"There's a happy feeling nothing in this world can buy..."

"...when we pass around the coffee and the pumpkin pie..." Ok, so it isn't Christmas or Thanksgiving yet - goodness, it isn't even Halloween yet! - but Mom said that she was in the mood... and when the House Cook is in the mood, we don't argue, we just eat. :) Anyway, it is the time of year for all things pumpkin - pumpkin cake, muffins, bread, pancakes, cookies, cheesecakes, and don't forget chai and lattes... so why not indulge in the pièce de résistance, the timeless, classic pumpkin pie?  

Old-Fashioned Pumpkin Pie (from p. 331 of the BCC): Of course, per tradition, Mom began with the homemade 9-inch one-crust pie from p. 316. Then she mixed up the pie filling, with 2 eggs, 2 cups of pumpkin, sugar, salt, evaporated milk, and the stuff that makes it truly marvelous: cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. After baking it, she served it, still warm, with a mound of whipped cream on top!