Potluck Pie

During the fifth Sunday of December, my church was having a day of Worship Through Action, in which we would put together crisis care kits to be sent all over the nation/globe during major catastrophes (i.e. hurricanes, tsunamis, earthquakes, etc.) , followed by a time of potluck fellowship.  My go-to on these pie adventures has been dessert pies, so I thought I would break my pattern and bring a brunch-type pie: Three Cheese and Onion Pie. 

The recipe I selected comes from a new cookbook I received for Christmas entitled, Cutie Pies.  The author of this cookbook is the owner of a pie shop, High 5 Pie, and a couple of coffeehouses, Fuel Coffee, in the greater Seattle area.  One of the interesting things about this particular pie cookbook is the variety of options that are held within.  Each recipe can be made into a variety of forms—Cutie Pies made in standard muffin pans, Petit-5s made in mini muffin pans, Pie Jars made in small jam-type jars, Flipsides formed like a pocket, Piepops made on a stick, and Full-Sized Pies made in a traditional 9-inch pie pan. 

With the new cookbook, came a new recipe for an all-butter crust, so I gave this a try.  This first time around I made the crust by hand, not my food processor, and found that I may not have mixed it thoroughly enough as well as let it get too warm because it was very sticky when I rolled it out.  The next time I will definitely try my food processor for the mixing and not letting the dough sit out for more than ten minutes before I get rolling.

The filling was very simple and I had two Three Cheese and Onion Pies ready to bake in no time at all. 

Final product?  Apart from baking the pie for an additional 10-15 minutes longer than the recipe indicated, delicious.  This was a great variation from my usual dessert pie and a success at the church potluck.  As long as you can handle a strong onion flavor, this is your pie.  

Perfect for a brunch

How Do You Change An Opinion Ever So Firmly Set?

I am not a traditional holiday pie lover.  Pumpkin… pecan… easy for me to pass.  So with Christmas just days ahead I was not entirely sure what direction to take.  The last day for Week 10 happened to fall on the same day that my parents were flying into town, which made me think of my dad and his love for Cherry Pie.  While cherries may not be the typical Christmastime pie, it was going to be red, which I found that appropriate for the season, and Cherry Pies remind me of family, so why not? 

Now my husband is not a fan of Cherry Pie and I thought I might be able to dissuade him of this position if I made the best Cherry Pie.  Where do I go to find the best Cherry Pie?  The New Best Recipe Cookbook, of course! 

This recipe was exciting for me for two reasons:

1.       I would be making a lattice-top, which I had never tried before due to utter intimidation.

2.       I might be able to forever change my husband’s grudge against the Cherry Pie.

Sugar, Morello cherries, almond extract, salt, and flour.

Right away I was surprised to discover that the lattice-top was actually constructed first, and then placed on the top of the pie.  I had always assumed that the lattice had to be made on top of the pie and I had only ever made Grandma’s oil crust (which is very soft), so I could not fathom how to create the lattice effect without it ripping apart.  Another trick I learned was the use of the freezer for making the lattice firm enough to form the desired shape without ripping apart, as I had originally feared.  So with these breakthroughs in mind, the lattice was constructed with ease and I would gladly try it on another pie.  Intimidation factor denounced.

The filling for this pie uses jarred Morello cherries, which I purchased from a local Trader Joe’s store.  As I drained the juice from these cherries I wondered if one of the reasons my husband has turned his nose up at cherry pies was that all cherry pies he has had in the past have been made with the sticky cherry pie filling found in most baking aisles at grocery stores across the United States.  Again the challenge to dissuade my husband’s stance on Cherry Pie made me anxious to get this delight in the oven, so I could serve him a new perspective. 

Cherries ready for my previously made lattice top 

Placing the lattice top on the cherries

Oven-ready!

I am pleased to say that everyone enjoyed their first bites of this Cherry Pie.  The pie not only looked amazing, but tasted fabulous, too.  Unfortunately, after the first bites my husband had had enough.  I had not changed his mind about Cherry Pie.  He did, however, comment that it was the best he had tried.  While I may not have won that challenge, my parents and I slicked up the rest of that pie over the next three days without any trouble. 

Beautiful finished product!

                                                                                                                                                                 

When Healthier Does Not Mean Better

When blackberries go on sale in the middle of winter, at $0.88 per container, it is time to make Blackberry Pie.  So during week 9, that is what I set out to do.  My recipe for Blackberry Pie came from Berry Fruit Pie recipe from  the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. 

I had loads of blackberries on hand and all of the other ingredients I needed.  Or so I thought.  I mixed up my blackberries with sugar, flour, and lemon zest.  My filling was ready.  I started to mix up my double crust, using Grandma’s oil crust, and sure enough my flour was going to only be able to make a single crust pie.  Rather than frogging the whole pie, I pulled out my whole wheat flour, thinking that I might be able to make a tasty (and healthier) pie by using whole wheat flour for half of the desired flour. 

Blackberries, sugar, flour, and lemon zest

Half all-purpose flour and half whole wheat flour crust

Bottom crust filled

The pie looked delicious going in and coming out of the oven.  The crust formed nicely and browned evenly.  The filling bubbled just so as I set it on the cooling rack.  Whole wheat crust?  No problem, I thought.  This pie was going to be delicious. 

What looked like a delicious pie... do not be decieved!

Wrong.

I LOVE berry pies, particularly blackberry.  This pie was ruined by its crust.  I am certain there are others out there that can manage a whole wheat crust that actually tastes nice, but this was the antithesis of what pie is about.  Perhaps Grandma’s oil crust is not meant for healthy pie.  Perhaps blackberries and whole wheat flour should not be combined.  Whatever it was… I do not want to repeat it. 

Lesson learned:  when you run out of all-purpose white flour, get up and go to the store and buy more before making a Blackberry Pie.