Preparation

For the dough

• Cut the butter into 6 pieces and put in the freezer. Measure out 3 Tbs. cold water.
• Whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Using a pastry blender or two butter knives, cut the cold butter into the flour mixture until the pieces are just larger than peas. (You can also do this in a food processor using short pulses. Scrape the mixture into a large bowl before proceeding.)
• Drizzle the cold water over the mixture and, using the fingertips of one hand, pinch and squeeze the mixture while tossing with a silicone spatula in the other hand until it begins to form shaggy clumps.
• Scrape the dough onto a clean work surface. Using the heel of your hand, gently smear the dough away from you in sections. Using a bench scraper, gather and fold the crumbs on top of each other and turn the pile 180°. Repeat the smearing action, gathering and turning the dough several times until the crumbs just hold together. Shape the dough into a 5-inch disk, smoothing the edges. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours.

Roll the dough

• Let the dough sit at room temperature until it’s pliable enough to roll, 10 to 20 minutes.
• Put a large piece of parchment paper on a work surface, lightly flour it, and put the dough in the center. Lightly flour the dough and cover with another piece of parchment. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough from the center to the edges into a 13-1/2-inch circle that’s about 1/8 inch thick. After every few passes, rotate the parchment a quarter turn, and lift the dough and stretch out the parchment underneath; it tends to bunch a little. Reflour the parchment lightly only as needed; excess flour can make the crust tough.
• Peel away the top piece of parchment. Gently roll the dough around the rolling pin, position the pin over a 9-inch glass pie plate, and unroll, easing the dough into the plate. Gently press the dough into the sides and bottom of the plate without stretching it, allowing the excess dough to hang over the edges. Trim the excess dough to a 3/4-inch overhang. Roll the overhang under itself to shape a high edge crust that rests on the rim of the pie plate. Crimp the dough into a fluted edge. Cover and refrigerate the crust while the oven heats.

Blind-bake the crust

• Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 375°F. Line the crust with foil or parchment, and then fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 25 minutes. Carefully remove the foil and pie weights. Bake until the crust is pale golden and looks dry, 5 to 8 minutes more. Let cool on a rack while you make the filling. Reduce the oven temperature to 325°F.

Make the filling

• Whisk together the pumpkin, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Whisk in the half-and-half and vanilla. Add the eggs and whisk until just blended. Pour the filling into the baked crust (it’s OK if the crust is still warm).
• Bake until the center of the filling jiggles like jello when the plate is nudged, 48 to 50 minutes. A few small cracks might appear close to the crust—that’s fine. Cool the pie on a rack until room temperature, about 3 hours. Cover loosely and refrigerate until ready to serve. The pie is best when served within 2 days of baking, and can be warmed slightly in a 300°F oven, if desired. Serve with whipped cream.

Make Ahead Tips

The dough can be wrapped in plastic and refrigerated for up to 2 days, or frozen for up to 1 month. If you freeze it, thaw it overnight in the refrigerator.

The pie crust can be rolled, shaped and crimped, then frozen (wrapped in plastic) for up to 1 month. Blind-bake the crust directly from the freezer.