Peach and Almond Custard Pie

For me, summer means peach everything. They're my favorite fruit to bake with and my favorite thing to bake is pie. I had some peaches in the crisper drawer and my go-to peach dessert, my mom's peach pie, on my mind...and then my husband and I started wondering what other types of peach pies there were that I hadn't tried yet.

The answer to that, my friends, is peach custard pie. And it is just as amazing as it sounds. Flaky pastry, juicy peaches, a custard spiked with almond extract, because I just can't have a peach pie without almond. So in that respect it tastes quite a bit like the pie I talked about here years ago, but custardy! I think it might be a new favorite here. 

The original recipe calls for thyme in the custard and cinnamon in the crust. I love them both separately, but together? I'll definitely be trying this one in the future; I'm intrigued by the combination. But for this pie, I wanted the familiar pairing of peach and almond. It was simple and delicious.

The only other change I would make is to cut the peaches in smaller, bite-size pieces. The slices look beautiful, but they weren't very easy to eat. My pie took a whole lot longer to bake than the recipe called for, but my crust didn't burn and the custard didn't separate, so although I was worried, there was no reason to be. It turned out perfectly!

Peach and Almond Custard Pie

makes 1 9" pie

A side note about the crust: I happened to have exactly 1/4 cup buttermilk in my refrigerator to make this, but if you don't have any on hand, use whatever crust you are comfortable with, or the crust recipe included in my previous peach pie post. This was delicious and fairly easy to work with for an all butter pastry, but I'm not sure I would have known there was buttermilk in it if I didn't know about it already.

Crust:

1/2 c. butter, cubed

1 1/4 c. flour

1/4 t. salt

1 T. sugar

1/4 c. buttermilk

Filling:

2 eggs

1 1/4 c. milk (I used half and half)

3 T. flour

1/4 t. almond extract

3/4 c. sugar

1/4 c. dark brown sugar

1/4 t. salt

3 c. sliced (or chopped) peaches

For pastry: Combine flour, salt and sugar. Cut in butter with pastry blender until crumbly. Slowly add buttermilk, tossing with spoon after each addition, until dough comes together. ( I didn't even need the whole 1/4 cup, maybe about half of that.) Wrap dough in plastic and chill for 1 hour. 

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Roll out dough on lightly floured work surface to 1/4" thickness. Roll dough onto rolling pin and transfer to pie plate. Fold edges under and crimp as desired. In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs, milk, flour, extract, sugars and salt until smooth. Place peaches in crust and pour custard over. Place on baking sheet and bake 40 minutes to 1 hour 10 minutes (that's really how long my pie was in the oven before the custard finally looked set. I was a little nervous...) or until pie is only slightly jiggly in center and feels firm to touch. Let stand at least 30 minutes before serving. Cover and chill if you don't eat it all in one sitting. (We were tempted.)

Peach Pie

When is pie more than just a dessert? When it becomes a legacy. When it becomes the symbol of one of the most influential people in your life. When it has meaning. That's what this picture represents. It's who I am and who I would like to become. Come along with me on my journey....

Chipotle Fish Tacos with Cilantro-Lime Cream

Is there anything more perfect for summer than a fish taco? We don't think so, unless it's eating ice cream by the quart or making cheeseburger sliders with mini pretzel rolls. But for this post, I wanted to share a creation/bastardization of a recipe I had tried before and tweaked slightly to make my own. As much as I love a fried piece of fish, I'm a little wary of deep-frying things in my tiny kitchen. So I took my favorite breading for pan-frying fish and gave it a Baja twist.

Besides the crispy fish fillet, the other star of this dish is the lime-cilantro cream. Imagine, if you will, a cool, creamy tzatziki sauce with a Mexican accent and you will have an idea of how delicious this sauce is. You could easily use any leftovers as a dip for vegetables and it's so easy, you will want some of this on hand and within easy reach. Just three ingredients: sour cream, lime juice and cilantro (and I added some lime zest as well because you can't have too much lime!), season to taste and you're ready for taco night.

I love the colors of red and green cabbage. You could just as well have one or the other, especially if you're only serving a few for dinner. But extra cabbage in the refrigerator means coleslaw at your fingertips and I am nothing if not a coleslaw fiend. That, also, is a summer staple and I've never had a home-made coleslaw I didn't love.

Here is where I got creative with the original recipe. The first time I made these, the instructions directed me to coat the fish with minced chipotle chiles and cook until blackened. The problem I ran into was that the moisture of the chiles in their delicious adobo sauce was that it was far too moist to actually sear and blacken the fish. It was tasty, but there wasn't any texture. So I decided to take the cornmeal coating of my favorite catfish recipe and apply it here. I brushed the fish with the adobo to make the cornmeal adhere and fried until well and truly crisp and golden. I won't be making fish tacos any other way.

Chipotle Fish Tacos with Cilantro-Lime Cream

Serves 8

adapted from Bon Appetit

1 c. sour cream

1 c. finely chopped cilantro, divided

2 T. lime juice

zest of 1/2 lime

1 T.  cumin 

1 t. salt

1 can chipotles in adobo

       (sauce only, reserve chiles for another use)

1 c. yellow cornmeal

1 1b. basa/ tilapia fillets

1 T. vegetable oil

16 6" corn tortillas

1 stick butter, melted

2 c. shredded green cabbage (1/4 of a head)

2 c. shredded red cabbage ( 1/4 of a head)

2 c. chopped plum or cherry tomatoes

Whisk sour cream, 1/2 c. cilantro, lime juice and zest in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Whisk cumin, salt and cornmeal in a shallow dish ( such as a pie plate). Lay fish on a large plate and season lightly with salt and pepper.  Working with one fillet at a time, brush/ smear adobo sauce over both sides of fish, then coat with cornmeal mixture, pressing to adhere. Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add fish and cook until golden and crisp, about 3 minutes per side. Move to a paper towel-lined plate to drain and sprinkle with a little more salt, if desired. Heat another skillet over high heat. Lightly brush one side of each tortilla with melted butter. Working in batches, place tortillas, buttered side down, in skillet. Cook until soft, about 20 seconds per side. Arrange tortillas, buttered side up, on a platter. Break/ slice fish into small portions and divide amongst tortillas. Top with cabbage and sprinkle with tomatoes and rest of cilantro. Drizzle with cilantro-lime cream and serve.

Monster Cookie Bars

Um, hello again. I really did not mean to be gone for that long. Funny how a few weeks can turn into a few months. So many factors contributed to my absence.... a new computer with a new version of iphoto that I needed to get used to... a sense of dissatisfaction with my photography skills.... the impending loss of my current job.... I guess I just lost my motivation somehow but the truth is, I've missed writing about food and taking pictures of it, even though I wish they were better. But I'm going to forge on and share with you the perfect bar cookie to make for your end-of-summer picnics. Meet my new friend, the monster cookie bar.

Peanut Butter S'more Cookie Sandwiches

  

Southern cooking. It's something I am not familiar with as a Mid-western-raised girl. It's been around for a while and I'll confess I wasn't head-over-heels about it at first. Features were popping up in my favorite magazines about biscuits and greens.....and I shrugged my shoulders and moved on. But something about the home-style, comforting, made by hand aspect about it drew me in. Because everything about that says "love" to me. And now I'm smitten.

Peach Ice Cream

  

I love fruit ice creams. I may be a big fan of chocolate, but when it comes to frozen cream and sugar, I want it to be simple. A creamy custard base, a burst of juiciness and a spoon are all I need to make me happy. I can walk right by the Moose Tracks, the Rocky Roads and the Brownie Fudge Swirls. It's strawberry, blueberry and peach that make me swoon.

 

So I found this recipe for Peach Ice Cream in one of Gourmet's summer issues and I promised myself that I would make this and make it for my children and grandchildren. This was IT.  I could imagine the perfection it would be, because I have often made a peach pie ( it happens to be my favorite, just so you know) with vanilla ice cream and that combination seems destined to be an ice cream. It just goes. And I've tried the store-bought kinds, but was always disappointed in the lack of peach flavor. I had to make it myself.

  

You know I would love to tell you we lived happily ever after. This ice cream takes lovely pictures. It had such potential. It still does. But I've made this twice, now and I have yet to achieve a silky smooth texture. I'm blaming the cornstarch. I've never seen cornstarch in an ice cream recipe before and I'm skeptical. I'm going to try it again, maybe combining this recipe with another one I've seen, because, my dear readers, this recipe has almond extract in it and that is peach's best friend. Mine, too, actually. I love it. I can't get enough of it. Ever since I tasted my mom's peach pie for the first time, I knew that it would be one of my favorite flavors--ever. That, and her signature cheesecake. I've been spoiled for anything else after that introduction to desserts. There is only one way for me.....the way my mother made it.

 

Peach Ice Cream

 from Gourmet June 2008

makes about 2 quarts

2 lb. ripe peaches

2 t. fresh lemon juice

1 c. plus 2 T. sugar, divided

1 1/2 T. cornstarch

1 3/4 c. heavy cream

1 3/4 c. whole milk

4 large egg yolks

1/2 t. vanilla extract

1/4 t. almond extract

Cut an X in bottom of each peach, then blanch in boiling water 15 seconds. Transfer with a slotted spoon to an ice bath to stop cooking. Peel peaches and cut in 1/2 inch pieces. (I'll be honest. I just peeled my peaches with a paring knife. Not much more time consuming than this whole process, I'm guessing.) Toss with lemon juice and 3/4 cup plus 2 T. sugar in a large bowl. Let macerate, covered and chilled, at least 8 hours. Whisk together cornstarch, 1/4 t. salt and remaining 1/4 c. sugar in a heavy medium saucepan. Add cream and milk and bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly. Add to yolks in a slow stream, whisking constantly, to temper, then pour mixture back into saucepan. Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, just until custard coats back of spoon and registers 170 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, 1-2 minutes (mixture will be thick). Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a metal bowl and stir in extracts. Chill custard, its surface covered directly with plastic wrap (to prevent a skin from forming), until cold, at least 4 hours. Transfer 2 cups peaches with slotted spoon to a bowl. Puree remaining peaches and liquid in a blender until smooth. Add puree to custard and freeze in ice cream maker, then transfer to a bowl and stir in reserved peaches. Transfer to an airtight container and put in freezer to harden, about 2 hours.

Summer Pea and Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Salad

 

Not your average pasta salad. That was what I was craving when I found this on Smitten Kitchen's site. The dressing is made from roasted red peppers. It's full of flavor; it's light, not heavy and it's not bottled Italian dressing. One could, I suppose, use jarred peppers. They're good. I use them for lots of dishes. But for this, I wanted soft, meltingly tender, sweet and charred peppers. Roasting them in the oven is actually less involved than charring them over a gas flame (I've done that too. It takes a long time.).          

 

  

I might try grilling them, the next time I make this, to get an even smokier flavor from them. But they get so soft in the oven after roasting, it really is a perfect application for peppers. The skins fall right of the flesh, you can save the juices to put in the processor when you're ready to blend, and then wrap the skin and seeds and core in the foil and toss it. No fuss, no mess. That's my kind of cooking. I don't mind involved recipes, if I have the time, but I love a short cut as much as the next girl. (Said the girl who just roasted her own peppers.)

  

The other reason I wanted to make this salad were the colors. We love peas in this house and I will try any recipe that includes them. I would have loved to use fresh peas, but I never see them in the grocery store. So frozen it is, and fresh snow peas, which we also love. They are so crisp and sweet and add a freshness to anything you put them in. The different contrast of soft peas, chewy pasta and crisp snow peas is a genius combination, especially with the sweetness of the pepper vinaigrette. It's colorful, healthy, light and delicious. It's exactly what I want to eat in the summertime.

  

  

Summer Pea and Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Salad 

as written by Deb, of Smitten Kitchen

This salad would also be fantastic finished with some slivered herbs, like basil, bits of soft goat cheese or crumbled feta or grated Parmesan, but really, it doesn’t need any of that to taste great. Promise.

1 pound of small pasta (I used shells because I imagined the peas would nest in there and gah, such cuteness)

1/4 pound snow pea pods, ends trimmed

1/2 pound fresh summer peas, which yielded about 1 cup once shelled

3/4 to 1 cup Roasted Red Pepper Vinaigrette (recipe below)

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and prepare a small ice water bath. Boil the snow pea pods for about two minutes, or until just barely cooked but still crisp. Scoop them out with a large slotted spoon and drop them in the ice water bath. Cook the peas for about 10 minutes (once again, this will be al dente, you can cook them longer if you prefer them softer), scoop them out with a large slotted spoon and plunge them into the ice water bath as well. Drain both peas. Cut the snow peas into thin slivers.

Add the pasta into the boiling water and cook it according to package instructions. Drain and let cool, then toss in a large bowl with peas and Roasted Red Pepper Vinaigrette, seasoning to taste.

Roasted Red Pepper Vinaigrette

Please don’t limit your use of this to just pasta salad, though, I can say withabsolutely no bias that it is awesome in it, but that’s no reason not to toss this with white beans for a quick bean salad or what your choice mix of greens are.

I like to slow-roast bell peppers in the oven at 350 for one hour, giving them a quarter turn with tongs every fifteen minutes so they get evenly blistered — then letting them cool and peeling them. I know it’s faster to blacken them over a gas flame, but the pepper never gets as supple and sweet as I want it to, but hey, that’s just personal preference. You know, in case you wanted to know.

Makes about one cup of dressing

1 red bell pepper, roasted, skinned and seeded or the equivalent from a jar, drained

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar (and up to 2 tablespoons more if you, like us, like that extra bite in your dressing)

1 tablespoon chopped shallot (about 1 small)

1/2 teaspoon salt

Several grinds of black pepper

Puree the red bell pepper in a food processor or blender as much as possible, then add the remaining ingredients and running the machine until the dressing is silky smooth. Adjust the vinegar level and seasonings to taste.

Two-Layer Key Lime Pie

 

This is the pie you need in your refrigerator this summer. A slice of this is kind of like jumping into a cold swimming pool. The freshness is immediate and it engulfs you. It takes your breath away. This recipe calls for  a lot of limes. A total of nearly a cup of lime juice. I think I used about 7-8 limes which would have been a small fortune in produce, had I not seen them for something like 2 dollars a dozen at a local flea market. I snapped them up with this exact pie in mind.

 

  

The inspiration for Key Lime Pie came from a visit to Chicago in May. We were there to visit one of my brothers and his family one last time before they moved to Boston. One night he had a craving for key lime pie. I didn't know this about him. It's kind of a funny feeling, discovering something about a family member. It's like you're meeting them for the first time. This was never a dessert that my mom made, so he must have developed a taste for it later in life. That's one of the weird things about living so far away from my family--so far away from my siblings, in particular. We grew up together, but spent our adult lives far apart; still close in spirit, but I miss knowing little things like this.....my brother loves key lime pie. And now, so do I.

 

This is another new recipe for me. Again, it's from Bon Appetit, the R.S.V.P. section, which I've noticed, many of these post recipes have come from. This is the part of the magazine where they publish recipes from restaurants requested by readers. I don't know what that says about me. Am I the kind of person who wants to have what someone else has? Am I the kind of cook who aspires to cook restaurant food? Maybe. All I know is that some recipes call to me louder than others. I can taste them in my mind and I just KNOW that the result will be amazing. Sometimes they meet my expectations, and sometimes they don't, but fortunately for us, this was one of those times when my imagination and expectation were both satisfied.

  

One of the unique things about this pie is the crust; it is a graham cracker crust with crushed granola mixed in with melted butter. It's not fancy schmancy granola. Just plain jane sweet oats hiding in the cereal aisle. It's so good in this. It's a nuttier taste than the cracker crumbs would be by themselves and it gives the crust more texture, which, you should know by now, is one of my things.  

 

The other part of this pie that makes it unique is the layering. It has a lime baked custard layer, and then it's topped with a lime cream cheese layer, and as heavy and cloying as that might sound to you (but then to me, it sounds like heaven) believe me when I tell you this is the lightest, most refreshing cream pie I have ever eaten. You remember at the beginning of this story when I told you how you need this pie? You need this because it tastes like paradise, for starters. But you also need this pie because it's a dessert that spends minimal time in the oven, most of the time in the refrigerator, and not nearly enough time on your tongue. It could be my favorite summer pie.....so far, anyway.

 

  

 

Two-Layer Key Lime Pie
from Bon Appetit
Serves 8

A small note about assembling the pie. I piped the whipped cream around the edge because I thought it would look pretty and also, the recipe instructs you to do this. You could also pipe/spread the cream over the whole surface of the pie; this would slightly mellow the citrus punch this pie hides behind it's sweet, demure appearance.

Crust:
3/4 c. granola (with no raisins or other dried fruit)
3/4 c. graham cracker crumbs (from about 6 whole graham crackers)
1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted
3 T. sugar

Baked Layer:
1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 c. Key lime juice or lime juice
3 large egg yolks

Chilled Layer:
8 oz. package cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 c. sweetened condensed milk
1/4 c. Key lime juice or lime juice
2 T. sugar
1 t. vanilla extract

Sweetened whipped cream

For crust: Pre-heat oven to 340 degrees. Using on/off turns, blend granola in processor until coarsely ground. Transfer granola to medium bowl. Mix in graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and sugar. Press crumb mixture over bottom and up sides of 9" deep-dish glass pie dish. Bake until crust is golden brown, about 8 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees. Remove crust from oven and cool completely.
For baked layer: Whisk condensed milk, lime juice, and egg yolks in medium bowl to blend. Pour into pie crust. Bake until custard is set, about 25 minutes. Cool to room temperature.
For chilled layer: Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese, condensed milk, lime juice, sugar and vanilla in large bowl. Pour over cooled baked layer, smooth top. Cover and chill until firm, at least 4 hours. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated.) Pipe sweetened whipped cream decoratively around edge of pie. Cut into wedges and serve.

Blueberry Boy Bait

 

This is a recipe I shamelessly lifted from the Smitten Kitchen blog. It's my favorite source of inspiration for edible art. Her photography is beautiful and her writing is honest and makes me laugh out loud. I made this recipe for the first time last summer and was a little frustrated with it. I wasn't intimidated by all the butter in this batter. I like butter. A lot. However, this batter is so rich it turned out almost crumbly in texture, and yet moist at the same time. Almost smooshy in texture, which isn't what I was looking for in a cake. Even a cake with this much butter.

  

So I tried it again, simply because I believe in this dessert. I'm going to invest in this relationship. And honestly, is there such a thing as a cake that is too moist? This one pushes the boundaries, but I'm concerned that it's not the cake. Maybe it's me. Maybe I didn't beat the batter enough? Maybe I didn't beat it enough so it could fulfill its cake potential? I really don't want to blame the berries. They were so perfect. So fresh. So juicy. All you could want in summer produce. But they were very, very juicy. They were heavy with juice. And as a result, the ended up as a purple layer on the bottom of my cake. 

 

Even when dusted with a blanket of flour, even when lovingly sprinkled over the batter, they sunk to the very bottom. There was virtually no cake layer on the bottom; just berries. The batter wasn't up to the challenge of supporting their weight, apparently. This batter is something else. It's billowy, lush and glossy. Whatever you do, don't taste it. You won't be able to stop.

  

And so, I've determined to perfect the flaws that keep me from loving this recipe, or rather, that make me feel as if this recipe doesn't return my love. But, with that said, I've only heard good things from others who have tasted this cake. They weren't all boys, either. Click here for the back story of the name. And pictures of how I wanted the cake to actually look.

 

This recipe is a challenge for me. A delicious challenge that is rewarding, no matter what the outcome. It's as close as I'll ever get to being a scientist; testing, questioning and evaluating. And the pursuit is it's own reward. I'm still creating, even if it misses my own perfectionist mark, it's still my creation.

 

Blueberry Boy Bait
Adapted from Cook’s Country, which adapted it from the original

Serves 12, generously
2 cups plus 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon table salt
16 tablespoons unsalted butter (2 sticks), softened
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 cup whole milk (though buttermilk, which was all I had on hand, worked just great)
1/2 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen (if frozen, do not defrost first as it tends to muddle in the batter)
Topping
1/2 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen (do not defrost)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
For the cake: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 13 by 9-inch baking pan.
Whisk two cups flour, baking powder, and salt together in medium bowl. With electric mixer, beat butter and sugars on medium-high speed until fluffy, about two minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until just incorporated and scraping down bowl. Reduce speed to medium and beat in one-third of flour mixture until incorporated; beat in half of milk. Beat in half of remaining flour mixture, then remaining milk, and finally remaining flour mixture. Toss blueberries with remaining one teaspoon flour. Using rubber spatula, gently fold in blueberries. Spread batter into prepared pan.
For the topping:
Scatter blueberries over top of batter. Stir sugar and cinnamon together in small bowl and sprinkle over batter. Bake until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Cool in pan 20 minutes, then turn out and place on serving platter (topping side up). Serve warm or at room temperature. (Cake can be stored in airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days.)

Blueberry Pie

You can never have enough pie. It's true. There are so many kinds, so many different techniques; I have to try them all. So, in the past two weeks, I have baked two berry pies. I was required to make a black raspberry pie--our berry bushes were dripping with them and I couldn't let them go to waste. So I made muffins with them, too. But I'll save that post for another day.

Today I wanted to share the beautiful simplicity of a good blueberry pie. I hadn't made one before, but it seemed appropriate for the Fourth of July. And my mom was here to help out and she makes the best pie crust I've ever had. Seriously. If you put a pie in front of me and it doesn't have her crust on it, I won't eat it. That's how biased I am. Thankfully, she taught me everything she knows about the art of pie dough and now I can have a pie whenever I want. Which is often, since it's my favorite dessert. Well, that and cheesecake, but one dessert at a time.

The trick to making a good crust is not to overwork it. Just like a quick bread or a cake, overworked pie dough gets tough. It's important not to stir too much, if you're making it by hand. Just toss and fluff the flour as you add the water until the dough comes together on its own. The other important thing is to have a really good filling. As good as pie crust is, it needs to complement the ingredients inside. Which brings me to the blueberries. I was a little concerned that it wouldn't set up and berry juice would leak all over the oven. The recipe I used included flour as a thickener, surely not enough to soak up all the juices. As it turns out, it was perfect. A hint of cinnamon, a sprinkle of lemon juice and lots of blueberries. The texture of the filling was absolutely lush. The berries were soft, without being mushy and the flavor was rich and just sweet enough. It was the best berry pie I'd ever made and I'll definitely be making one again. Just with a different recipe. I won't know until I try them ALL if this is as good as it gets. But it's a good place to start.

Blueberry Pie
 from Betty Crocker's Cookbook
Serves 8

Pastry for Two Crust 9'' Pie
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. flour
1/2 t. cinnamon, if desired
6 c. blueberries
1 T. lemon juice
1 T. butter

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Make pastry (see previous post for ingredients and steps). Mix sugar, flour and cinnamon in large bowl. Stir in berries. Turn into pastry-lined pie plate Sprinkle any remaining sugar mixture over berry mixture. Sprinkle with lemon juice. Cut butter into small pieces; sprinkle over blueberries. Cover with top pastry, flute and cut vents in top. Cover edges with strips of aluminum foil to prevent excess browning; remove during last 15 minutes of baking. Bake 35-45 minutes or until crust is golden brown and juice begins to bubble through slits. Cool on wire rack at least 2 hours.

First Berry Pie of the Summer

It's summer in northeastern Ohio. It feels like it. The sun is shimmering, the humidity is rising and the air is heavy with a breeze that could have come out of an oven. Some would say this is the time to get out of the house. Go out to eat. But for me, summer is just another reason to stay in.... in the kitchen, that is. I'm all for being outside. Bring on the picnics and the grilled everything, but I'll be bringing homemade pie with me. Any objections? I didn't think so.

Summer means fresh fruit pies for me, (along with grilled burgers, crunchy salads and ice cream) so I would like to share a recipe I tried for Razzle Dazzle Berry Pie from Bon Appetit. It calls for raspberries and blackberries, but I just used the black raspberries from the bushes in our back yard. The filling is simply berries, sugar, orange juice concentrate and some cornstarch to thicken. The end result was delicious-- like homemade jam delicious. It tastes like summertime and it looks like home to me. I use a pastry recipe with shortening; that's what my mom uses and how she taught me to make pie. I'd like to use butter in pastry because I love the taste, but this pie crust is so delicious and so reliable, I haven't experimented with any others....yet. I have plenty of recipes to try out and I want to share them all. Just thinking about all the possibilities excites me and I hope this blog will inspire you to create, to play with flavors and to discover all the many ways they can sing.

Pie Crust (9" double crust)

2 2/3 c. flour

1 t. salt

1 c. shortening

7-8 T. cold water

Combine flour and salt in medium mixing bowl. Cut in shortening until it is the size of peas. One tablespoon at a time, sprinkle in water, stirring lightly with a wooden spoon after each, until dough comes together. Pat into a ball and divide in half. Proceed with filling.

Razzle Dazzle Berry Pie from Bon Appetit, July 2006

Filling:

1/2 c. plus 1 T. sugar

1/4 c. cornstarch

1/4 c. water

1/4 c. frozen orange juice concentrate

3 c. fresh/ frozen and thawed raspberries (12 oz.)

2 c. fresh/ frozen and thawed blackberries (8 oz.)

1 T. milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix 1/2 c. sugar and cornstarch in medium skillet. Add water and stir over medium-high heat until mixture thickens and begins to boil. Remove from heat and stir in orange juice concentrate. Add berries and stir to coat. Roll out one portion of pie dough to about 10-11" round. Roll dough around rolling pin and transfer to 9" pie plate. Pour berry filling in. Roll out rest of dough and cover filling in same manner. Trim edge of pastry, if needed and crimp decoratively. Cut in some vents for steam to escape and line crust with three strips of foil to prevent over-browning. Brush top of pie with milk, if desired. Place pie on lined baking sheet to catch any drips, then bake until juices are bubbling and crust is golden brown, about 1 hour and 45 minutes. (Maybe this baking time is for frozen berries? I don't think mine took this long. I made this before I knew I would be sharing it with the world, or I would have paid more attention to details like this. The pie should be done when the juices bubble and the crust is browned to your liking.) Remove foil strips for last 15 minutes of baking to brown edges. Cool pie on a rack at least 1 hour before serving with vanilla ice cream.

*Some of the directions for baking and assembling are my own additions. The original recipe calls for a butter crust, freezing it briefly and then cutting it into a lattice pattern. I prefer more crust on my pie, and it's much simpler to do.