The air fryer is an indispensable part of my cooking arsenal these days.
First, pumpkin pie filling is a custard filling, also sometimes called an egg-rich filling.
However, if they are overheated, too many bonds form and the proteins clump.
If youve ever had a gritty or watery pumpkin pie, this might be why.
We’ll avoid that with a lower fan speed.
(More on that later.)
Then there’s the moisture factor.
Blind baking is the whole reason you might make this pie in the air fryer at all.
Luckily, your pumpkin pie’s crust will be cooked through before the filling even joins the party.
The difference between those options is the fan speed.
Air frying triggers a much higher fan speed, while the “bake' setting is much slower.
you could probably even hear the difference when you change the setting.
Blind bake the crust
Set up your blind baking as you would normally.
(I use dry beans, but you could useceramic beads, sugar, or rice.)
Place the crust in an air fryer heated to 350F on the bake setting.
Grab the straps ends, lift and lower the pie into the basket.
The strap will stay so you’re free to take the pie out later.
Bend the ends down so theyre in the confines of the basket.
Lift the weights out by gathering the parchment paper edges.
The crust should look dry on the bottom.
Use a fork and prick the bottom crust five or six times.
exit the oven and bake it for another two minutes so the bottom can cook through.
Reduce the temperature and bake the pie
Reduce the temperature to 325F and leave it on the bake setting.
Fill the blind baked crust with your raw pumpkin pie filling.
If youre using the basket model, leave the crust in the basket of the air fryer.
Its easier to fill while its already seated.
If you have the swinging door variety, take the whole tray out of the oven.
Fill the shell while its on the tray, and return the whole thing to the oven.
All the while, keep it on that bake function.
Cool the pie on a wire rack.
Enjoy it warm, room temp, or chill it in the fridge if you prefer it cold.
When baking your pumpkin pie, keep in mind that the timing will vary depending on your air fryer.
Thats why the last time frame is rather wide.
