

DEAR SOS: My husband and I enjoyed a wonderful pumpkin pie flavored with maple sugar at Aux Anciens Canadiens restaurant in Quebec. I have made several unsuccessful attempts at duplicating their recipe and wonder if you can help obtain the recipe for this memorable dessert in time for Thanksgiving.

--JACQUELINE

DEAR JACQUELINE: According to the restaurant’s spokesperson, the chef gladly parted with the recipe for the popular maple-flavored pumpkin pie, which is a specialty of the traditional Canadian cuisine. I, for another, would love to be served this unusual pumpkin pie this Thanksgiving.

AUX ANCIENS CANADIENS PUMPKIN PIE

2 eggs

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1 cup pumpkin puree, strained

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup maple syrup

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Dash ground ginger

Dash ground nutmeg

1 (9-inch) unbaked pie shell

Beat eggs. Add sugar, pumpkin, milk, maple syrup, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg, blending well after each addition. Pour into unbaked pie shell.

Bake at 375 degrees 50 to 60 minutes until browned. Do not over-bake. Serve hot or cold with whipped cream, if desired. Makes 1 (9-inch) pie.

DEAR SOS: Last fall you had a recipe for beef stew cooked in a pumpkin shell. The recipe was super and I have prepared it many times to many raves. Now I’ve lost the recipe.

--BETTY

DEAR BETTY: What an idea for holiday entertaining. (Translation: Sorry we didn’t get the recipe to you in time for you-know-what.)

BEEF STEW IN PUMPKIN SHELL

2 pounds beef stew meat, cut in 1 1/2-inch cubes

1 large onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 tablespoons oil

2 large tomatoes, chopped

1 large green pepper, chopped

Salt, pepper

1 teaspoon sugar

3 white potatoes, peeled and diced

3 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced

2 cups beef broth

1 medium pumpkin (about 6 pounds)

Butter or margarine, melted

1/4 cup dry Sherry

1 (1-pound) can whole kernel corn, drained

Chopped parsley

Trim any excess fat from beef and saute with onion and garlic in oil until meat is browned. Add tomatoes, green pepper, 1 tablespoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, sugar, white potatoes, sweet potatoes and broth. Cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours.

Meanwhile, cut top off pumpkin. Scoop out seeds and stringy membrane. Brush inside of pumpkin with melted butter and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Stir Sherry and corn into stew and bring to boil. Spoon stew into pumpkin shell, reserving any excess to reheat later and replenish pumpkin shell. Replace pumpkin top.

Place filled pumpkin in shallow pan and bake at 325 degrees 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until pumpkin meat is tender. Garnish with chopped parsley. Place pumpkin on serving plate and ladle out stew, scooping out some pumpkin with each serving. Replenish with any remaining stew. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

DEAR SOS: Years ago when living in New York, one could always find Nesselrode Pie on any seafood menu. Recently on a trip through New England, as well as New York, I learned that no one knew what I was talking about. I used to find it at Rossoff’s in the theater district in New York, but they are no longer in business. Would you know of a place in the Greater Los Angeles area that does carry it?

--EVE

DEAR EVE: Sorry, I’m afraid I don’t know of a restaurant in Los Angeles serving Nesselrode Pie, but perhaps you’ve given a few bakers an idea and readers in other states a reason to write us. I’m not sure why Nesselrode Pie would have been confined to seafood menus, as I remember ordering it in many American-Continental restaurants during my East Coast days.

But you are right about the pie becoming extinct, probably because of its labor-intensive cost and the waning popularity of sweet and creamy pies. The pie enjoyed peak popularity from the turn of the century to the ‘60s, falling out of favor, I would guess, when the great Nesselrode Pie cooks began dying off and health consciousness set in. Actually, the pie is not all that caloric and certainly worth the effort of baking it yourself, especially for holiday entertaining. Its characteristic mixed candied fruit in the filling gives the pie a festive appearance, ideally suited to Christmastime.

NESSELRODE PIE

1 envelope unflavored gelatin

1 cup milk

3/4 cup sugar

4 eggs, separated

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons rum

1/3 cup diced mixed candied fruit

1 (9-inch) baked pie shell

Shaved chocolate

Soften gelatin in milk in top of double boiler. Add 1/4 cup sugar, egg yolks and salt. Beat just enough to blend. Cook, stirring, over simmering water until mixture thickens and coats metal spoon. Remove from heat and stir in rum. Chill until thickened, but not set.

Beat egg whites until foamy. Gradually add remaining 1/2 cup sugar, beating until stiff but not dry. Fold egg whites and fruit into gelatin mixture. Turn into pie shell and chill until firm. Garnish with chocolate shavings. Makes 1 (9-inch) pie.

DEAR SOS: Help. Nowhere can I find a recipe for SOS. We used to look forward to Sundays when we ordered it at McChord NCO Open Mess at McChord Air Force Base in Washington.

--EUGIE

DEAR EUGIE: Aye, aye, Sir. Young folk may not know that “SOS” in Navy language (figuratively translated) cannot be repeated in a family newspaper, but it is the code for “Save Our Ship,” which creamed chipped beef, no matter how dreadful it was--and could be--did save the ship and more.

SOS

(Creamy Chipped Beef)

2 ounces dried beef

1 tablespoon butter or margarine

1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of potato soup, mushroom soup or cream gravy

2/3 cup milk

Buttered toast

Pour hot water over dried beef, then drain. Melt butter in saucepan. Add meat and brown lightly. Stir in soup and milk and heat to serving temperature, stirring occasionally. Serve over toast. Makes 3 to 4 servings.