Category Archives: Berry Pie

Strawberry Pies Forever

10 Friday May 2013

Posted by in Berry Pie, Mixed Fruit Pie

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , ,

It’s SPRRIIIIIIIINNNNNGGGG!

And here are some strawberries from our garden to prove it!
IMG_0494

IMG_0495While I was making this Strawberry-Raspberry Mint Pie I just couldn’t stop taking pictures of the colorful filling. I love all the different textures; the powdery spices, the bumpy raspberries, the dotted strawberries, the wrinkled leaves. There’s just enough mint in this pie to give it a super-interesting depth of flavor. You don’t really taste mint as a separate flavor; you just notice a coolness in your mouth after each bite.

IMG_0496

IMG_0497Here are a few quick facts about strawberries that you may or may not already know.

1. California grows 80% of the strawberries in the United States, and our strawberry season starts early, at about the end of March.

2. Strawberries rot when they touch the ground. That’s why they’re called strawberries, because bedding the area around the plants with straw keeps them from spoiling.

3. Strawberry pies bubble over like crazy. (I talked about this last summer.) It’s not quite as dramatic when the strawberries are mixed with other fruit, which is why you’ll rarely find an all-strawberry pie.

IMG_0501I baked this pie the morning of Easter Eve (?? You know what I mean.) I am going to take this opportunity to squeeze in a small brag and show you that I also made Chango Bars for my second grade class and bread at the same time. Boom.

IMG_0500

And then we went to the airport to pick up my Aunt Sarah, Uncle Joe, and cousin Matt from Minnesota! It was Matt’s spring break, and he very wisely had decided California was the destination of the year.

We fed him lots of In-n-Out burgers to ensure that he’ll come back soon.

IMG_0514Here’s the pie, all dressed up for Easter Sunday. The pastry here (Tender Cream Cheese Pastry) is my favorite from Ken Haedrich’s cookbook*, and it just gets even better with a little powdered sugar on top.

IMG_0507

A good pie makes for a happy aunt.

IMG_0509

*P.S. I know many of you have gotten so tired of looking at my pictures of pie that you have already purchased the Pie cookbook. Good on you. If any of the rest of you are on the verge, let me remind you that it’ll only set you back $21.95 if you purchase it through Ken’s website, The Pie Academy. And it’ll set you way ahead in quality of life.

The Republic Strikes Back

14 Thursday Mar 2013

Posted by in Berry Pie, Pie Destinations, Summer Fruit Pie

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

It’s still good. I went back to confirm, and it has been confirmed. Check it out if you ever get a chance (The Republic of Pie in North Hollywood.)

A few items for your perusal.

Item 1: Pecan bar. Not pie, but very good nonetheless.

photo(9)Item 2: Very pleased mother-in-law with quiche and strawberry-rhubarb pie. Made the mistake of saying out loud, “This is the best strawberry-rhubarb pie I’ve ever had,” forgetting that she has had mine.

photo(10)Item 3: A Charming Chair.

photo(11)Item 4: Chai latte with almond milk and a tiny strawberry rose with an even tinier dabble of whipped cream (a complimentary plate of which were brought over to our table whilst we dined.) photo(13)Thanks again, Republic, for another lovely evening! Also, apparently you hosted a pie-eating contest tonight in honor of Pi day….fantastic. I just baked a pie. And ate at least six kinds, and taught my 2nd and 3rd grade students about pies and fractions. And screamed and cheered at 1:59 pm. (….3.14159. I know there is someone reading who doesn’t get it.) Pi day post to come.

Pie Sold Here

21 Wednesday Nov 2012

Posted by in Berry Pie, Chocolate Pie, Freeform Pie, Mixed Fruit Pie, Nut Pie

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , ,

And for a good cause!

If you back up a few posts, you’ll find the flyer I posted prior to the auction. It went off pretty much without a hitch, I’d say, and we raised about $500 for the Glendale Relay for Life. Thanks so much to everyone who baked, bought, or just came and participated in some good, ol’ fashioned fun.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

P.S. If you’re interested in seeing close-ups of the 5 pies I baked, move on over to the Pie Gallery page and check out pies 91-95. Which one would you have placed a bid on?

The Pies of Summer

20 Tuesday Nov 2012

Posted by in Berry Pie

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

…there are just so many of them, it’s hard to keep up sometimes. I bake so much faster than I blog.

I found this old friend hiding on my phone, and though it’s long after the pies of summer have gone, I couldn’t just skip over him without a mention!

This Peach-Blueberry Cobbler Pie (think pie on bottom, cobbler on top) was baked on one of those numerous summer evenings which included the following: late daylight, friends from far away and around the corner, grilling, mismatched plates, cutlery, and chairs, sitting under the hanging lights on our patio. And maybe some port.

I like this picture because everything looks a little messy (even the pie. I usually give myself the first piece cause it’s the most falling-aparty one.) I’ve realized recently that I can’t do as much living as I want to do and still have everything look perfect all the time. Evenings such as this one leave crumbs on the table, as you can see. But those crumbs are just evidence of how full to overflowing my life really is.

Stay tuned for pictures from our Old Fashioned Pie Auction later this week.

Friendly Competition

02 Tuesday Oct 2012

Posted by in Berry Pie, Summer Fruit Pie

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, ,

We had a dessert-off at our church.

A dessert-off is what it sounds like…a free-for-all contest in which any dessert may be entered. No parameters.

What kind of pie would you make in this situation, given 212 recipes to choose from? I was at a loss. Should I make a chocolate pie? Everyone likes chocolate…but then again, I was sure many of the desserts would be chocolatey.

Nectarines were in season (this was at the very beginning of September. California seasons.) I also like nectarines a lot. I decided that I wasn’t going to find one pie that would please everyone, so I might as well pick one that pleased me.

Added some blueberries, to please the hubby.

Now normally I don’t give away my secret ingredients so easy. But as this recipe is neither mine nor a secret, being as it’s published in Ken Haedrich’s Pie, I’ll just go ahead and tell you that the key to success here is almond extract. Don’t skip it.

Deep Dish Nectarine Pie with Almond Crumb Topping arrives at the dessert-off and nervously checks out the competition.

There are an array of other tasty and beautiful desserts around, from cupcakes to tarts to cheesecake and beyond.

But lo! What treachery is this? A decadent-looking Caramel Apple Pecan Pie made by an aspiring young pastry chef? What does this mean for poor Deep-Dish Nectarine?

It means that the competition will be stiff. Well done, young pie Jedi. I have my eye on you.

Although neither pie took home the prize, I should mention that they were both in the top four. Also, that they were delicious in my belly.

A Few More Slices

03 Tuesday Jul 2012

Posted by in Berry Pie

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

,

 

Minnesota, in addition to being the land of lakes, is also the land of pie. No one here is shy about their love of pie. It is not frowned upon to eat pie (and ice cream) after dinner every night. It is my kind of place.

In the town of Marine on St. Croix, there is an ice cream shop, a bar, a pizza place, a lovely little coffee shop which is currently providing me with Wi-Fi…but no pie store. HMMMMMM. I sense a summer business opportunity.

I made a second pie last week, in addition to the All-Rhubarb…a pie that does not “count” in an official sense on this blog. It was an All-Strawberry Pie, and two years ago I was baking a few of them with no measuring spoons and a beer bottle for a rolling pin at my friends Sara, Maggie, and Emily’s cottage. We were celebrating Emily’s upcoming wedding and my 22nd birthday and Levi’s 23rd birthday and our first wedding anniversary and learning how to dance on the rooftop of the boathouse.

This time, we picked the strawberries (small, almost wild-looking) from a nearby organic farm. Strawberry season is almost over in Minnesota now, and my cousin Matt and my Aunt Sarah and I spent about half an hour searching for the last berries. It was worth it.

The recipe calls for a top crust. This time I used a crumb topping. I learned for the second time that strawberry pies BOIL OVER LIKE CRAZY. Be prepared–use a cookie sheet underneath. In most fruit pies I put at least 5 cups of fruit, but this one only calls for 4. And it’s still a total mess. Yet, delicious.

I have to include a picture of one of my Grandmother’s pies, so I present to you a Marie Sweeny Raspberry Pie. I learned on this trip that there is one very small difference between Grandmother’s crust and Ken’s Basic Flaky crust. But I’m not sure if I’m ready to divulge secrets like that for the world to read. All you need to know is that Marie Sweeny makes a top-notch pie.

 

One of Those Times

21 Thursday Jun 2012

Posted by in Berry Pie, Mixed Fruit Pie

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

I just love fruit pies. Have I mentioned that before? Love, love, love ’em. Especially mixed fruit pies, like this Pear-Raspberry Lattice-Top Pie.

If you’ve never made a lattice-top pie before, don’t worry. It’s super duper easy. Here’s one good trick from Ken to get you started right…shape the pastry which will become the top crust into a square (as opposed to a disk) before rolling!

I like to roll my pie crust between two pieces of wax paper–it just makes the process so much easier. For extra ease, I also refrigerate the pastry before rolling it out. This isn’t as necessary for oil-based crusts, but it’s an important step if you use a solid fat like butter and/or shortening.

Another lattice trick: use a pizza cutter to cut strips of crust! (I made eight strips and followed the clever diagram given in Pie, which makes the actual assembly of the lattice a cinch.)

The color of this pie is gorgeous. It doesn’t smell too shabby coming out of the oven, either.

I was happy to be able to share this pie with several good friends of ours. As we were eating our first slices, Levi asked if this might not be “One of those times” where it would be appropriate to just cut the rest of the pie up and finish it right then and there. Indeed, it did turn out to be the thing to do.

Along with mixed fruit pies, I love eating outside in the summer, twinkle lights, glasses of wine, and good company.

Memorial Day Memories

09 Saturday Jun 2012

Posted by in Berry Pie

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

 

**Blackberry Sour Cream Pie, made with blackberries and raspberries.

 

The hardest step of the recipe (as usual) was allowing time for the pie to cool before eating. 

Credit to Jen and Chris Wubbels for creating the epic menu, having all of us over at their home, and cooking most of the food. Maggie, your Strawberry Rosewater Cobbler was wonderful. Look for a rosewater pie…very soon.

American Pie

01 Friday Jun 2012

Posted by in Berry Pie, Freeform Pie

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

, , , , ,

Summer is upon us. In California, the only real difference is that you can go to the beach and sit on the sand and not actually freeze to death (though you’ll still do that if you attempt to venture into the water). The sun is a little sunnier, people are a little happier, and the end of the school year is in sight, meaning that there will be more time to bake lots and lots of pies.

If pie is the ultimate American dessert, than a berry pie is the ultimate American summer dessert. One weekend in May, Levi and I decided to preemptively celebrate the coming summer by having an Americana-steeped weekend. We spent time at the Simi Valley street fair, purchased and consumed some summery brews, grilled hamburgers on our barbeque. To go along with the theme, Levi decided that it would be a good idea to listen to country music on Pandora. (I’m still trying to figure out what possessed him.) And of course, I made a berry pie.

Patsy’s Mixed Berry Freeform Pie is unique for several reasons.

  1. The crust contains several unusual ingredients such as cottage cheese, a good amount of sugar, and baking powder. The texture of the finished pastry is fluffier and stickier than your average crust, and the baked end result is rather cakey and delicious.
  2. It has a gooey cream cheesy layer underneath the berries. What a nice surprise!
  3. It’s freeform (as you might have already ascertained by its name). If you don’t know what a freeform pie is, you’re in luck—I just so happen to have some pictures to show you!
To make a freeform pie, you don’t need a pie pan. Just a foil-lined baking sheet will do. This pastry dough is sticky to the point of annoying, so the foil is a necessary step. The rolled out crust goes on the baking sheet, and then a sweet cream cheese mixture is spread over the center in a circle. Like so.

A very hopeful Bear.

Then the berries get dumped in the middle. I used blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries…the more the berrier! Har har har.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now for the fun part…rolling up the edges. You just fold in one section at a time and the dough forms pleats. I used a spatula for a little extra help.

Bake until the crust is golden brown, top with vanilla ice cream OF COURSE, and share with friends.

Andrew and Marjorie are cute pie models.

Happy almost-summer, all.