Pies

Basic pie crust

1. Blend only enough to make it stick together. (Too much handling makes crust tough.)
2. Form into a ball, flatten and roll into a circle.
3. Lay crust in pie plate and, using a fork, prick a few holes in the bottom.
4. Crimping the crust provides a nice “lip” against spills.

• This is enough to make one bottom crust for a 9" pie pan.
• Double this recipe if you need a top crust. (Cut slits in top crust to let out steam.)
• For a no-cook pie, bake pie shell in preheated 450° oven for about 12 min
• (A glass pieplate cooks hotter—so check it at about 10 min.)

Crumb crusts

1. Press firmly over bottom and sides of 9" pie plate. Chill.
2. Bake it at 350° for 8 minutes, if you want it an even firmer crust.

Fruit pies:

Apple

• 375°, 30–40 min

Berry

1. Place a layer of berries in bottom crust, sprinkle with 1 tsp each sugar and flour.
2. Continue, layer by layer, until crust is filled.
3. 375°, 30–40 min

• If using frozen berries, defrost and hold back juice.
• Don’t sprinkle with flour but add 2 tsp cornstarch to juice and pour over berries.

Mince

1. Cook until thick, about 10 minutes. Cool.
2. 375°, 30–40 min

Peach

1. Fill bottom crust with peaches, reserving the juice that has come out.
2. Add 2 tsp cornstarch to the juice and combine well. Pour syrup over peaches.
3. 375°, 30–40 min

• If you use apricots, you don’t have to peel them.
• If using canned peaches/cots, drain and reserve 1/4 cup of juice for syrup.

Pumpkin

1. Pour into pie shell—be careful, it’s very runny!
2. 400° (375° if using glass pieplate), 40–50 minutes
3. Check for doneness—center shouldn’t wiggle.

Sweet Potato

1. Bake 400° for 30 minutes,
2. then reduce to 325° and bake an additional 15 minutes.

Custard or cream pies:

Covered with a mountain of topping!

Meringue topping:

1. Beat 3 eggwhites until stiff, adding gradually up to 1/4 cup sugar.
2. Pile meringue on the pie and brown in 350° oven.

Whipped cream topping:

1. 1 cup of heavy whipping cream makes 2 cups of whipped cream.
2. Before whipping, you can add sugar or vanilla to taste.

Chocolate cream

1. Blend well with whip.

2. Add very gradually to chocolate mixture, stirring constantly.
3. Cook until thick, then continue to cook 15 more minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Cook another 3 minutes.
5. Add small amount of chocolate mixture to 3 beaten egg yolks then return eggy mixture to the rest of chocolate mixture. (Dumping raw egg directly into hot chocolate stuff will cook eggs too fast and you’ll get eggy lumps. Icky. )

6. Cool. Fill a baked (and cooled) pie shell.
7. Cover with meringue and bake ’til golden. Or cover with whipped cream.

Plain cream

1. Cook and stir until thick, about 10 minutes.

2. Add small amount of milk mixture to 3 slightly beaten eggyolks
3. then return eggy mixture to the milk mixture. (See comment in above recipe.)
4. Cook another 5 minutes.

5. Cool. Fill a baked (and cooled) pieshell.
6. Cover with meringue and bake ’til golden. Or cover with whipped cream.

• For banana cream pie, slice 2–3 bananas into pieshell before adding filling.
• For coconut cream pie, mix coconut with filling and sprinkle coconut on top.

Other cooked pies

Super Easy Cheesecake (really a pie)

1. Pour into graham cracker crust
2. bake at 350° for 40 minutes.
3. Cool 5 minutes.

4. Return to oven another 5 minutes to set topping.
5. Cool, chill. Takes about 3 hours in fridge to firm up.

Custard

1. Pour carefully into chilled, uncooked crust.
2. Sprinkle top with dash of nutmeg.
3. Bake in preheated 400° oven, 25–30 minutes.

Audrey’s recreation of Grandpa Walter’s Apple-Custard pie

1. Make half-recipe of above custard.
2. Put 2 cups of apple compote in pie shell and cover with custard mixture.
3. Bake in preheated 375° oven for 15–20 minutes.

Lemon meringue

1. Cook over direct heat until thickened.
2. Stir a little hot mixture into 4 beaten eggyolks and return eggy mixture to the cooking mixture.

3. Stir constantly and cook over low heat until filling is clear yellow.
4. Cool slightly, pour into unbaked shell.
5. Cover with meringue made of remaining eggwhites.
6. Bake 350° for 15 minutes, until meringue is golden brown.

Black-bottom

1. Use a chocolate crumb crust.
2. Follow recipe for cream pie above, but add 2 Tbsp rum.
3. Melt 2 oz semisweet chocolate over boiling water and add 1/2 of cream mixture.
4. Cool until thick.
5. Pour chocolate cream into crust. Then white layer on top of chocolate.
6. Refrigerate 2 hours.
7. Top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.

An uncooked pie

Grasshopper

1. Pour into chocolate crumb crust and refrigerate 3 hours until set.