Mini Pumpkin Pies

My daughter's kindergarten class was having a Thanksgiving party, with each child tasked to bring a small treat to share with their class.  So we made mini pumpkin pies!  Mini pies are fun and easy.  Simply use a single filling recipe and a double amount of crust recipe for a 9-inch pie, and you can make 24 mini pies in standard muffin tins.  I used a 4 inch diameter round scalloped cookie cutter to cut rounds in pie dough, rolled out to 1/16 inch thick, and then gently pressed each round into muffin tins.  Then, I filled them with my homemade pumpkin pie filling, which has a secret: it's really half pumpkin, half sweet potato, with real maple syrup and fresh grated ginger!  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, and cool 1 hour before removing from the muffin tin.  I topped mine with brown sugar whipped cream - just whip your cream with brown sugar instead of white for an added flavor bonus that works really well with fall-themed or spiced desserts.