It's Thanksgiving....almost!

How could I resist a blog post on the eve of one of the most important Kitchen days of the year?  For those of you that have already been crowned as an "official" KSKC chef and have earned your hat, I fully expect for you to put them to good use tomorrow.  AND....if you send me a photo of you cooking away in your chef hat, I will give you an extra special prize next time you visit me!  :-)

Some of you may be surprised to learn that I would happily skip the turkey & dressing to jump to the real reason that I love Thanksgiving, PUMPKIN PIE! MMMMM....my favorite for sure!  If you're pie isn't already in the oven, you may want to consider trying something a little different this year.  Below is a great twist on the good old fashion version from Mrs. Ina Garten.

Pumpkin Banana Mousse Tart

For the crust:

• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs (14 crackers)

• 1/3 cup sugar

• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

For the filling:

• 1/2 cup half-and-half

• 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin puree

• 1 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed

• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

• 3 extra-large egg yolks

• 1 package (2 teaspoons) unflavored gelatin

• 1 ripe banana, finely mashed

• 1 teaspoon grated orange zest

• 1/2 cup cold heavy cream

• 2 tablespoons sugar

For the decoration:

• 1 cup (1/2 pint) cold heavy cream

• 1/4 cup sugar

• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

• Orange zest, optional

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter in a bowl and mix well. Pour into an 11-inch tart pan with a removable bottom and press evenly into the sides and then the bottom. Bake for 10 minutes and then cool to room temperature.

For the filling, heat the half-and-half, pumpkin, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water until hot, about 5 minutes. Whisk the egg yolks in another bowl, stir some of the hot pumpkin into the egg yolks to heat them, then pour the egg-pumpkin mixture back into the double boiler and stir well. Heat the mixture over the simmering water for another 4 to 5 minutes, until it begins to thicken, stirring constantly. You don't want the eggs to scramble. Remove from the heat.

Dissolve the gelatin in 1/4 cup cold water. Add the dissolved gelatin, banana, and orange zest to the pumpkin mixture and mix well. Set aside to cool.

Whip the heavy cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment until soft peaks form. Add the sugar and continue to whisk until you have firm peaks.