A taste of summer

    There are few things that I love as much as desserts made with fresh summer fruit... except for maybe making them :-). A couple of weekends ago, I picked up some peaches and they were spectacular! We cut them up and served them with whipped cream and raspberries, we made a cobbler (sadly, it was gone too quickly to take any pictures...) and finally, I decided to use the rest for a pie. Not only do I love making pies, I was pretty excited to break in our new kitchen. It's only the second time I've made peach pie (the first time was the streusel top one that I made last summer), but I thought it would be fun to take elements from a couple recipes and put them together to make something more interesting than the standard. I also strayed from my standard all-butter crust and opted for one that was half butter and half shortening. Overall, the effect was pretty great- I made it again last week, and I think it's damn near perfect :-).
    So, what did I do different? I've already mentioned the crust, but for those of you who don't know, crusts made with lard or shortening tend to be more tender and flaky, but butter crusts (at least in my humble opinion) have better flavor. I saw a crust recipe that used half shortening and half butter, and thought that it might just be the happy medium. I also substituted honey for some of the sugar, which I think was a good move. I found a recipe that made a honey caramel sauce and added it to the peaches prior to baking. Frankly, I thought this sounded like a pain in the butt, especially when you're already going to the trouble of peeling, pitting and slices all of those peaches AND making a crust from scratch. I can't say it's not worth it because I didn't try it, but I'll just say that I have my doubts. I used cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom, which I think goes well with the fresh peaches and honey.
   Overall, I thought it ended up being pretty delicious. The peaches were the star (as it should be), but the crust was flaky and had good flavor, and the combination of honey and spices was subtle and complimented the flavor of the fresh fruit. It was not as sweet as many pies, but the honey adds an extra dimension to the flavor, and my husband won't eat things that are super-sweet, so I consider this a win. As a side-note, make sure that you pick ripe fruit or wait for them to ripen- crunchy, tasteless fruit will absolutely ruin any dessert.

Lattice Top Peach Pie

Crust:
12 Tbs cold unsalted butter
3 cup flour
1 tsp finely ground sea salt
1 Tb sugar
1/3 cup frozen shortening
1/2 cup ice water

Filling:
3 1/2- 4 lbs fresh, ripe peaches
1/3 c sugar
1/3 c honey
1/4 c cornstarch (heaping)
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp ginger
1 Tb cinnamon
1/4 tsp cardamom
1/4 tsp nutmeg

-To make crust, pulse the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor, then add the cold shortening and butter and pulse until it is chopped to about the size of small peas. Then, slowly add the ice water as the food processor is running until the dough comes together.
-Divide the dough in half and form each into a round disc, wrap it in plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes before rolling out.
-While the crust is chilling, peel peaches and remove the pits. I like to cut them in half and start peeling from the top (where the stem comes out) after the pit is removed and then cut them lengthwise. But, you can do it however you like :-).
-Mix the prepared peaches with the sugar, honey, lemon juice and zest, cornstarch and spices and set aside.
-Roll out one of the crust disks till the diameter is about 10 inches. Place it in a pie pan and trim off the edges so that there is about 1/2 inch overhang. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and put it back in the fridge.
-Roll out the second disk to about the same size and cut it into 1/2 inch strips.
-Pour the peach mixture into the pie shell, dot the filling with small pieces of butter (~3 Tb) and weave the strips into a lattice. I like to make the lattice right on the top of the pie, because transferring the lattice can be difficult. If you've never done this before, just start at the edge of the pie and alternate between adding one vertical and one horizontal strip and place the lattice directly on the pie (see the picture below). I found a video here that shows how to make the lattice: http://www.hulu.com/watch/35675/cooking-up-a-story-how-to-make-a-pie-top-lattice.
-Trim the edges of the lattice and crimp the edges with your fingers.
-Bake the pie for 1 hr- 1 hr and 20 minutes at 375 F. The crust should be golden brown and the juices bubbling. If the crust is brown but the pie doesn't look like it's quite done, cover the top with aluminum foil so the top doesn't burn.

A Tale of Two Pies

    A couple of weeks ago, Cory's parents gave me a lovely pie pumpkin from their garden. They had a yield of 3 pumpkins, so I felt pretty special that they have one to me :). Pumpkins are very versatile, and can be used in a variety of dishes, including main dishes, soups and desserts. You can also use almost every part of the pumpkin and it can be used for a fall decoration prior to cooking, so it is a very cost-effective squash as well. From this pumpkin, I was able to make 2 pies, pumpkin custard, 2 jars of pumpkin butter and and caramelized spicy pumpkin seeds. Pumpkin pie is Cory's favorite, so after I made a pie to share with my family (to celebrate my sister's engagement!), I made one to bring down with me when I visited him. It didn't stand a chance- I don't even think his roommate got to try it :-). If you're not in the mood to clean a real pumpkin, this pie recipe can also be made with store-bought pumpkin.

The final product, finished off with butter-crust leaves

    There are multiple ways to prepare pumpkin puree for pumpkin pie and pumpkin butter. The two main ways are to steam or roast it, but both methods can be done with either peeled or unpeeled pumpkin. I think the fastest and easiest way is to steam it with the skin on (as described below). Once the pumpkin is cooked and cooled, the peels comes off very easily and you don't have to waste time trying to peel the raw pumpkin. I like steaming because it is faster and allows the pumpkin to retain its natural moisture. Stay tuned for the pumpkin butter and caramelized pumpkin seed recipes!

This slice was too small and required a second helping...

Perfect Pumpkin Pie (adapted from Martha Stewart)

-1 1/2 cups fresh pumpkin puree (from sugar pumpkin) or solid-pack canned pumpkin (one 15-ounce can) 

-4 large eggs (3 for pie, 1 for egg wash)

-4 teaspoons heavy cream (2 for filling, 2 for egg wash)

-3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar

-1 tablespoon cornstarch

-1/2 teaspoon salt

-1 teaspoon ground ginger

-3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

-1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

-1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

-1 1/2 cups evaporated milk
-white sugar for dusting crust

-Whipped cream/topping, for serving

For crust:
-use 1/2 of the basic pie crust recipe
For pumpkin puree:
-Cut pumpkin in half, scoop out seeds and loose pulp. Then, cut pumpkin into large chunks. Place them in a steamer basket with a cup or so of water. Place on a burner at medium heat until tender, about 15 minutes.
-allow pumpkin to cool, and scoop flesh from the skin with a spoon. Place in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.

For pie:

-after preparing the crust, place it in the pie pan, crimp, and place in the freezer till frozen solid, about 15 minutes.

-Mix pumpkin, evaporated milk, 2 Tb cream, brown sugar, nutmeg, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, salt, cornstarch, and 3 eggs (beaten). Set aside.

-Remove crust from the freezer, line the inside with foil and fill with pie weights (or uncooked rice or beans). -Mix the egg wash using 1 egg and the remaining 2 Tb of cream. Brush over the edge of the pie crust and sprinkle with sugar. Return the crust to the freezer for about 10 minutes prior to baking.

-Place the crust in an oven preheated to 375 F. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove weights and bake for an additional 5 minutes, until the crust is set, but not yet browned.

-Cool the crust completely. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 F.

-Fill crust with filling, and bake pie at 350 F for about 60 minutes. The pie is done when only the center of the pie jiggles when the pie is moved. Cool completely at room temperature and then chill prior to serving.

-Garnish the pie with whipped cream and leaves made from extra crust, if desired.

*Note 1: To make the leaves shown on this pie, use some of the extra dough. Roll it thin, cut out shapes with a butter knife. The veins of the leaves were made with the edge of a butter knife and they were washed with the egg wash, sprinkled with white sugar and baked at 350 till golden brown. After the pie was baked and cooled, they were placed around the edges. 

 

*Note 2: Pumpkin custard may be made by heating the leftover filling in a saucepan, over medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat after it has reached the consistency of wet scrambled eggs. It's great if you can't wait to try the pie!

Mel and Ty. Pie makes everyone happy, but being engaged made these two even happier!

Millions of Peaches

    A couple of weeks ago, my family went to Glen Arbor, MI for a long weekend, and I picked up some beautiful Red Haven peaches from an orchard on the way back. While I couldn't resist eating a couple myself,  I decided that they would be best used in a pie. Luckily, later in the week, my friend Lauren turned 26, giving me a perfect opportunity to try out a new recipe. So, we took her to her favorite restaurant, The Olive Garden, indulged in way too much salad and breadsticks, and returned to my place for pie. 

Gorgeous Red Haven Peaches from Gallagher's Farm Market near Traverse City

     This was actually the first peach pie I'd ever made, and I thought it turned out quite well. It's spicy and sweet without being overwhelming, and the peaches were fresh and flavorful. "Free stone" varieties, such as Red Haven are the easiest to use because the fruit is easily removed from the pit. This recipe was adapted from 2 different recipes: Deep-Dish Peach Pie from Bon Appétit , 2010 and Spiced Peach Pie from Bon Appétit, 2000. I don't think I'd change anything about the recipe, except maybe to use more peaches, add a dash of cloves and chill the streusel topping so that it held together a little better. Overall, though, it was a great recipe!

Peach Birthday Pie

Crust:

-2 1/2 c flour                               

-1 c unsalted butter

-1 tsp salt  

-1 Tb sugar                                

-1/4 to 1/2 c ice water

Filling 

-2/3 cup (packed) golden brown sugar

-1/4 cup flour

-1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

-1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

-1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

-3 pounds medium peaches

Streusel topping: 

-1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons unbleached all purpose flour

-1/2 cup old-fashioned oats

-1/3 cup (packed) golden brown sugar

-1/2 teaspoon salt

-6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) chilled unsalted butter, diced

-3/4 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

 -For the crust, mix dry ingredients, then use a pastry cutter or food processor to blend until it resembles coarse meal. Try not to overwork the dough, this can make it tough. add water until the dough just comes together in your fingertips. Press together and divide in half, wrapping each in plastic wrap. You will only need 1/2 of the dough for this pie. Chill for at least 1 hour.
-While the pie dough is chilling, peel, pit and slice the peaches. Mix the other filling ingredients and set aside.
-preheat the oven to 375 F
-For the streusel topping, mix the dry ingredients and add butter in tablespoon sized pieces, and mix with a fork or food processor. Add pecans at the end so they don't get chopped too finely. Place in the fridge until the pie is ready to go.
-Roll out 1/2 of the pie dough on a floured surface till it fits in a 9 inch pie pan. Place crust in the pan, smooth the edges, trim the excess dough and crimp the edges. I used a fork to to create a pattern around the edges of this pie.

-Pour in the peach filling, cover will the streusel topping and pop it into the preheated oven.

-Bake ~45 min at 375 F. The topping should be golden brown and the pie juices should be bubbling.

-Enjoy! 

Lauren with her pie

"No Bake" Cool Key Lime Pie

      Key Lime Pie is the quintessential summer dessert, but it poses several problems for a first-time baker. First of all, key limes, which are smaller and sweeter than standard limes are more expensive and harder to find than conventional limes. Also, the filling is typically made of a custard of condensed milk and egg, and it can be a little tricky to get it to the right consistency.  

Limes are harvested year round in some tropical areas, but in other places, trees only produce fruit in the summer. Limes are yellow when fully ripe, but are better when harvested while they are still green.

      This recipe, adapted from Gourmet's 1998 version avoids some of these issues, but may need a little bit of tweaking to reach pie perfection. It is made with a pie shell instead of the traditional graham cracker crust and the filling is thickened with cream cheese instead of eggs, which means you don't have to bake it to get the filling to set up. It also uses standard limes instead of key limes, which saves you the expense and headache of using key limes. Unfortunately, although this is a beautiful pie and the filling was very good, I missed the graham cracker taste and felt like this may be missing something. If you do chose to make it with the pie shell, I would recommend adding something else, like fresh ginger or fruit. 

 

Key Lime Pie 

Crust:

-2 1/2 c flour                               

-1 c unsalted butter

-1 tsp salt  

-1 Tb sugar                                

-1/4 to 1/2 c ice water

-Plastic wrap

OR

Premade graham cracker crust

For filling

-1 pound cream cheese, softened

-3/4 cup fresh lime juice

-a 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk

-1 teaspoon finely grated fresh lime zest

For topping

-1 cup crème fraîche (may be made with 1 c heavy cream and 1 Tb of sour cream, left to stand overnight)

-1/4 cup confectioners' sugar

-For the crust, mix dry ingredients, then use a pastry cutter or food processor to blend until it resembles coarse meal. Try not to overwork the dough, this can make it tough. add water until the dough just comes together in your fingertips. Press together and divide in half, wrapping each in plastic wrap. You will only need 1/2 of the dough for this pie. Chill for at least 1 hour.

-For the filling, mix all ingredients well. Make sure the cream cheese is well blended, or you may end up with plain cream cheese chunks in your pie.

-Roll out pie dough, place in 9 inch pie pan, smooth and cut off excess dough. Crimp edges and prick the bottom of the crust with a fork. Fill with pie weights or (as I did) cover the crust with foil and fill the foil with uncooked rice. This will keep the shell from puffing up and infringing on the space for the filling. Chill the shell for at least 30 minutes

-Bake crust at 350 F for 20 minutes, then remove foil and rice and cook until the crust is golden brown, ~10-15 more minutes.

-allow crust to cool completely and then chill for 1 hour.

-fill the crust with cream cheese mixture and chill while making the topping.

-whip crème fraîche until it forms soft peaks, continue to whip and add powdered sugar slowly. Spread mixture carefully over the filling, allow to chill for at least one hour or up to one day, loosely covered.

Starting with basics- Double Crust Apple Pie

There's nothing more comforting (and midwestern) than apple pie- and it's one of my favorites, with spicy cinnamon, crisp, buttery crust and tart apples. In the fall, when a variety of apples are available, I like to use Cortland apples. They are tart, crisp, hold their shape well with baking and are also large, which minimizes peeling. However, granny smith is a commonly used apple which is available and relatively inexpensive year-round. Most apple pies have some lemon juice, but this also has lemon zest which adds a little extra "kick". Believe me, it tastes as good as it looks!

Double Crust Apple Pie (adapted from Martha Stewart)

Crust:

-2 1/2 c flour                               

-1 c unsalted butter
-1 tsp salt   

-1 Tb sugar                                

-1/4 to 1/2 c ice water

-Plastic wrap

Filling:

-2 Tb flour                                 

-Cored, peeled sliced apples (~4 medium sized apples)

-1/2 tsp nutmeg

-Pinch of cloves 

-1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
-3/4 c sugar                                

-Zest and juice of 1 lemon          

-2 Tb butter
-1 large egg, beaten

-Make the crust by mixing flour, salt, sugar and butter with food processor or pastry cutter to make coarse crumbs
-Add ice water slowly, while mixing, until dough forms
-Divide dough in half, form into 2 disks and wrap in plastic wrap
-Chill for at least 1 hour, roll out to fit pan ~10 inch diameter for an 8 inch pan, and chill for 30 min before baking.

-For the filling, mix apples, sugar, lemon, flour and spices.
-Press crust into pie pan, fill with apple mixture. Dot with butter.
-Put second crust on top, trim if necessary, and crimp edges. Then, cut vents in the top crust, brush with egg and sprinkle with sugar (coarse sanding sugar is prettier, but regular granulated sugar is fine)

-Bake for 1 hour at 375 F. The top crust should be nicely browned and pie juices bubbling through the vents. If you don't see this, you may need to bake a couple more minutes.