Paradise, Hawaiian Style Pie

I have been looking for a variation of my Blue Hawaii Pie that I could compete with at the Illinois State Fair (which does not have refrigeration).  After seeing better pictures of the pie that first inspired my Blue Hawaii, I figured I would try something more like that one.  And as it was my second try at Hawaiian-flavored success, I decided to go with the name of Elvis' next Hawaiian movie.

Ingredients:
3 cups of blueberries
1 cup of crushed pineapple
1/2 cup of sugar
3 tablespoons of Instant Clearjel
1 cup of shredded coconut
3/4 cup of flour
1/2 cup of sugar
5 tablespoons of butter.

Directions:
In a medium saucepan, stir half the blueberries and the crushed pineapple together until most of the blueberries have burst and it starts to thicken.  Remove from heat
Stir together sugar and Instant Clearjel and add to blueberry and pineapple mixture.  Then toss in the remaining blueberries.
Combine coconut, flour, and sugar, then work in the butter with your fingers.
Spoon the blueberry filling into the crust, then spread the coconut streusel over the top. 
Bake for 30 minutes at 400oF, then rotate, reduce the heat to 350oF, and bake for another 25 minutes.  You may need to cover with foil toward the end to keep the topping from browning too much.

Piece out!
Justin

Wassail Pie

Another modification of the Grapefruit Custard Pie by Four & Twenty Blackbirds.  It was inspired by trying to make a pie with what I had in the house for a staff bake sale at school. 

I replaced the grapefruit juice with wassail (from Trader Joe's) and the Campari with a French brandy.  Like the time I made the Apple Cider Custard version, this one was a little watery.  I have found that without using just citrus juice (grapefruit or lemon and lime) it gets watery.  I definitely want to try this pie again and will probably add another tablespoon or two of flour to see if that fixes the problem.  I also added a few drops of red food coloring to keep it from looking like baby poop. 

The taste is fantastic and definitely worth trying to figure out the consistency problem for the future.

Piece out!
Justin

Variations on Apple Pie

My basic apple pie filling comes from the Four & Twenty Blackbirds cookbook.  I've used this filling in a lot of pies.  Here is a pie that uses it and one that does not.

 

The first pie I tried to do a cinnamon roll crust with my usual pie crust.  In the end, it tasted fine, but didn't have the texture I was hoping for.  If I were to try this again, I would buy some puff pastry and use that for the "cinnamon roll"ing on top.  I may try to work on this one some more though and see if I can find a way to make it from scratch to use in contests.

The second pie was one that Grant and I made at a cooking class that we went to at the Chopping Block during à la carte Chicago.  I made this one for my dad's birthday.  It was really good.  I used a lot more apples than we used in the class (they gave us three apples that were barely larger than crab apples) and it turned out a lot nicer.  Below are the ingredients and directions from the class, but I recommend using 2 or 3 decent sized apples.

 

Ingredients:

1 pound Granny Smith or golden delicious apples, peeled and sliced 1/8 inch thick 

1/3 cup granulated sugar 

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 

Pinch salt 

1 egg 

1/3 cup granulated sugar 

1/4 cup all-purpose flour 

1/2 cup heavy cream 

3 tablespoons calvados or brandy 

Powdered sugar, for garnish 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375°.
Roll the disk of dough out onto a floured surface into a 10- to 12-inch circle. There will be some overhang. Place in a tart pan with a removable bottom, cut away the excess dough and crimp the edges. Chill for 15 minutes in the refrigerator.
Cover the dough with parchment paper. Place either pie weights or dried beans on top of the parchment paper and bake the crust until light golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool.
For the filling, toss the sliced apples with the sugar, cinnamon and salt. Artfully arrange the apple slices in the partially baked tart shell so they overlap in concentric circles.
Bake on a parchment-lined sheet tray for about 20 minutes, or until the apples are almost tender. Remove the tart from the oven and allow to cool a bit.
While the tart is cooling, prepare the custard. Whisk the egg and sugar together in a mediumsize bowl until thick, ribbony and pale yellow. Whisk in the flour, heavy cream and liquor. Pour the custard over the apples.
Return the tart to the oven and continue to bake until the custard is puffy and golden brown, about 25 minutes. When a knife is inserted into the center of the tart, it should come out clean. 8. Allow the tart to cool for about 10 minutes, cut into slices and serve garnished with a dusting of powdered sugar. Serve warm.

Piece out!
Justin

Thanksgiving 2017

This was the first year since 2014 that I was home for Thanksgiving.  So, of course, I was in charge of pie.  Made two pumpkin pies and a chestnut pie.  I had wanted to try the chestnut pie after seeing it in a Food Network magazine a few years back, but I had no idea it would be the runaway hit that it was.

The two pumpkin pies were Pumpkin Spice Latte Chiffon Pie and Maple Bourbon Pumpkin Pie Brûlée (this time with the bourbon).  I have definitely gotten better at making these two pies look pretty and they were as delicious as always. 

The Chestnut Meringue Pie was amazing. The chestnut custard was thick and smooth, and having three distinct textures in the pie was nice.  I highly recommend this pie, but you will need to plan ahead.  It isn't the easiest thing to find roasted chestnuts at the grocery store, so you may need to order then online.  I used these that I was lucky enough to find at Target in their grocery section.

Piece out!
Justin

Tarte aixoise

When I first started making pies, I made this pie as I was trying to make pies from different parts of France.  While it is called a tarte aixoise, it isn't actually from Aix-en-Provence.  So the name is kind of a mystery.  It is a fantastic tart and I love it.  As I was trying to think of why it took me almost five years to make it again, I remembered that my husband makes apricots and when they are in season, I am either busy making pies for fair competitions or so sick of making pies after the fairs.

Ingredients:
Single pie crust
1 cup of milk
1 vanilla bean or vanilla extract
3 egg yolks
3 tablespoons of sugar
3 tablespoons of flour
100g of almond flour
60g of butter
6 to 10 apricots, depending on size
Twice as many whole almonds as apricots
Two tablespoons of apricot preserves
Warm water

Directions:
Blind bake your crust at 410oF.  Bring milk and vanilla to a boil.  (Remove the bean, if you used a whole vanilla bean.) Whisk together yolks, sugar, and flour.  Whisk in 1/3 of milk.  Pour egg mixture into remaining milk and continue to cook until it thickens and  becomes shiny.  Add almond flour and butter to the custard and stir until a consistent texture.  Pour into blind baked crust and level with a spatula.  Cut your apricots in half and "harmoniously place" the halves with the hollow facing up.  Then place an almond into each hollow.  Mix the apricot preserves and the warm water to make a glaze.  Brush the glaze over the entire tart.  Bake for 25 minutes at 410oF.  Remove from tart pan while still warm and allow to cool completely and/or chill before serving.

I love this tart.  This time the apricots weren't the best and they tasted a little bitter, so make sure you get "good" apricots. This pie has five different textures that all work together: flaky crust, dense and chewy custard, juicy apricots, lustrous glaze, and crunchy almonds.  It will definitely not be another five years before I make it again...  I hope.

Piece out!
Justin

Lake County Fair Results 2017

This year I entered 5 pies and one cookie.  My Chocolate Chip cookies that took First Place last year (I figured I should at least try to defend their title) came in Third Place.  I had also entered the Oatmeal Cookie Division, but they spread out larger than 3" and would have been disqualified.  The only other Oatmeal cookies there looked like my dogs' vomit and the only Snickerdoodles there were so bad they weren't even given a ribbon, but I hadn't even thought of entering that category after the Great Snickerdoodle Conspiracy of 2016.  Anyway, you're here about pie.

For the Blueberry Class, I entered my Blueberry Lemon Mascarpone Pie.  I was so certain that this pie would take Grand Champion for the Pie Division, after the success of last year's Blue Hawaii Pie. It took Third Place.  The comment from the judges was that it would have placed higher in the Cheesecake Class.  So, apparently, this blueberry pie is better than cheesecake.  I guess I'll take that as a compliment.

For the Other Pie Class, I entered the Lime Chili Meringue Pie.  This pie took Second Place.  The comments from the judges were "Beautiful Meringue" and "nice strong lime flavor."

For the Apple Class, I entered a Cheddar Crusted Apple Pie.  This pie also took Second Place.  The judges comments were "nice decoration" and "crust on the tough side."  I did use my own recipe for the filling; but if you would like the recipe for the crust, I used this one: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/nancy-fuller/apple-pie-with-cheddar-cheese-crust-2406188 

For the Cherry Class, I entered a Golden Cherry Pie, using my Sweet Cherry Pie recipe with Rainier cherries.  This pie won First Place.  The judges liked my crust and the lattice, and they appreciate my use of Rainier cherries as something different.

For the Custard Class, I entered my Butterscotch Custard Pie.  This pie won First Place and also Grand Champion for the Pie Division.  This was a complete shock.  Out of all of my pies, this one is the one I would have given Third Place.  But I guess it really does come down to the opinion of the judges.  And like my dad, who first requested a butterscotch pie for Father's Day, they like butterscotch pie.  They called it "Gorgeous!" They said the topping was "very tasty" (it was literally whipping cream, sugar, and a stabilizer to help it look pretty for a few days).  They said the custard was very unique (it is literally directly out of a Better Homes & Gardens cookbook from 1983).  But I guess when the cookbook says "All-Time Favorite Pies," it meant it.

I didn't enter the state fair this year, due a conflict with some travel, so I guess it is time to start thinking about next year.

Piece out!
Justin

Maple Pumpkin Pie Brûlée

As I was making pies for the Lake County Fair, I made this pie thinking I had entered the Pumpkin Class competition.  I had not.  I was not feeling inspired by Pumpkin this year, so I didn't even come up with this recipe on my own.  I just made a few changes to one I found online.

The recipes I found is here: http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/bruleed-bourbon-maple-pumpkin-pie

I made my usual crust instead of doing the chocolate.  As I had never made it before I didn't want to risk two things going horribly wrong.  I also left out the bourbon, as I had received a comment last year that I should indicate when I use alcohol (which I hadn't in that pie), which leads me to believe that the judges are not big fans of alcohol.

I baked the pie on Saturday and brûléed it on Sunday.  I had a slight issue with moisture and the sugar not spreading evenly.  After I noticed the issue that caused during the torching, I blew as hard as I could to even it out, leading to a light dusting of sugar over my counter tops.  I suggest making this pie the morning of and not refrigerating it in order to be able to do a nice, even brûlée topping.

The pie was good.  It was nice and creamy, yet firm enough to stand.  The brûlée topping added a nice texture element that one usually misses with a traditional pumpkin pie.  Sadly, the maple was hardly noticeable.  I could barely taste it and I knew it was there.  Someone who didn't know would not have guessed there was $8 of premium maple syrup in it. 

I will definitely make this pie this Thanksgiving and enter it in both the Lake County and Illinois State fairs next year.

Piece out!
Justin

Lime Chili Meringue Pie

In the search for other interesting pie flavors, I came up with this one.  I'm not a huge fan of key lime pie, but this spicy twist is really good.

Ingredients:
10 graham crackers
1/2 cup of sugar
6 tablespoons of melted butter
zest of 4 limes
1/2 cup of lime juice
4 eggs
1 14oz can of condensed milk
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar
3/8 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1 cup of sugar
3 tablespoons of water

Directions:
Pulse together graham crackers and sugar in a food processor.  Drizzle in melted butter.  Press into a pie plate.  Refrigerate.  Preheat oven to 300oF.  Bake crust for 10 minutes.  Whisk zest, juice, egg yolks (put the whites off to the side for now), condensed milk, and vanilla until fully combined.  Pour into crust.  Bake for 30 minutes.  Increase oven temperature to 400oF.  Whip the egg whites, cream of tartar, and cayenne pepper until frothy (but not yet at soft peak stage).  Bring the sugar and water to a boil without stirring.  Then let it come up to 240oF.  Gently pour the sugar down the side of the bowl while beating the egg whites at high speed.  Continue to whip until the meringue is room temperature and reaches stiff peak stage.  Spoon or pipe the meringue onto the lime filling.  Bake for 5-7 minutes to brown the meringue.  You could also use a butane torch for this step.  Cool to room temperature, then chill at least two hours before serving.

The combination of the buttery graham cracker crust, the thick tart custard, and the sweet and spicy meringue makes for a very well balanced pie.  It's not to sweet, or too tart.  However, the meringue is very spicy by itself, so don't go taking a big bite of just the meringue.  You will regret it as your soul slowly burns away.

Also, four limes won't give you a 1/2 cup of juice, so I supplemented what they gave me with bottled lime juice.  Otherwise, you may need up to 10 limes.

Piece out!
Justin

Blueberry Lemon Mascarpone Pie

I wanted to start working on pie recipes for the Lake County Fair, so I started with this one.  I think it is just as good as last year's Blue Hawaii that took home best pie.  This pie was also inspired by a tiramisù flavor at ZUM in Rome.

Ingredients:
18 lady fingers
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1/3 cup of melted butter
3 egg yolks
1/4 cup of sugar
8 oz of mascarpone
zest of one lemon
juice of one lemon, divided
3/4 cup of water
2 tablespoons of King Arthur Flour's Pie Enhancer or cornstarch
1/3 cup of sugar
4 cups of fresh blueberries

Directions:
Pulse together ladyfingers and brown sugar in a food processor.  Drizzle in melted butter.  Press into a pie plate.  Refrigerate.  Preheat oven to 300oF.  Bake crust for 10 minutes.  Vigorously whisk yolks and sugar in a double boiler until it has tripled in size (5 to 8 minutes).  Remove the bowl from heat and stir in the mascarpone, lemon zest and the juice of half the lemon.  Dissolve the thickener in the water.  Add 1 cup of blueberries, sugar, and the juice of the other half of the lemon and bring to a boil.  Boil for 1 minute.  Remove from heat and use an immersion blender to breakdown the remaining blueberries.  Pour through a sieve onto the other three cups of blueberries.  Toss to cover the blueberries in the glaze.  Pour half the blueberries into the crust.  Cover with the mascarpone mixture.  Cover with remaining blueberries.  Chill.

This pie is amazing.  I loved it and I know you will too.  It is very balanced, neither too sweet nor too tart.  It was a home run on the first try.  I'm excited to see how this pie will do at the county fair.

Piece out!
Justin

Butterscotch Custard Pie

I asked my dad what kind of pie he wanted me to make for Father's Day and his response was "Butterscotch."  After looking at about 8 recipes, I settled on this one found in a pie recipe book recently found in my parent's basement.

Ingredients:
Single pie crust
4 eggs
18 oz of evaporated milk
1 cup of brown sugar
1 cup of heavy cream
1/4 cup of sugar

Directions:
Beat eggs.  Add evaporated milk and brown sugar and stir until brown sugar dissolves.  Pour filling into a partially baked pie crust.  Bake for 1 hour at 350oF, or until the filling no longer jiggles when you move it.  You may want to cover the edges with foil to prevent over browning for the first 25 minutes. Cool on a rack.  Whip the heavy cream and sugar together and dollop or pipe onto the pie.  Chill.

I was very hesitant about this pie.  I was expecting a butterscotch puddingy flavor.  I was wrong.  This was delicious.  I would gladly make this again.

Piece out!
Justin

Pieramisù

On my trip to Italy, I went to a little place called ZUM everyday in Rome.  ZUM is a tiramisù café.  ZUM is amazing.  They have a tiramisù called Gusto ZUM, that has a layer of chocolate hazelnut spread in it.  I decided that would make a great pie.

Ingredients:
18 ladyfingers
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1/3 cup of melted butter
2 tablespoons of espresso powder
3 egg yolks
3 tablespoons of sugar
8 oz of mascarpone
3/4 cup of heavy cream
1/2 cup of chocolate hazelnut spread
cocoa powder

Directions:
Pulse together ladyfingers, brown sugar, and espresso powder in a food processor.  Drizzle in melted butter.  Press into a pie plate.  Refrigerate.  Preheat oven to 300oF.  Bake crust for 10 minutes.  Vigorously whisk yolks and sugar in a double boiler until it has tripled in size (5 to 8 minutes).  Remove the bowl from heat and stir in the mascarpone.  Whip the cream until it holds firm peaks.  Fold whipped cream into the mascarpone mixture.  Spread half the filling in the bottom of the crust and chill the other half.  Melt the chocolate hazelnut spread and pour over the filling in the crust.  Pipe the remaining chilled filling over the chocolate hazelnut layer.  Dust with cocoa powder.  Refrigerate overnight before serving.

This tasted amazing.  However, the chocolate hazelnut spread turned hard in the refrigerator.  Next time, I would dilute it with the other 1/4 cup of heavy cream (since you know I bought an 8 oz container).  I think that would solve that problem.  Also I did not chill my second half of the filling, so my piping looks like crap.  Chilling it would definitely help.  Also, this slice was cut after only 3 hours in the fridge.  The slices cut the next day looked much better and tasted much better.

Piece out!
Justin

Italian Wheat Easter Pie

My dear friend Patrick told me about this pie.  So I decided to try it out.  I was not disappointed.  My mom has even already requested this pie again for Easter next year.

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups of water
1/4 cup of Farro
3 eggs
1/2 cup of sugar
4 ounces of diced candied fruit
12 oz of ricotta
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla
1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of lemon zest
1/2 tablespoon of shortening
1/2 teaspoon of salt
double pie crust
powdered sugar

Directions: 
Bring water to a boil in a large saucepan. Pour in wheat and allow to boil 40 minutes. As wheat is cooking, beat eggs in a large bowl while gradually adding 1 cup sugar to eggs. Mix in fruit, ricotta, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and lemon rind.  When wheat is ready, drain in a colander and rinse with warm water. Place the cooked wheat in a small bowl, and mix in shortening and salt. Stir until shortening is melted, then stir wheat mixture into ricotta mixture.  Preheat oven to 375oF.  Line a 9 inch pie pan with pastry. Cut remaining pastry into strips for tops of pies. Spoon filling into pan. Cover with pastry strips to form lattice tops. Crimp edges.  Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes, until crust is golden brown. Sprinkle pie with 1 tablespoon of powdered sugar and allow to cool at room temperature. Chill overnight before serving

I wanted to brush my crust with an egg wash.  If you are going to do this, I suggest you do the egg wash before you cut the strips.  Once you lay them down on the pie, it is almost impossible to brush it on without the strips sinking into the filling.  

It's definitely a different kind of pie than I usually make.  It is dense and almost cake like.   But that being said, it is really good and I highly suggest it.

Piece out!
Justin

Dolci Misti Pie

On a recent to trip to Italy, I ate a lot of great desserts.  Here is one of two pies inspired on that trip.  It is combination of everything that I loved that is not tiramisù.

Ingredients:
150g amaretti
1/3 cup of sugar
6 tablespoons of melted butter
1 can of dark sweet cherries (Amarena, if you can find them and you're a millionaire)
500g of ricotta
175g of sugar
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon of lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/4 cup of pine nuts

Directions:
Process the amaretti and 1/3 cup of sugar in a food processor until it looks like coarse sand.  Drizzle in the melted butter.  Press into a pie plate.  Stick crust in refrigerator.  Preheat oven to 325oF.  Whisk ricotta, sugar, yolks, lemon zest and cinnamon together.  Remove crust from refrigerator and place drained cherries in a single layer on the bottom.  Pour the ricotta mixture over the top.  Sprinkle with pine nuts.  Bake for 1 hour.  Allow to cool.  Refrigerate.

This pie had all the flavors I was looking for.  It was amazing.  I wasn't thrilled with the crust, but I modified the recipe above to make it better. This pie just tastes like Italy.

Piece out!
Justin