Honey Acorn Squash Pie

For the crust

• 1½ cups all-purpose flour
• ½ cup yellow cornmeal
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 3 large egg yolks, divided
• 3–4 Tbsp ice water
• 1 Tbsp milk

For the filling

• 3 small acorn squash (about 3 lb total)
• ¾ cup honey
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ¾ tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
• ½ cup milk
• Whipped cream, for serving

1. Make the crust. Combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar and salt in a food processor. Pulse in the cold butter until you have a coarse, crumbly mixture. Mix 2 egg yolks with 3 Tbsp ice water, add to the flour mixture, and pulse just until a dough begins to form. Add the remaining tablespoon of water only if needed. Form into a disk, wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
2. Cook the squash. Cut the acorn squash in half, remove the seeds, and cut the flesh into wedges. Steam the squash, covered, for 20–30 minutes, until very tender. Let it cool, scoop the flesh from the skin, and purée until completely smooth.
3. Make the filling. Blend the squash purée with the honey, cinnamon, ginger and salt. Add the 4 eggs and ½ cup milk and blend until everything is thoroughly combined.
4. Prepare the pie shell. Roll the chilled dough into roughly a 13-inch circle and fit it into a 10-inch pie plate. Decorate or crimp the edge as desired.
5. Egg-wash and chill. Whisk the remaining egg yolk with 1 Tbsp milk and lightly brush it over the crust edge. Chill or freeze the prepared shell for about 30 minutes. This chilling step is important for keeping the crust's shape during baking.
6. Bake. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Pour the squash filling into the chilled crust and bake for 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and continue baking for another 30–40 minutes, until the filling is just barely set in the center. If the crust gets too dark, loosely protect its edge with foil.
7. Cool completely. Place the pie on a wire rack and allow it to cool. Serve warm, room temperature, or chilled, preferably with whipped cream.

Tip: Steam the squash rather than boiling it. Waterlogged purée is the one thing that will keep this filling from setting up.