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People have been losing their minds over the pumpkin pie created by
Simon Davies, the chef at Chicago’s Alinea restaurant, and for good
reason. It looks like jell-o on a pie crust, but he insists that it’s an
actual pumpkin pie, just not the kind we’re all used to.
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Davies posted the first photo of his bizarre crystal-clear pumpkin pie
in late September, and people have been talking about it ever since. The
general reaction can be described as a mix of surprise, confusion and
anger, as people try to wrap their hands around this pumpkin pie that
sort of looks like the traditional Thanksgiving dessert, but is totally
different, at the same time. Most of them just can’t accept that it’s
not simple jell-o on a buttery pie crust, but a condensed distillation
of actual pumpkin pie filling that tastes like the real thing.
So if it’s not jell-o or pumpkin pie consommé (pumpkin pie broth) then
what is that see-through stuff on the pie crust? Davies explains that
its a “distillation of pumpkin, cinnamon, ginger, and clove” created
with a rotary evaporator machine, or ‘rotovap’, an advanced device that
can make a liquid distillate out of whatever ingredients you put in it.
So unlike a pumpkin-flavored jell-o, this stuff is supposed to taste
just like pumpkin pie filling, because that’s what it is, essentially.
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One thing that Davies hasn’t been able to recreate is the texture of
traditional pumpkin pie, which is why he relies on the classic crust to
create that nostalgia associated with eating the delicious autumn treat.
“Texture is very important to us. This melts away. If it were
over-gelled it would not be worth serving. The main texture that brings
on nostalgia is from the pâte brisée,” the Alinea chef said.
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Believe it or not, the crystal clear pumpkin pie is not just an
experiment to show the wonders of molecular gastronomy, but an actual
item on the menu of the Chicago restaurant. No word on its price just
yet, but considering that Alinea is a three-Michelin-star restaurant,
it’s probably pretty pricey for the average person.
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