Pumpkin Vanilla Ice Cream Pie

Crust

• 1 1/2 cups crushed cinnamon-sugar graham crackers
• 4 tablespoons melted butter

Filling

• 1 quart vanilla ice cream
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• Assorted dried fruit

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a 9-inch pie plate, mix the graham cracker crumbs and melted butter. Crumble the mixture with your fingers or with any other utensil until the butter is evenly distributed. Then press the mixture around the bottom and up the sides of the pie plate. Bake for five minutes and cool completely.
2. Meanwhile, let the ice cream sit at room temperature for 15 minutes. Scoop it into a large mixing bowl. Break apart the ice cream with a spoon, then add the sugar, spices and pumpkins.
3. Mash until the pumpkin and spices are evenly distributed throughout the ice cream.
4. Spoon (or pour) the pumpkin ice cream batter into the cooled crust. Cover with plastic wrap. Freeze for several hours or overnight. Before serving, decorate the pie with an assortment of dried fruit to create a colorful jack-o’-lantern face. I cut figs, dried papaya and dates into triangles for the eyes and nose and into squares for the teeth. Let the pie sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before slicing. Serves eight.

This recipe was easy and fun to make because it required few ingredients and only basic cooking skills. The vanilla ice cream gave a usually boring pumpkin pie a quirky taste that easily satisfies a sweet tooth. Both kids and adults will find the pie simple to make. This pumpkin ice-cream pie was a cool way to celebrate the upcoming festive holiday and the colorful jack-o’-lantern face gave it the perfect Halloween spirit.