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This Cookie Crust Pumpkin Pie takes pumpkin pie to the next level with a molasses or gingersnap cookie crust, salted caramel drizzle, and a topping of 7-minute frosting. Each slice has so many layers of amazing flavor, you’ll have a hard time going back.
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Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie seems odd to me. But sometimes I struggle to choose whether I should leave it out or not. There’re so many other choices like apple, pecan, sweet potato, and chess, all of which tempt me.
But one of the benefits to pumpkin pie (besides the taste) is that it can easily be made ahead of time. This frees up the oven for all the other food. Even if you assemble an apple pie and freeze it to cook the day of, it still requires valuable oven real estate.
Cookie Crust Pumpkin Pie with Salted Caramel and 7-Minute Frosting
I often crave more flavors in pumpkin pie. The molasses or ginger cookie crust and salted caramel punch up the flavor profile of a standard pumpkin pie recipe.
The 7-Minute Frosting is a nod to how much pumpkin reminds me of sweet potato. And every Thanksgiving, we always have sweet potato casserole with a topping of roasted marshmallows. The 7-Minute Frosting sits like a fluffy cloud on top of the pie, making each bite velvety soft.
I feel like Thanksgiving is going to get here way too quickly and I’m less prepared than normal. Are you prepared or entering panic mode like me?
Other Pie Recipes
Cookie Crust Pumpkin Pie with Salted Caramel and 7-Minute Frosting
Ingredients
Pumpin Pie Ingredients
- 1 cup gingersnap or molasses cookies
- 2 tablespoons butter melted
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 and 1/2 cups pumpkin cooked and pureed
- 1 and 1/2 cups half and half
- 3/4 cups brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger
- 1/2 cup brown butter salted caramel
- flaky sea salt to taste
7 Minute Frosting Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 cups sugar
- 2 egg whites
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- pinch of salt
- 1/3 cup cold water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Pumpkin Pie Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Cut a sugar pie pumpkin in half, scrape out the seeds and pulp, and place face down on a baking sheet.
- Bake for 40 minutes or until you can pierce the skins with a fork.
- Scoop out the pumpkin and puree in a blender or food processor until smooth. Let cool to room temperature.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Pulse the cookies in a food processor until they are a fine texture.
- Mix the cookie crumbs with the melted butter and sugar. Pat the mixture firmly on the bottom of buttered 9-inch spring-form pan. Or you can use a regular pie tin. Double the crust recipe though in order to get the crust all the way up the sides of the pie tin.
- Combine all the rest of the ingredients in a bowl and stir until smooth.
- Pour into the prepared spring-form pan or regular pie tin. Bake for 60 minutes, until the pie is firm in the center.
- Let the pie cool for 10 minutes.
- Heat caramel in microwave until it is easily pourable. Pour the caramel over the pie. Sprinkle with some flaky sea salt.
- Let the pie cool till room temperature and then put it in the fridge.
7 Minute Frosting Instructions
- Put water in the bottom of a double boiler, making sure that it doesn’t touch the top pan. Bring it to a boil.
- While the water is coming to a boil, combine the sugar, egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt in the top portion of the double boiler (you’re doing this off the heat). Cream of tartar prevents sugar crystals from forming, keeping the frosting smooth and not grainy.
- Add the cold water and beat for a 1/2 minute on low speed. It should look well combined but not fluffy.
- Place over the boiling water and beat constantly on high speed with an electric mixer for about 7 minutes till the frosting has formed stiff peaks. Stiff peaks mean that when you pull the mixer out, you could turn it to the side and the frosting peaks won’t fall because they’re stiff.
- Remove from the heat and add vanilla extract, beating for about 2 minutes on high until the frosting is at a spreadable consistency. It should be smooth and fluffy. This type of frosting does not last long at room temperature (4 hours) before it starts to harden.
This pie sounds delicious and looks incredible. Love the photography, thank you for sharing, Megan! 🙂
Wow, love this crust. I’m a huge gingersnap fan, especially during the fall and winter. Your instructions are so precise and really helped me along the way. The frosting is perfection and going to try it on even more pie recipes too!
I love a good pumpkin pie, but I agree–it needs a little something bold to tie it all together. LOVE the gingersnap crust and salted caramel with your pie. I’m all over this one!
Oh man, this looks delicious! I’ve been considering leaving pumpkin pie out this Thanksgiving (sadly!! But there are too many other pies I want to make), but the cookie crust and salted caramel on this one are starting to push me to change my menu!! Not to mention, that delicious-looking frosting? This looks heavenly!
You have me drooling with that cookie crust! Add that with salted caramel? I think I’m in love! What a delicious combination of flavours! Gingersnaps are my favourite cookie of all time and I’m thinking I need to use it in a crust soon!
Gorgeous holiday recipe! It’s actually quite simple the way you word it, and offer pictures of the steps. I happen to adore ginger snaps and am legit hooked on the flavor of them combined with pumpkin. Thanks for another winner…this recipe belongs in a high end magazine!
Thank you! It is a really simple recipe, it’s just putting on some decorations really.
I love your photography, you make food look so pretty. I agree, Thanksgiving is kind of sneaking up on me. You pie looks amazing and you had me at ‘gingersnaps’, those are my favorite cookies. I think this will be fun to bake with my daughter. Thank you for this recipe!
Thank you! I’m just getting down to planning and making lists now so next week is going to be so busy.
OMG….drooling over here. You hit all my sweet (haha) spots! Absolutely LOVE a dessert with caramel…and salt is a must when you’ve got a good caramel. I like the extra step of making the pumpkin from scratch….so much more flavor. Totally worth it. Move over traditional pumpkin pie, there’s a new girl in town!!
Haha, right?! Salt is so important. And yes, I really do think it tastes better than canned pumpkin.