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Does Pumpkin Pie Need to Be Refrigerated? (How Long It’s Safe on the Counter)

Does Pumpkin Pie Need to Be Refrigerated? (How Long It’s Safe on the Counter)

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Pumpkin pie isn’t only a great fall treat but also all year round. Particularly, pumpkin pie is a thanksgiving necessity. However, making it from scratch along with a full thanksgiving dinner is quite the mission.

To streamline your meal prep, you need to know your dishes and in which order to make them. For instance, does pumpkin pie need to be refrigerated? This is a question to answer before pre-making a pumpkin pie.

Today, we’re going to answer all your pumpkin pie serving and storage-related questions.

Does Homemade Pumpkin Pie Need to Be Refrigerated?

Once you start preparing your dinner, you need to know when to make the pumpkin pie. Even when buying one from the store, you’ll have to decide whether to get it first or last minute so it’s fresh.

Can Pumpkin Pie Be Left Out?

Unfortunately, pumpkin pie has a short shelf life. It can’t survive on the kitchen counter for too long.

After you bake your pumpkin pie, it needs to cool down for about 2 hours on a wire rack. After that, the pumpkin pie can sit on the counter for only 2 hours.

With this in mind, you can prepare your pumpkin pie 2 to 3 hours in advance if you want to serve it without refrigerating it first.

How Long Does Pumpkin Pie Last in the Fridge?

Refrigerating your homemade pumpkin pie can prolong your pie’s life. Homemade pumpkin pie has ingredients like eggs and cream that can shorten the shelf life of pumpkin pie.

  1. After getting your pumpkin pie out of the oven, the pie needs to sit on the counter for 2 hours to cool down.
  2. Once that’s done, wrap the pumpkin pie in plastic wrap or aluminum foil loosely.
  3. Proceed to put the pumpkin pie in the fridge.

Homemade pumpkin pie can last for 3 to 4 days in the fridge.

However, when you pre-make the pumpkin pie and store it in the fridge, you sacrifice the freshness of your baked goods.

If you want to make the pumpkin pie in advance and serve it as fresh as possible, prepare your dish one day early and refrigerate it for 24 hours only. This way, your homemade pumpkin pie will taste like it just came out of the oven.

How Long Does Homemade Pumpkin Pie Last in the Freezer?

Homemade pumpkin pie can last longer in the freezer. Freezing pumpkin pie is your best option if you want to prepare well before thanksgiving or if you like having pumpkin pie available all year round.

You can even bake your pumpkin pie a week or a month in advance. Whatever you do, the pie must cool down for two hours before entering either the fridge or the freezer.

After that, you need to wrap your homemade pumpkin pie in multiple layers of plastic wrap or a layer of plastic wrap and then a layer of aluminum foil. Then put the homemade pumpkin pie in the freezer.

The pie can last in the freezer for about two months. However, you don’t want to keep it longer than a month if you want it to be as tasty as possible upon serving.

How to Reheat Pumpkin Pie

After refrigerating or freezing your homemade pie, it’s time to reheat and serve it. Here’s how to reheat and serve your delicious holiday treat.

  1. First, remove the frozen pumpkin pie from the freezer and unwrap it, then keep it in the fridge for a day or so to defrost.
  2. After the pumpkin pie is at room temperature and out of the fridge, it’s time to heat it in an oven or the microwave.
  3. However, know the exact portion you want to eat because you can’t refrigerate pumpkin pie again after reheating it.
  4. If you’re using the oven, preheat the oven to 350℉.Then cover the whole pumpkin pie with foil and heat for 12 to 15 minutes.
  5. If you’re using the microwave, slice the pie first. Put the slices you want to serve in the microwave for 30 seconds or more.
  6. Last but not least, serve your homemade pumpkin pie with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Can Pumpkin Pie Filling Be Refrigerated?

If you choose to use store-bought canned pumpkin filling, it’ll last months or even years unopened. However, if opened or made from scratch, pumpkin pie filling must be refrigerated.

In fact, the ingredients of the pumpkin filling are the main reason pumpkin pie has a limited shelf life and needs refrigeration.

How Long Does Pumpkin Pie Filling Last in the Fridge?

With this in mind, homemade pumpkin pie filling can last about the same time as the pie itself. It can last up to four days in the fridge or a month in the freezer, while leftover canned filling can last up to six days once it’s out of the can.

That said, homemade pumpkin puree can last up to seven days in the fridge.

How to Make Pumpkin Pie Filling from Scratch

Pumpkin pie filling has no shelf life outside the fridge, but it’s easy to put together. All you have to do is combine the following ingredients:

  • A can of pumpkin puree or homemade pumpkin puree
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 to 2 cups of sugar
  • Two cans of evaporated or sweetened condensed milk
  • A pinch of salt
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg
  • 1 tsp ginger

You can make pumpkin pie filling in 10 minutes before baking it, or freeze it and enjoy for a long time.

Why Are Store Bought Pumpkin Pie Not Refrigerated?

Even if you’re not interested in making a pumpkin pie from scratch, you may wonder if store-bought pies are the same in regard to shelf life.

Pumpkin pies sit unrefrigerated at the grocery all the time. What makes them different from good old homemade pumpkin pie?

Store-bought pumpkin pies usually have preservatives that keep them fresh for longer at room temperature. You can keep store-bought pumpkin pie on the kitchen counter longer than 2 hours. However, you don’t want to keep it at room temperature after its sold-by-date.

After the pie reaches its sold-by-date, you can refrigerate it for about 4 to 5 days. All the same, this doesn’t apply to bakery fresh pumpkin pie.

How Long Can Vegan Pumpkin Pie Sit Out?

Vegan pumpkin pie is a viable option to make for thanksgiving dinner for your vegan family or friends.

That said, vegan pumpkin pie is different from traditional homemade pumpkin pie. Unlike traditional pie, vegan pumpkin pie doesn’t have eggs or dairy, which can expand its shelf life considerably.

For this reason, vegan pumpkin pie can stay outside the fridge for a whole night after cooling down. In addition, it can stay up to one week in the fridge and twice as long as dairy pumpkin pie in the freezer.

Final Thoughts

Does pumpkin pie need to be refrigerated? Pumpkin pies can differ in their shelf life and refrigerating according to their ingredients and storing method.

Traditional homemade pumpkin pie can sit in your kitchen for 4 hours after leaving the oven or 2 hours after cooling. In addition, you can store it in the fridge for 2 to 4 days, or you can store it in the freezer for a little more than a month.

Later you can unfreeze the pumpkin pie and reheat it whole or sliced. However, be aware that reheated pie can’t go back to the fridge or the freezer.

In addition, pumpkin pie filling is stored exactly like pumpkin pie because it has eggs and dairy in its ingredients.

However, the storing of vegan pumpkin pie is quite different because it has no eggs or dairy, which makes it safe to stay overnight and in the fridge for a whole week.

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