The Best Pumpkin for Making Pies Is Not a Sugar Pumpkin.
I don’t mind a pumpkin pie made from a Libby can, but there is something rustic attractive about making a fresh, whole pumpkin pie. I always assumed that sugar gourd was the only option, but it turns out that there are many other varieties, and some of them make the pie better than the iconic orange gourd.
Determined to find a pumpkin pie that she enjoyed eating, Grace Parisi baked pies with six different types of pumpkin. Her least favorite? The famous sugar gourd that Grace discovered had a moist, fibrous flesh and a mild flavor. Her favorites were Jarrahdale, Blue Hubbard, and Cheese Gourds, which you can read more about on Epicurious (link below). Each pumpkin had its own strengths, but Blue Hubbard, which Grace describes as “threadless and silky smooth, with a strong flavor that makes a silky, almost creamy pie,” sounds absolutely delicious and I can’t wait to get this piece in a pie shell.