Glazed Peach Pie

Alright, so I broke down and bought some organic peaches on sale at Whole Foods...emphasis on 'on sale'. Anywho, it was super awesomely delicious, so I guess it was worth it. This one's for you Al. Happy Birthday!

Glazed Peach Pie
adapted from Alexandra Thomas

Yields: one 9-inch pie

Take, toss, and let sit 1 hour:
2 1/2 - 3 1/2 C. Peach slices (4-5 medium peaches, ripe)
1 Tbls. Lemon juice
1/4 C. Sugar

1 Baked pie crust (recipe follows)
1/2 C. Sugar
3 Tbls. Cornstarch
2 Tbls. Butter
1/8 tsp. Salt
1/4 tsp. Vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Peel, slice, and drain peaches into a bowl. Combine with lemon juice and sugar, let sit at least 1 hour. Add enough water to drainage to make 1 C. liquid. Blend 1/2 C. sugar and 3 Tbls. cornstarch in a small saucepan. Add peach syrup/water slowly. Boil 3 minutes or until thick and clear.
2. Stir in butter, salt, and vanilla extract.
3. Fold in peach slices.
4. Pour into backed pie shell. Cool.

Pie Crust (Pate Brisee)

Yields: 1 double-crust or 2 single-crust 9- to 10-inch pies

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water

Directions:

1.   In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar. Add butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, 8 to 10 seconds.

2.   With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream through feed tube. Pulse until dough holds together without being wet or sticky; be careful not to process more than 30 seconds. To test, squeeze a small amount together: If it is crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time.

3.   Divide dough into two equal balls. Flatten each ball into a disc and wrap in plastic. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill at least 1 hour. Dough may be stored, frozen, up to 1 month.

**For a no-bake pie requiring an already cooked crust:

1. Preheat oven to 350 deg. F.
2. Roll out dough into a circle 11 to 12 inches across
3. Place in pie dish, crimp edges and cook for 20 minutes with pie weights.
4. Remove pie weights and parchment paper and cook for an additional 11 minutes or until bottom of crust is lightly golden. Cool in dish on cooling rack.

Lemon Chess Pie

I had every and all intention of making a peach pie this week in honor of my best friend's birthday last week. Peach pie is the dessert I will forever and always equate with her. I can still picture her in her mother's kitchen peeling and slicing peaches. So, I went on a mission to the farmer's market in search of peaches. Low and behold, no peaches. Not only were there no peaches, there was no fruit of any variety. Don't get me wrong, we didn't leave empty handed. We got some delicious bok choi and snap peas to go in my husband's awesome stir fry that night and I was certainly happy about that, but fruit is what makes me dance. Those who don't believe in global warming are absolutely crazy for coco puffs. I mean summer not starting until the actual summer solstice, I've never heard of such a thing before. Don't even get me started on my quest for cherries in June.

I know what you're thinking, go to the store and buy some freaking peaches if you want them so bad. Its just not the same and I much prefer local, even if I have to wait until August (the hottest month of the year here) to make my peach pie.

Anywho, I decided to go ahead and try a pie I had seen on the King Arthur Flour blog a few days earlier...Lemon Chess Pie (recipe to follow). If you're like me, you have no idea what a lemon chess pie is but you love lemons and you like pie, so how bad could it be really. It actually turned out quite delicious. I took some over to my mom, who had to go in for emergency surgery, and it completely cured her. Ok, I made that last part up, but she really did enjoy it.

Lemon Chess Pie
filling from King Arthur Flour
crust from Martha Stewart
*I used this crust because I had a disc of it frozen from a pie I made a while back, feel free to use your favorite, this filling works great with most crusts.

Crust:
Makes enough for two 9-inch pies

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 2 1/4 sticks (18 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 1/2 cup plus 1 to 2 tablespoons ice water

Directions

1. Pulse flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor to combine. Add butter, and process until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds. With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream until dough just holds together (no longer than 30 seconds).
2. Divide dough in half. Shape each half into a disk, and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour (or up to 2 days). Dough can be frozen for up to 1 month; thaw overnight in the refrigerator.

Filling:

Ingredients

• 6 tablespoons butter
• 3/4 cup fresh lemon juice; the juice from about 3 lemons
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 2/3 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornmeal
• 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 5 large eggs

Directions

Melt the butter, and stir in the lemon juice, salt, sugar, cornmeal, cornstarch, and eggs. Whisk until well combined. Pour the filling into the chilled pie shell. Bake the pie on the bottom shelf of a preheated 375°F oven for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the center is set. The top should be golden brown. Remove the pie from the oven and allow it to cool before cutting and serving. **Tasted really good the first day and even better after being refrigerated the next day**

Chocolate Meringue Pie

Let me preface this post with the fact that I am much more of a chocolate mousse pie kind of girl than a chocolate pudding pie kind of girl which is what this pie turned out to be. So, although it wasn't my favorite, it was still pretty damn delicious.

Chocolate Meringue Pie
from Martha Stewart

Yield Serves 8 to 12

Ingredients

• 1/2 recipe Flaky Pie Dough (recipe below)
• 1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 1/3 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 2 cups whole milk
• 3 large egg yolks, room temperature
• 1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 6 large egg whites, room temperature
• Pinch of cream of tartar

Directions

1.  On a lightly floured surface, roll out 1 disk of dough to 1/8 inch thick. Cut into a 12-inch round. Fit into a 9-inch pie plate. Trim edges so that there is a 1-inch overhang. Fold under, and crimp with your fingers. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
2.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Prick bottom of crust all over with a fork. Freeze 15 minutes. Line with parchment, and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until edges are just golden, about 15 minutes. Remove weights and parchment. Return to oven, and bake until center is golden brown, about 15 minutes more. Let cool completely on a wire rack.

3.  Whisk 1 cup sugar, the flour, and cocoa. Gradually whisk in 1/2 cup milk until smooth and thick. Whisk in egg yolks.

4.  Heat butter, salt, and remaining 1 1/2 cups milk in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until butter has melted. Add about 1/4 cup butter mixture to the cocoa mixture, and whisk until smooth. Add cocoa-butter mixture to pan, and cook, whisking constantly, until thickened and beginning to bubble, about 1 minute. Remove from heat, and whisk in vanilla. Pour through a fine sieve into cooled pie crust. Let cool completely. Refrigerate for 1 hour. *I would recommend refrigerating for much longer, up to overnight*

5. Preheat broiler. Put egg whites, remaining 2/3 cup sugar, and the cream of tartar into a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Whisk until sugar has dissolved and mixture reaches 160 degrees. Remove from heat. Beat on medium-low speed for 5 minutes. Raise speed, and beat until stiff, glossy peaks form, about 4 minutes. Spoon onto pie, making sure meringue touches crust. Broil until browned, 30 seconds to 1 minute. *Meringue tastes better if its refrigerated after being browned, at least 30 minutes*

Flaky Pie Dough

from Martha Stewart

Yield Makes enough for two 9-inch pies

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 2 1/4 sticks (18 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 1/2 cup plus 1 to 2 tablespoons ice water

Directions

1. Pulse flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor to combine. Add butter, and process until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds. With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream until dough just holds together (no longer than 30 seconds).
2. Divide dough in half. Shape each half into a disk, and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour (or up to 2 days). Dough can be frozen for up to 1 month; thaw overnight in the refrigerator.

*This crust is super simple to make, the longest part is the refrigeration.