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

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

Illinois State Fair Results 2016

I entered three pies into the Open Culinary Department at the Illinois State Fair this year, as well as one entry in the Pumpkin Pie Special Contest.

My Taffy Apple Pie took first place in the Apple Class.

My Peach Paprika Pie took first place in the Peach Class.

My Triple Berry Pie did not place in the Berry Class.  The top three, including the champion of the Pie Division, were traditional blueberry pies.  I wish I could have made my Blue Hawaii Pie, but with the lack of refrigeration, I don't think it would last the 24 hours from the time I drop it off until it would be judged.

My Pumpkin Spice Latte Chiffon Pie also did not place in the Pumpkin Pie Contest.  The judge thought the espresso overpowered the pumpkin.  Also, after an almost 4 hour car ride, I do not think the chiffon was as nicely set up as it is when it is fresh out of the refrigerator.  The winners of this contest also had more traditional/vintage pies.  However, I take some consolation in the fact that the first place and third place winners from 2015 also did not place.

Now on to new ideas for next year...

Piece out!

Justin

Lake County Fair Results 2016

This year I entered 4 pies and two cookies.  My Chocolate Chip cookies took First Place.  It is the recipe my family has used for years and they are really good.  My Snickerdoodles took Third Place.  Also, my family's recipe and now the victim of what is clearly a conspiracy...  Anyway, you're here about pie.

For the Blueberry Class, I entered my Blue Hawaii Pie.  This pie won First Place and also Grand Champion for the Pie Division.  What everyone, the judges and more importantly my mother, seems to like about this pie is the freshness of the blueberries.  I also got a positive comment on the crust.

For the Apple Class, I entered my Taffy Apple Pie.  This pie also won First Place.  Though the top crust was criticized for being too thick.

For the Other Pie Class, I entered the Chocolate Truffle Tart.  This also won First Place.

For the Pumpkin Class, I entered the Pumpkin Spice Latte Chiffon Pie.  This won Second Place.  But I am not surprised.  On the entry tag, there is no place to write the name of your pie.  So with comments like "Not a 'pumpkin pie' flavor" and "filling soft," I think there were expecting a traditional pumpkin pie.  This is definitely not that.  I also had to laugh because a comment here also complained about the crust, which is the same crust as the Blue Hawaii.

So, now, I guess it is time to focus on my pies for the state fair...

Piece out!
Justin

Pumpkin Spice Latte Chiffon Pie

While I was making the Pum-conut Pie last week, this pie came into my imagination.  My mother makes an exceptional Pumpkin Chiffon Pie.  The one year that she didn't make it for Thanksgiving, it didn't really feel like Thanksgiving, and being the ungrateful jerk that I am: I told her so.

Last year, when I made all the pies for Thanksgiving, I knew that I needed to get the recipe from her.  There were only three changes to her recipe to make it a Pumpkin Spice Latte Chiffon Pie, and that was to swap the 1/4 cup of water with 3 shots of espresso from Starbucks, I substituted my blend of spices for the tablespoon of pumpkin pie spice, and I also modified the whipped cream to have it be a little more enduring than plain whipped cream.

Ingredients:

1 envelope of unflavored gelatin

3 shots of Starbucks espresso

3 eggs, separated

3/4 cup of brown sugar

1 1/3 cups of pumpkin

1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon of ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon of allspice

1/4 teaspoon of ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon of mace

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/2 cup of milk

1/4 teaspoon of cream of tartar

6 tablespoons of granulated sugar

1 cup of heavy whipping cream

1 packet of Whip it

1 packet of vanilla sugar

Directions:
Soften gelatin in cold espresso.  Beat egg yolks; add brown sugar, pumpkin, spices, and salt.  Mix well.  Stir in milk.  Cook over medium heat, stirring, until it begins to boil.  Cook for 2 minutes, continuing the stir.  Remove from heat; add gelatin; mix.  Cool.  Add cream of tartar to egg whites; beat until fluffy.  Gradually add granulated sugar, beating until stiff, but not dry.  Without washing beaters, beat pumpkin mixture until smooth.  Gently fold in egg whites.  Pour into a blind-baked crust; chill.  Beat whipped cream with Whip it and vanilla sugar until you get stiff peaks.  Spread over filling and sprinkle with pumpkin pie spice, or a mixture of half the quantities of the spices used in the recipe.

This pie tastes better than a Pumpkin Spice Latte at Starbucks.  There is something about the latte that tastes a little soapy or cosmetic to me.  That is not found in this pie at all.  The espresso is noticeable, but not over powering, and provides a nice contrast to the other flavors in the pie.  This pie, however, is very rich and should be cut into eight slices instead of six.

WARNING:  If you eat this pie in public, you may be mobbed by twenty-somethings wearing Ugg boots, chunky sweaters, and tights as pants.

Piece out!
Justin

Pum-conut Pie

Last weekend, I was driving through Richmond, IL, on my way home from picking apples at an apple orchard.  I noticed that one of my favorite antique stores is closing and was having a huge sale.  I bought two vintage Pies by Fasano pie tins and four cookbooks.  One of them was a community made recipe book from Delavan, WI, from 1980.  My husband is from Delavan, and went to school with the kids of the majority of the recipe providers, or shopped in their husbands' shoe stores, etc.

Anyway, another cookbook that I picked up was the Pillsbury's Bake Off Dessert Cook Book from 1968.  The one recipe that really caught my eye was the Pum-conut Pie, so I decided to give it a try.  It is basically a pumpkin pie with shredded coconut.  So here is what I did...

Ingredients:

2 eggs

3/4 cup of sugar

1 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon of mace

1/4 teaspoon of ground clove

1 can of pumpkin

1 can of evaporated milk

3/4 cup of shredded coconut

Directions:
Beat the eggs.  Add sugar, salt, and spices.  Stir to combine.  Add pumpkin.  Stir to combine,  Add evaporated milk.  Stir to combine.  Add 1/2 cup of shredded coconut.  Stir to combine.  Pour into a prepared crust.  Bake at 425oF for 15 minutes.  Reduce heat to 350.  Bake for 40 minutes.  Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup of coconut and bake for another 10 minutes.  Allow to cool entirely before eating.

This pie was totally ok.  The chewiness of the coconut was a nice addition; however, this pie lacked any real wow factor.  But the concept does has potential.  I may revisit it as a pumpkin chiffon pie and see if that had the wow factor I am looking for.

Piece out!
Justin

Illinois State Fair

I entered the Blackberry Mint Julep Pie in the Berry Pie Category at the Illinois State Fair.  It did not place in the top three.  I had some hesitation about the blackberry filling as I made it.  It seemed to overthicken, which would have made it chewy.  I think I added an extra tablespoon of Instant ClearJel.  But I am now thinking that it doesn't matter if you are using 18 ounces or 24 ounces of blackberries, you should still only use three tablespoons of Instant ClearJel and it should all be added at the beginning of the cooking process with the sugar (instead of adding it toward the end after the berries have released the majority of their juice).

On Friday, August 21st, I made the trip back down the Springfield with my Pumpkin S'mores Pie.  When I dropped the pie off for judging at 2pm, I also had the pleasure of meeting Linda Hoskins, the Executive Director of the American Pie Council.

Three hours and fifteen minutes later.  I was awarded Second Place in the Pumpkin Pie Contest by Miss Illinois County Fair, Sadie Gassmann.

I actually tied with the woman who won third place, but then after a tie-breaker judging I was awarded second place.

I am super proud of this accomplishment and could not be happier.

The recipe for the marshmallow meringue was slightly altered from previous versions of this pie.  I eliminated the sugar and whipped the marshmallow creme into the egg whites instead of folding it in later.

Here is the new recipe:

3 eggs whites

1/4 teaspoon of salt

7 oz of marshmallow creme.

Whip the egg whites and salt into soft peaks, then spoon in the marshmallow creme a spoonful at a time and continue to whip into stiff peaks.  Then spoon onto the pumpkin filling and toast with a kitchen torch.

Piece out!

Justin

Deep Fried Pumpkin Pie

While I was walking around at the Lake County Fair, I came across a food stand that sold deep fried pecan pie and deep fried pumpkin pie.

On Friday, I got a deep fried pumpkin pie with powdered sugar on Friday.  It was good, except the pumpkin pie is frozen, so there is a thin layer of batter on the pie that does not cook all the way under the crispy funnel-cake like exterior.

On Saturday, I went back to try the deep fried pecan pie.  But they were out of pecan.  So I tried the deep fried pumpkin pie with whipped cream and cinnamon sugar.  This was by far better than getting it with just powdered sugar.  The whipped cream helped to draw away the attention to the uncooked batter, and I doubt that I would have noticed it at all had I not gotten it with just powdered sugar the day before.

Basically, if you see this at a fair: eat it!

Piece out!
Justin

Lake County Fair Results

I entered three pies in the Lake County Fair pavilion competitions: Amaretto Sour Custard Pie, Bananas Foster Pecan Praline Pie, and Pumpkin S'mores Pie.

After baking all day on Saturday, when it was in the high 80s, I dropped off all three pies on Sunday, the 26th.  I dropped them off fairly early, so none of my competitors in the pie division had dropped theirs off yet, but I was hopeful after seeing some of the entries in other division.  I then had to wait until Wednesday, the 29th, to see the results.  

Amaretto Sour Custard Pie: First Place

Pumpkin S'mores Pie: First Place

Bananas Foster Pecan Praline Pie: Second Place

This means that next year, I cannot enter the Pumpkin or Custard classes.  However, I think I will also enter the Chocolate Chip Cookie and Snickerdoodle classes, as I think the recipes I inherited from my mother would do very well in those classes.  

Until then, I get to look at this:

Piece out!

Justin

One step closer...

http://www.sj-r.com/article/20150520/NEWS/150529932

The Biggest News You Missed Yesterday

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/politics/ct-pumpkin-official-pie-illinois-met-0417-20150416-story.html

Piece out!

Justin

Pumpkin S'mores Pie

Tonight I made a Pumpkin S'mores Pie.  It was amazing.  All of the flavors really came together.  It was both pumpkiny and s'moresy, but not overwhelmingly one or the other.  Having come up with the recipe on my own, I am very proud of this pie as it is quite possibly the best pie I have ever made.  If the American Pie Council has a Pumpkin Pie Contest at the Illinois State Fair again this year, I may enter it.

Crust:
1 package cinnamon graham crackers (9 crackers)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
7 tablespoons melted butter
Pulse together in a food processor, press firmly into pie plate, bake at 350 degrees for 5 minutes.

Chocolate:
5 ounces dark chocolate
2 tablespoons of heavy cream
2 tablespoons of light corn syrup
Melt chocolate and cream together, stir in corn syrup, and pour into slightly cooled crust.

Pumpkin:
1 1/2 cups of canned ILLINOIS pumpkin
3/4 cup heavy cream
3 egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Mix together, pour over chocolate into crust, bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes, then at 350 degrees for another 40 minutes.  Let cool, then refrigerate for 2 hours.

Meringue:
3 eggs whites
1/3 cup of sugar
pinch of salt
7 ounces of marshmallow creme
Beat egg whites, sugar and salt to stiff peaks.  Stir 1/3 into marshmallow creme, then fold in the other 2/3.  Spoon onto pie and use a kitchen torch to "toast" the meringue.

If you enjoy this pie as much as I do, and you live in Illinois, go here to sign a petition to make Pumpkin Pie the Illinois State Pie.

Piece out!

Justin

To Residents of Illinois from the APC

Hi, 

We are the American Pie Council, a nationwide, non profit organization, located in Illinois, dedicated to the celebration, promotion and preservation of America's Pie Heritage and we would like to see pumpkin pie adopted as the official state pie of Illinois.
Illinois produces 3 times as many pumpkins as any other state in the union, process 90-95% of the country's pumpkin and produces 85% of the world's canned pumpkin. 

That's why I signed a petition to The Illinois State House and The Illinois State Senate, which says:

"A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION urging the adoption of the pumpkin pie as Illinois's official state pie.
Whereas, the American Pie Council, a nationwide nonprofit organization dedicated to the celebration, promotion, and preservation of America’s pie heritage, would like to see the pumpkin pie adopted as the official state pie of Illinois; 
Whereas, pumpkins, native to North America, and pastries, a European culinary tradition, created a union perfectly befitting the melting pot of American diversity – from the early Pilgrims’ days to today; 
Whereas, in 1978, Illinois Governor James Thompson named Morton, Illinois “The Pumpkin Capital of the World” for its processing of 85% of the world’s canned pumpkins; 
Whereas, the state of Illinois grows more than twice as many pumpkins as the next biggest pumpkin-growing state; 
Whereas, Illinois produces around 90 to 95% of the processed pumpkins in the United States; 
Whereas, food and culinary practices helped immigrants feel at home in their strange, new surroundings, it is important that we remember these practices and the foods that remain a part of our daily lives still today. " 

Will you sign the petition too? Click here to add your name: 

http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/adopt-pumpkin-pie-to?source=s.fwd&r_by=192277 

Thanks! 

My Thanksgiving 2014 mini pumpkin chiffon pies

Piece out!

Justin