Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Conquering Pie Crust Phobia




Do you like to make pie crust? No? I once felt the same way. No matter how I tried, my crust would look terrible! So I bought refrigerator crust instead.

Today I have an article in the Topeka Capital-Journal on how I overcame my pie crust phobia. It's full of great tips from Susan Miller, the director of the King Arthur Flour Company’s Baking Education Center. She gave me a lot of wonderful information on how to make delicious and flaky pie crusts.

Perhaps the best advice was to relax! Give yourself time to work (Thanksgiving morning isn't a good time to start!) and don’t worry if the pie crust doesn't look perfect. It will still taste great!



The article features my blueberry pie, made from berries I bought last summer at the local farmer’s market and kept in the freezer. I also wanted to make a cherry pie, but I discovered I didn't have enough frozen cherries from last summer to fill a pie. So instead I put the filling into the middle of a pie crust and pulled up the edges to make a rustic pie. It tasted wonderful, though I'm sure it wouldn't win any beauty contests!

Just follow this link to see the recipes for the pie crust and the blueberry filling. I put the cherry pie filling recipe below. It is for my smaller rustic creation, but feel free to double the amount for a regular 9-inch pie.

Cherry Pie Filling
 
Makes 1 rustic pie

3 cups pitted cherries
1/4 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
Pinch of salt
2 1/2 tablespoons instant tapioca

1 9-inch pie crust
Egg wash (1 egg and 1 tablespoon water, beaten together)

Mix together all of the filling ingredients and allow to stand for 15 minutes.

Roll out your pie crust as if you would place it into a 9-inch pie pan. Place the dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet. (The dough will drape over the sides of the baking sheet.) Spoon the filling into the middle of the circle. (If the filling is runny, drain off the juice before putting it into the crust. Save the juice.)

Fold the edges of the pie crust up and over the pie filling, using egg wash to “glue” the crust folds together. Pour some or all of the saved juice into the filling. Use the egg wash to brush the outside of the crust.

Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes, and then lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue to bake until the crust is nicely browned and the filling begins to bubble, about 30 minutes. 

3 comments:

  1. We are so excited to see that you will be donating your post on April 8th to spread awareness about hunger. Wondering what you will write about? How about food drives for the 21st century...efficient, green, productive and fun! Everything is ONLINE now! See how this blogger, Mommy Poppins, invited her readers to join her in helping 10,000 hungry children in New York City with the click of a mouse! http://www.yougivegoods.com/Feed10000Kids

    PS: That cherry pie filling looks to die for!

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  2. That is a handsome looking pie. Thanks for the tips. Have a great day. Blessings...Mary

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  3. Beautiful pie! I'm glad you worked through that pie crust phobia!

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