This seems an appropriate place for these pies. I have taken an excerpt from one of my blog lessons to help those who are new to pie baking. I hope it is helpful.
Several lessons back, we talked about fat and flour, and the many things that could be made from it. another one of those wonderful things is the pie crust. It is a spectacular vessel of flour, salt, fat, and water made to hold everything from lemon curd to the richest fruit. It can be filled with mixtures of potato, meat, and veggies, and served with gravy. It can hold whipped cream and chocolate cookies. It’s a wonderful thing. So let’s get started.
First, get all of your ingredients, pans, and tools together.
Pie Crust Prep
There is 3 1/2 cups of flour in that bowl. In the measuring cup lay 5 cups of freshly picked and cleaned blueberries. That little bag in the back is tapioca starch, or flour. You will also notice a tub of lard, and a cellar of sat. Oh, and let’s not forget the lemon. All of these will be used in their time. Here;s an ingredient list for you.
Crust: 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/4 cups lard
Filling: 5 cups blueberries
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
5 tbs. tapioca starch
3 tsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
Other ingredients: 1 large egg 3 tbs. milk
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
Making the crust:
Pictures will follow the text for each step, plus pictures of an apple pie, and Dutch apple Pie using the same crust.
Measure the salt into the flour and whisk to evenly distribute the salt.
Add lard Cut the lard into the flour. cut the fat
When the fat is completely cut in, the mixture will look like pebbles in the bowl.
Pbbel stage Drizzle 1 cup of water all over, and stir gently, just until a ball forms.
after the water And now we make the crust. Sprinkle flour all over your working table, or counter top. Remove half of the dough and form into a thick patty. place the patty onto the table and slide around on the flour to coat the patty bottom. Sprinkle more flour on top of the patty.
rolling the dough Use a rolling pin, starting from the dough center, and push outward with slight downward pressure. Turn the pin and push from the center again. Keep this process going until the dough is formed into a thin crust that is about 4 inches larger than you pie plate.
When the crust is rolled out, place the pie pan upside down in the middle of the crust.sizing the crust to the pan Next, cut the crust so that it is about 2 inches larger that the pie plate rim, and the edges are smooth.
Right Sized Crust Now comes the tricky part, getting the pie crust into the pie plate. But it’s not so tricky if you know how. Simply remove the pie plate and set it to the side. Slide a thin spatula under the crust to make sure it isn’t stuck to the table. Finally lift one side and fold the crust in half. Lift the crust and place it into the pie plate so that the fold crosses the center of the plate. Unfold the crust and gently center it.
Crust in the pie plate Now, tuck the excess dough between the crust sides and the pie plate, leaving a half inch of dough sticking up. Flute the edges with the thumb and forefinger of both hands. Fluting the crust
It should look like this when you are done.
Fluted Crust
Follow the same procedure to make the top crust, again making the crust about 3 to 4 inches larger than the rim of the pie plate.
In a small bowl, beat the egg with the milk to make egg wash.
Ina large bowl, combine the sugar, tapioca flour, and spices. Add the lemon juice and 3 tbs. of water. Stir until well mixed. Add the blueberries and gently stir to coat. Pour the berries into the bottom crust.
full of berries Fold the top crust in half and place the folded side across the center.
pie crust pick up Unfold and again press the excess crust behind the original crust. Flute the edges again. When the crust is in place, brush with the egg wash. Dust with granulated sugar.
Egg-wash on crust
Your pie is now ready for the oven. Place a cookie sheet under the pie plate to catch any drips. Bake for ten minutes. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees F. and bake for 40 minutes more. Remove from the oven and let cool. Here’s what you will have made.
blueberry pie
Yeh, it dripped a little, but I don’t care. That’s my working surface,and it’s been bleached, and scrubbed, and will be again tonight. This pie is perfect, but needs to cool completely for the filling to set.
You can use canned fruit filling if you want too. I had enough leftover crust for another pie. So I opened two cans of peach pie filling and made this.
peach pie from left-over dough Peach pie ready for the oven Peach Pie
Sorry everyone, but I’ve gotta go. I hear a pie calling my name.
Until next time, when we make those éclairs and profiteroles, eat healthy, eat well.
There is no success outside the home that justifies failure within the home.
