More Pie, please

Well, you just never know. Last night, I was making my pecan pie when I happened to think - I've got peach pie filling in the freezer. I wonder . . . . and I had about 2 ounces of almond paste left-over from making my cookies. So, since I was in for a penny, in for a pound with the pie crust anyway, I went ahead and made two. You know, I took my time and they did not turn out half bad!

Anyway, thought I would share this peach pie "recipe" with you - more of a technique.

Peach Streusal Pie

Filling: (Enought for 4 pies)
9 pounds fresh peaches
2 teaspoons Fruit Fresh, (fruit preservative)
3 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons quick cooking tapioca
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt

Stir all together and freeze in 1-1/2 pint jars. Alternatively, freeze in pie tins lined with foil 4-5 cups per pan. (I am assuming here that you know how to scald the peaches, etc.)

Anyway . . . on the day you are making your pie, pull out your filling and let it thaw a bit. I stirred in about 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract.

Then make a single crust of your favorite pie dough and line a 9-inch pan with it.
Dump your filling in.

Streusal:
2 Tablespoons butter
2 ounces (give or take) almond paste
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup flour

These are approximate measurements! Mix your cinnamon, sugar and flour in a bowl. Cut in the butter and almond paste with a pastry cutter. Sprinkle over top of the pie filling. Bake around 40-45 minutes at 350F. Viola!

Thanksgiving Memories

I love Thanksgiving. Oh, not just for the turkey, stuffing, cranberries and pumpkin pie. But for the camraderie of family, the hustle and bustle of getting everything ready and the joy - yes, joy - of preparing food for loved ones.

You see, to me it is an act of love to create a special dish for someone. I make homemade molasses spice cookies for my pastor - they are his favorite. I have not made yet - but will - chicken fried steak for my Honey - it is his favorite. I like to find out what someone likes and make it. It gives me joy in the making, knowing that they will really like it and appreciate it - because it is their favorite.

I love our tradition of going around the table and telling what we are thankful for, one-by-one.

I love the idea that people all over this vast country are doing the same thing we are - giving thanks - on this day.

I love left-over turkey for sandwiches, ho yes!

I love not having to work, being able to relax and enjoy the day - well, mostly, I do have to work this year.

I love having traditional foods - turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potatoes, green beans, homemade rolls with real butter, cranberry sauce, stuffing, pumpkin pie. We usually throw in something a little different, too. This year we are doing 7-layer salad, cherry pie, apple pie and pecan pie. Sometimes we have corn and oysters - gack! - or maybe a relish tray, some green goop.

My mom usually does the pumpkin pie and this year she volunteered to do cherry - my Honey's favorite - and apple as well. Dad's favorite, however, is pecan. I love it too, so I volunteered to do it. I got some very nice pecans this weekend when we were visiting in St. Louis. I really do not know why most people fear making pecan pie, it is EASY! Except for the pie crust - you all know how I am with pie crust! I am also making the sweet potatoes, so I will share those with you later. Thus, without further ado . . .

(mind you, pictures will come later)

Pecan Pie

1 cup Karo Light OR Dark Corn Syrup
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) pecans
1 (9-inch) unbaked deep-dish pie crust

Stir first 5 ingredients together in bowl. Stir in pecans, being sure to coat each one. Pour into pie shell.
Bake at 350F for 55-60 minutes. Cool for at least 2 hours before serving.




It is that easy. Serve with pride to those you love.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie

There are some things in life which go together hand-in-hand. Salt and pepper. Peanut butter and jelly. Strawberries and rhubarb. Now, personally I like the tastes of rhubarb all by itself. But a lot of people do not, so they think you have to have strawberries with it.

When I was looking to make a dessert for Father's day, I needed something quick and easy. So I rooted around and found this recipe for a strawberry-rhubarb pie on allrecipes. It is quick, easy and delicious.

Now we all know that I have troubles making pie crust. Oh, it tastes fine, flaky and all that, but it looks pretty rough. So, courtesy of Cooks Illustrated, I found a recipe on the web for a pat-in-the-pan piecrust. You can make it look just like a regular crust, although it is not as flaky. Tastes great. I was crunched for time, tho, so I did not take the time to make it look like the regular ones. And it turned out fine, no one cared.

We had fresh strawberries from our tubs and I had bought some frozen rhubarb from the Mennonite store in Versailles. If you have a Mennonite or Amish store near you, I urge you to go. We buy spices of all kinds at fantastic prices. Their flour can't be beat either.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Crumb Pie
Makes 1 (9-inch) pie - serves 8

Crust
2 ounces cream cheese, room temp
1/2 cup butter, room temp
1-1/4 cups flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

Beat cream cheese and butter in large bowl until creamy. Add flour, sugar and salt. Beat until it starts to clump together. Spray your pie pan with cooking spray. Dump your dough in the pan and pat it out with the heel of your hand until it is approximately the same thickness all over.

Filling
1 egg
1 cup sugar (I thought this a little excessive and used 3/4 cup)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons flour
3/4 pound fresh rhubarb, diced
1 pint fresh strawberries, halved or quartered if very large

Mix egg, sugar, vanilla and flour in medium bowl. Stir in rhubarb and strawberries. Pour into pie shell.

Crumb
3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup butter (I thought this a bit excessive, used 6 tablespoons)

Mix flour, sugar and oats in bowl. Cut in butter. Sprinkle over top of filling.

Bake at 400 degrees F for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 and bake for 35 minutes. Best served with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.



Using frozen rhubarb, I baked my pie a bit longer. I also used a deep dish pie pan as I have a morbid fear of pie bubbling over in the oven.

Tart-N-Tangy

Refreshing. Light. Tart. Sweet. Fluffy. Creamy. Crisp. Melt-in-your-mouth. Make you pucker. All of these words refer to 1 dessert - lemon meringue pie.



I am a lemon lover. Whenever I go into a restaurant, I order my ice water with lemon. Or my tea. When I was little, I can remember going over to my cousin's house and we would get a lemon, cut it in quarters, sprinkle on some salt and see who could keep their quarter in their mouth the longest. I don't think she had any tastebuds, because she could always outlast me!

I have long been in the search for the perfect lemon meringue pie. Mind you, if I am crunched for time, I am not above skipping the meringue and just topping it with whipped cream, but that is another creature altogether. My piecrust usually does not look the best, but it tastes good and it is flaky. Sometime when I am on vacation, I am going to take about 3 days and do nothing but perfect my piecrust making. Until then. . .

Lemon Meringue Pie
Makes 1 pie.

I am not going to give you a recipe for pie crust, as I will assume that you have your own and it works brilliantly. Just bake it blind and let it cool.

Filling

1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt
6 large egg yolks
2 teaspoons zest from 1 lemon (original recipe says 1 Tablespoon, but I felt it was a bit much)
1/2 cup juice from 2-3 lemons
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter

Whisk sugar, cornstarch and salt together in large saucepan. Add egg yolks and then immediately, but gradually whisk in 1-1/2 cups water. Bring mixture to a simmer over medium heat, whisking occasionally at beginning and more frequently as mixture begins to thicken, 8-10 minutes. Whisk in zest, then lemon juice and lastly butter. Bring mixture to a good simmer, whisking constantly, simmer for 1 minute. Pour into pie shell and cover surface with plastic wrap.

Meringue

This is a bit of a different meringue, as it does not use sugar, but marshmallow cream. Very easy and very white.

3 egg whites
pinch of salt
1 (7 ounce) container marshmallow cream

In small deep bowl, beat egg whites with salt until soft peaks form. Gradually add marshmallow cream, beating until stiff peaks form. Remove plastic wrap from pie filling surface and spread meringue over pie, sealing to crust. Bake 12-15 minutes in 350 degree F oven, until browned.



Tip: When beating egg whites or cream, they will whip faster in a small, but deep bowl. I have a stand mixer with 2 sizes of bowls, large and small and the small one works perfectly for this.

Until Monday, dear readers!