Maple Pumpkin Pie with a Message

Preheat oven to 450°.

Roll half of pie dough into a 12-inch circle. Fit into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate. Fold edges under; flute. Line dough with parchment paper; fill with pie weights. Bake at 450° for 10 minutes or until golden. Place on wire rack.

Reduce oven tempe­rature to 350°.

While crust bakes, combine milk and next 9 ingredients (through pumpkin), stirring until well combined. Pour into crust, place in oven, and bake at 350° for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until set. Cool on a wire rack.

While pie bakes, unroll remaining pie dough; roll into a 12-inch circle. Cut dough into 1/3-inch-thick strips. Gently shape strips into lettering on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper; keep dough chilled until ready to bake. (Discard remaining dough, or reserve for another use.)

Lightly beat together 1 teaspoon water and egg yolk. Lightly brush dough lettering with yolk mixture; sprinkle with granulated sugar, if desired. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack; arrange lettering on top of pie.