Pumpkin pie, but not as you know it
A seasonal sweet pie from Romania
I remember my two childhood obsessions in the Autumn: pumpkin pie, called plăcintă cu dovleac, and roasted pumpkin slices, called dovleac copt. From these two, I developed two more addictions: salt-roasted pumpkin seeds, which I would eat in front of the TV, and paprika croutons, which Mum served on top of pumpkin soup. I never liked the soup! Too creamy and sweet for me. But a few years ago, when I was researching baking recipes, I found a regional pumpkin soup that didn’t involve turning it into a thick cream. I tried it and, surprisingly, I liked it. But I digress…these are all topics for next time, so subscribe (it’s free) to read the pumpkin stories I have for you this month. In the meantime, let’s bake a plăcintă cu dovleac.
First…what is a plăcintă?
It is a pie that defines our baking in Romania. It’s not the impressive American pie or a British deep-dish savoury pie; it is a sweet pie made with two layers of dough: one at the base and the other on top, with the sides left uncovered. A simple and crowd-pleasing treat.
It can be made with sweet dough, like in this photo. We had this pie on our culinary tour in Transylvania this September:
Or you can use filo pastry, and roll it into a strudel like in my book ‘Tava’:
What are the most popular?
Apple pie, called plăcintă cu mere, and sweet cheese pie, called plăcintă cu brânză dulce.
…and, of course, the seasonal one with pumpkin. Here is a recipe made with shop-bought puff pastry. It’s quick and easy to make. It is not traditional to use puff pastry, but it’s practical and a time-saver. You can even prepare the filling a day in advance and keep it in the fridge.
Plăcintă cu dovleac, pumpkin pie
Ingredients (make 9 slices)
600g grated pie pumpkin or butternut squash
65g caster sugar
50g chopped walnuts (optional)
50g raisins or sultanas (optional. Also optional: soak the fruit in advance in 50ml dark rum, slightly warmed, until plump)
1tsp vanilla extract
325g-400g, already rolled puff pastry, I use Dorset pastry in the UK
Egg wash: 1 egg yolk mixed with 1tbsp of water.
Method:
Sauté the grated pumpkin with the sugar over medium heat for 12–15 minutes, until most of the juices have evaporated. Stir occasionally, but don’t turn it into a mash. Add the walnuts, dried fruit and vanilla extract, then set aside to cool. When you are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 200°C. Unroll the puff pastry and, keeping the long side parallel to you, spread the pumpkin filling over half of it from left to right. Fold the other half over the filling, seal the edges by pressing them with your hands or a fork, and brush it with egg wash. Transfer it to a lined baking sheet large enough to accommodate the pie. Bake for 18 minutes or until golden on the middle rack. Remove from the oven and allow it to cool. Dust with icing sugar.
Alternatively, dust it with pumpkin spice icing sugar, which means mixing icing sugar with ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg, ground allspice and ground nutmeg.
How to serve and eat plăcintă
A plăcintă is a snack and not necessarily a dessert served at the end of a meal. You can, of course, bring a plate full of this delicious pie to the table and leave it there for whenever someone needs a pick-me-up. You will need one sooner rather than later. Eat it using your hands, not your cutlery. Sticky, sugary fingers afterwards will be the proof of its fleeting presence.
Tava is £12.49 on Amazon UK
If you are like me and plan your Christmas gifts months in advance, then here is a gift idea. My baking book ‘Tava’ is at its lowest price ever on Amazon UK, £12.49. I don’t know how long Amazon is going to keep this campaign going, but in the past, the price has gone up before major holidays rather than down. Buy it even if you are not a baker; you’ll find the story of Transylvania and more travel inspiration. Link here It’s also 42% off the recommended price in the U.S. Link here.
Signed books for £20 with free delivery for a very special present
Also, if you’d like a signed book with a personalised message, let me know. I can send it for £20, including delivery, only in the UK. Reply to this email or message me on social media.
Delicious! We absolutely must make this. Our favorite is Almas Pita, or slab apple pie the way Andras mother makes it in Hungary (looks very similar to your Apple Plăcintă, but in his region no one makes pies with Pumpkin (in fact, they generally only use pumpkin and winter squash for soup). I'm so curious to try this. Do you know the origin of this pie? Is pumpkin something Romanians cook with often?
This looks absolutely delicious, Irina. It would make a nice change from pumpkin pie on the Thanksgiving table. Lovely inspiration, thank you.