Pecan Pie

This is from a while ago and it is a shitty photo. It was just before Thanksgiving dinner and I needed to take a photo really quick without letting the cat outside and various other factors. But here is my first pecan pie:

Yeah it got a little burned. With everything going on it sort of got lost. But it was mine! It was another one from Dorie and it worked out as opposed to the other one. However, it still wasn't as good as my Mum's. I will one day be able to make one as good as hers, hopefully.

Pecan Pie
From Baking From My Home to Yours

3/4 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup (packed) light brown sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 large eggs, preferably at room temperature
2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups (about 7 ounces) pecan halves or pieces
pie crust for a 9" pie

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Put the pie plate on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat. In a large bowl, whisk the corn syrup and brown sugar together until smooth.. Whisk in the melted butter, then add the eggs one at a time, beating until you have a smooth, foamy mixture. Add the espresso powder, vanilla, cinnamon and salt and give the batter a good mix. Rap the bowl against the counter a couple of times to pop any bubbles that might have formed, then stir in the pecans and chocolate. Turn the filling into the crust. Bake the pie for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, make a foil shield for the crust by cutting a 9-inch circle out of the center of an 11-or 12-inch square of aluminum foil. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Place the foil shield on top of the pie—the filling will be exposed, the crust covered by the foil. Bake the pie for another 15 to 20 minutes (total baking time is 30 to 35 minutes), or until it has puffed (the middle and the edges should be fairly evenly puffed), is beautifully browned and no longer jiggles when tapped. Transfer the pie plate to a rack, remove the shield and cool to room temperature.  

Suggestion's from the book:

Serving: Pecan pie is good at any temperature, and different at each one. It’s softest and most puddingish eaten warm (about 45 minutes out of the oven), most flavorful eaten at room temperature and most candy-like when it is chilled. At any temperature, it’s good with ice cream—vanilla, chocolate or coffee would be my choices.  

Storing: Once cooled to room temperature, the pie can be covered and refrigerated for 1 day. 

Bummer. Again.

Here is a shot of what would have been a great pie. It sounds great, Caramel Pumpkin Pie, but booze ruined it! I never add it to anything with baking. It is sort of my thing. I used to be a hater of pecans, nuts in general actually, but then I slowly warmed up to them and we are now the best of friends. We hang out a lot. But booze is my new hate. Love to drink it, hate to eat it. 

So when it came time to add the rum to the caramel, it killed me. No, the taste of it afterward killed me. The pumpkin mix had tasted so good and the caramel so good then BOOM rum killed it. "But why is all the rum gone?" as Jack Sparrow would ask and it is because it ruined the pie. I shall go cry now.

The crust was still good if that is any comfort!

Pumpkin Pie

Happy belated Thanksgiving! I clearly celebrate North of the border. It is why I add "u"s to words. My stomach is still packing. But it is a once a year deal so live it up. Four pies were made but one was a dud (damn that rum!). What is our traditional Thanksgiving dinner, you ask? Well I'll tell ya! Turkey (surprise, surprise), sweet potatoes with pecan and brown sugar topping, brussel sprouts (fav), mashed potatoes, gravy, cauliflour with cheese and bread crumbs, roasted carrots and stuffing! I could honestly live without mashed potatoes but it would not be Thanksgiving without my beloved stuffing and sweet potatoes.

And yes, brussel sprouts are my favourite. Roasted, boiled, you name it. But the ultimate is with diced bacon, sliced onions, bit of chicken broth and lots of salt and pepper. I almost forgot I am here for the pumpkin pie. The recipe is from America's Test Kitchen so it has to be good. And it was. 

Pumpkin Pie

Adapted from America's Test Kitchen

1 pie crust fit to a 10' pie plate*

1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin puree

1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar

1 tbsp ginger

1 heaping tbsp cinnamon

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp cloves

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup whole milk

6 eggs

extra whipping cream and raw sugar

Preheat the oven to 400º with rack in lower third of oven. In a food processor, combine the pumpkin, dark brown sugar, ginger, cinnamon, salt, cloves and nutmeg for about 1 minute. In a largish saucepan, add the pumpkin mix. Cook, stirring constantly, at a simmer over medium-high heat. Cook until smooth and shiny, about 5 minutes. Lower the heat to medium and add the heavy cream and whole milk. Stir until combined and remove from heat. In the food processor, process the eggs until uniform. Add half of the pumpkin mix until smooth and combined then add the rest of the pumpkin mix. Once it is all combined, pour it into the pie crust. Using a kitchen brush, brush the sides of the pie crust with whip cream. Sprinkle with sugar. This makes it have a nice crunch. Bake for about 35 minutes or until set in the center. Check while its baking so that the edges don't burn. I had to cover mine about halfway through with foil. Allow to cool before serving so that it slices easy. You can even put in the fridge, however you prefer.


*I used my Mum's recipe for pie crust and had it fitted to the pie plate. It is not such a decorative look I know but the other pies were! Anyway, the recipe said to bake the crust for 25 minutes before pouring in the filling but I skipped this step and all turned out well.

Baby Rhubarb Pies

Prepare for a vague post. My Mum, I talk about her too much, makes wonderful pie crust. I've pretty much given up on trying my own and just use hers. We have a large stock of it in our freezer and an humungous stock of rhubarb. We grow it in our garden but my Uncle decided to give us some from his farm. Needless to say, it will last us until next summer.

So I whipped out some pie dough, took some 5 inch tart shells, made rhubarb pie filling and baked them up. Simple? Yup. Quick? Yup. Delicious? No. Just kidding, of course it was.

Baby Rhubarb Pies

crust
Pie dough for two five inch tart pans (told you it was vague)
filling 
1 3/4 cup rhubarb, cut in half length wise then chopped 1/4 inch thick
Packed, heaping 1/3 cup brown sugar
zest of half a lemon
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp cornstarch
wash 
1 egg
2 tbsp cream 
raw sugar, for sprinkling

Roll out the dough on a floured surface. Roll till about 1/8 inch thick. From the point, cut it into circles fit for pie pans. Press into the bottom of the pans and leave an over hang of a half inch. In a separate bowl, mix together the filling. Fill the two pans with equal amounts of filling. Dot butter over top of the filling. With the remaining pie dough, once again roll it to 1/8 inch think. Cut out two circles to top the pies. Using the overhang, crimp the two pie doughs together to seal the pie. Cut slits over the top pie dough so it can vent. In a tiny bowl, beat together the egg and cream. Brush the tops of the pies. Sprinkle heavily with raw sugar. Place pies on a baking sheet as they will probably bubble over a bit. Nobody wants pie filling on the bottom of their oven. Bake in a 375º oven for about 30 to 35 minutes, until the tops are golden and the filling is bubbling. Allow it them to cool for about 20 minutes. Serve with vanilla ice cream. 

Vanilla Creme Apple Pie

The zee disaster! This was an all around mistake but here it is and it was good. This was actually supposed to be a tart but that did not work out quite clearly. However it worked out to be a nice pie. I used my mother's amazing pie crust but instead of rolling it out with flour, it was rolled out in confectioner's sugar instead. If you try that with any pie crust it will make it that much better.Vanilla Creme Apple Pie

crust
enough for pie dough for one 9" pie, like a frozen pie crust or if you have some on hand (great instructions, I know)
confectioner's sugar for rolling
vanilla creme
3 egg yolks
1/4 cup caster/superfine sugar
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 cup and 2 tbsp milk
1/2 vanilla bean
1 1/2 tsp butter
topping
4 medium granny smith apples, peeled and cored and thinly sliced
2 tbsp honey

Roll out the pie crust in the confectioner's sugar into a circle large enough for a 9" pie dish. Crimp the edges as desired. I was in a hurry and just threw the crust in there. Cover the crust with tin foil and place pie weights/beans/any form of weight over the tin foil. Bake the crust for 10 minutes in a 350º oven.
Now for the creme. Whisk the egg yolks and half the sugar(2 tbsp) until pale and creamy. Add the cornstarch and flour and mix until there are not lumps. Set this mix aside. Bring the milk, remaining sugar and vanilla bean to boil in a small saucepan. Once it is boiling, turn off the heat and strain the mix into the egg yolk mixture, stirring the mix together continuously. Pour the creme into a clean saucepan and bring to boil. Stir constantly! Lumps will appear at first but I promise it will become smooth. Boil it for two minutes then remove from heat. Stir in the butter. Pour the mix into a bowl and place plastic wrap directly on the creme so that a skin doesn't form. Or you can use it right away.
Remove the tin foil from the pie crust and spread the vanilla creme on the crust. Arrange the apples on top of the vanilla creme. Bake the pie for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the apples are golden and the pastry is cooked. Leave to cool. Once the pie is cooled(I did not wait for it too cool, probably 30 minutes tops) melt the honey in the microwave for about 15 seconds or until liquidized. Drizzle the honey over the pie and enjoy!