Tag: #pie
Apple Almond Galette (You’re the Apple of My Pie)

Apple Almond Galette (You’re the Apple of My Pie)

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When the fall season rolls around, apples begin to crop up at our farmer’s market.  Gone are the days when the only available apples were Red or Golden Delicious (thank goodness)!  The variety of apples is mindblowing.  My intention is to just get a few, but I invariably end up with what feels like a bushel of apples.

Here, There, and Everywhere…Apples

This is why I am constantly bookmarking recipes that sound wonderful and highlight apples knowing full well I won’t be able to resist the fall bounty of apples.  Luckily, I found an Apple Almond Galette from Zoe Bakes.  It’s the perfect recipe “to show off them apples”.  Get a combination of apples, Fujis, Mutsus, Braeburns, Jonagolds, or Honeycrisps.  Yes, you can get them ALL these days.

Better yet, you don’t have to peel the apples as the PEEL is part of the apPEAL of this galette, it’s a win-win and why you want a variety of apples.  Use a mandolin (carefully) to thinly slice the apples.  A knife is very doable, it will just take a bit longer than a mandolin.  The filling is an almond cream easily made in a food processor and consists of almond paste, eggs, butter, and a touch of almond extract.  A lovely combination-apples and almonds.

For the galette crust, I used Dorie’s pie dough (1/2 recipe), but feel free to use your favorite pie crust.  You will need enough dough to create a 13 to 14-inch circle.  Roll your dough on parchment paper so you can then slide it all onto a baking sheet, easy peasy.  Spread the almond filling in the center of the dough leaving a 2-inch border.  Next, take stacks of your sliced apples and arrange them ARTFULLY on the almond filling.  Then fold the edge of the dough over the apples.

The finished galette is not only gorgeous, it’s delicious.  Serve it with softly whipped cream or ice cream.

This galette is now part of our holiday dessert menu every year. It’s a keeper!

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Apple Almond Galette

A rustic, delicious riff on apple pie. The apples sit on a layer of almond cream encased in a buttery, flakey pie crust.
Course Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American
Keyword almond cream, Apple galette, apples, zoe bakes
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes

Equipment

  • 1 mandolin optional
  • 1 food processor

Ingredients

Pie Crust

  • 1 recipe of Dorie's pie dough will make 2 galettes

Almond Cream Filling

  • 4 oz almond paste
  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter room temperature
  • 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/2 tsp almond extract

Da Apples

  • 5 large Apples thinly sliced on a mandoline or use a sharp knife and slice
  • Egg wash 1 egg mixed with 1 tablespoon water
  • 2 tbsp granulated sugar for sprinkling over top Can substitute raw or Demerara sugar

Instructions

Galette shell: Use Dorie's Pie crust recipe link below

  • Roll the chilled pie dough to an 1/8-inch-thick circle = 13-14" circle on a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet or slide the parchment onto a baking sheet.

Almond Cream

  • In a food processor blend the almond paste, flour, sugar, butter, almond and vanilla extracts and yolk until smooth. Spread over the center of the dough, leaving about a 2-inch ring on the outside.

Assemble

  • Arrange apples over the almond cream. Fold the uncovered dough over the apples and pleat to keep it in place. Freeze the galette while you preheat the oven to 425°F.
  • Brush the crust with the egg wash and sprinkle the sugar over the crust and apples.
  • Bake at 425°F for 20 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350°F and bake for an additional 25 minutes or until the apples are tender. Allow the galette to cool to room temperature before sliding it onto a serving plate.
  • Garnish with toasted almonds if you like and serve with a bit of Greek yogurt or whipped cream or ice cream (I like vanilla!).

Notes

Dorie's pie crust recipe
Cranberry Curd Tart (All the Colors of the Pie)

Cranberry Curd Tart (All the Colors of the Pie)

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The Perfect Potluck Event

Before going full force into Christmas mode, a recap of Thanksgiving is due.  Turkey Day was spent at my brother’s house in The City with aunties, uncles, cousins, and friends.  Potluck style, the spread is a mash-up of classic Thanksgiving dishes and Chinese dishes adapted for the holiday.

Our table would not be complete without sweet rice stuffing – Gnaw Mai Fan and Cousin Gary’s Sweet Potatoes (yep the classic copious amounts of butter and brown sugar, topped with mini-marshmallows). Our contribution to the annual feast was PIES and for forty-plus people.  That’s a whole lotta pie. Lucky for me Jamie was home. Yay.  Reinforcements.

It’s Pie Time

Have you ever noticed, Thanksgiving dinner is texturally (besides the turkey) a toothless delight-stuffing, yams, corn casserole, carrot pudding, overcooked green bean casserole…you know what I’m talking about.  The traditional desserts are a plethora of orangey-brown tones-pumpkin pie, sweet potato pie, and pecan pie. The only reprieve is a dollop of whipped cream on every slice.  Kinda monochromatic.

Well, we fixed that this year.  Not the soft foods just the dessert color palette problem.  We still made Pecan Pie and Pumpkin Pie but we then finished with a color flurry-Purple Sweet Potato Pie, Apple Tart (don’t peel your apples), and a Cranberry Curd Tart.  Splash!

For the Cranberry Curd Tart, two recipes stood out (ok, they were the first two after Googling).  David Tanis’s recipe in the New York Times and the Cranberry Curd Tart from the blog Blossom to Stem.  A flip of the coin, Blossom to Stem won.  It is a beautiful blog, craft cocktails, and delicious food, check it out.

Let’s Talk Crust, Crust, Baby

The crust, all butter, flour, powdered sugar, egg yolk, and orange zest.  The powdered sugar makes a tender crust by lowering the protein content of the dough.  Melted butter means no waiting for the butter to soften.  I am a believer in using melted butter for crusts.  I learned this from making Alice Medrich’s BOSS Lemon bar recipe.  Bake it until a nice golden brown. The finished crust is sweet, citrusy, and tender.  Love it.

The curd starts with cooking the cranberries in orange juice until they burst then passing the mixture through a food mill to remove the seeds and skin.  Don’t have a food mill? Make the curd and strain it. A little more elbow grease (ok, more than a little) without a food mill but doable.

Voila, a gorgeous ruby red cranberry curd-sweet, tart, and delicious.

The curd will thicken as it cools so make sure the crust is baked before finishing the curd. Quickly pour the curd into the crust and slide it into the oven for 10 minutes.  Remove and cool the tart at room temp for an hour and then into the fridge it goes to set.

Garnish with pomegranate seeds or candied cranberries and serve with a ubiquitous dollop of whipped cream or if you like, a meringue (nope, not me).

Make this tart and bedazzle your family and friends this holiday season.

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Cranberry Curd Tart

Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword cranberry curd tart
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Additional time to prep curd and bake 25 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings 8 Servings

Ingredients

For the crust

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter 1 stick
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • zest of one orange

For the cranberry curd

  • 12 ounces cranberries fresh or frozen
  • juice of one orange Approximately 1/2 cup
  • 1 1/4 cups sugar
  • 2 whole eggs
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter 1 stick
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon orange liqueur such as Grand Marnier (optional)

Instructions

Make the crust

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Add the flour, powdered sugar, and salt to a small bowl and whisk together. Melt the butter in a small saucepan (or in the microwave), add the vanilla extract and orange zest to the butter and stir, then pour into the dry ingredients and stir together until thoroughly moistened.
  • Press the dough evenly along the bottom and sides into a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Place the tart pan on a baking sheet and bake until the crust is golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Make the cranberry curd

  • Heat the cranberries and orange juice in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat until the cranberries split. Strain through a food mill or fine mesh sieve and discard the skins.
  • Return the strained cranberry mixture to the saucepan and add the sugar, eggs, egg yolks, butter, vanilla, and orange liqueur (if using) to the pan and give everything a good stir. Heat gently over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and registers 170°F on an instant read thermometer (about 8-9 minutes). Immediately strain through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl and pour into the prepared crust. Bake (still at 350°F) until the curd is set (it should jiggle but not slosh), about 10 minutes.
  • Let cool at room temperature for about 1 hour, then transfer to the refrigerator to chill. Serve this chilled or at room temperature.
  • Serve with softly whipped cream
Almond for Pie! Cherry Slab Pie with Marzipan Crumble

Almond for Pie! Cherry Slab Pie with Marzipan Crumble

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Right next to my favorite strawberry stand at the farmer’s market is a cherry stand. A couple of weeks ago was their last time at the market for the season. So, of course, I couldn’t resist and loaded up on cherries hoping to savor the last pick of the season.

Which meant I was constantly tossing unadulterated cherries into my mouth.  Around the 50th cherry, the thought-there must be another way to enjoy these bad boys, danced through my head.  Coincidentally, a post from Ipso Fatto appeared in my inbox for a luscious-looking cherry slab pie.  Fortuitous or can Google read minds now. Hmmm.

The recipe is originally from Vintage Baker by Jessie Sheehan.  This is not the first time I have tried one of her recipes. I also posted her Butterscotch Potato Chip Balls that are, in a word, scrumptious. She also has a blog, Jessie Sheehan Bakes, which I have added to my blogs to follow. Plenty of photos and helpful notes to go along with her well-written recipes.

Did not even know I had a cherry pitter…go figure, another kitchen gadget, makes me so happy.

Do not get freaked out by the word PIE.  The crust for this slab pie is made in the food processor and pressed into a removable bottom pan. No rolling here! Very easy.  The dough is made with regular flour and almond flour (which helps keep the crust tender), butter, an egg yolk, and sugar.

Pulse ingredients in the food processor until it just starts to come together.  Do not over-process.  If you pinch the dough and it stays together, stop.

Press the dough into a springform pan. See, EASY.

The crumble is made with almond paste to amp up the almond further.  Ahhh, cherry and almond, like Fred and Ginger, a spot on flavor combination.

I made half the recipe which is the best way to resist the temptation of eating an entire slab pie.  An excellent strategy for me of little self-control.  I used a 9 inch round springform pan which worked perfectly.

This pie is delicious, the buttery crust and marzipan crumble all supporting the star of the show-juicy sweet cherries.  If only cherry season was a little longer, sigh.

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Cherry-Almond Slab Pie with Marzipan Crumble

Lovely, easy to make slab pie from Vintage Baker
Course Dessert
Cuisine American, Asian
Keyword cherry, marzipan crumble, slab pie, vintage baker
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings 8 servings

Equipment

  • 9x13 pan
  • 9 inch springform pan

Ingredients

Almond Piecrust

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour 280gms
  • 3/4 cup almond flour 90gms
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar 65gms
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 3/4 cup unsalted butter, chilled 165gms, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  • 1 tsp almond extract
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1/4 cup cold water

Marzipan Crumble

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour 140gms
  • 7 ounces almond paste
  • 2/3 cup granulated sugar 130gms
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, chilled 110gms cut into 1/2 inch pieces

Cherry Filling

  • 10 cups pitted cherries, fresh or frozen do not throw
  • 3/4 cup cornstarch 105gms
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 T lemon juice
  • 1/2 tsp almond extract
  • Sliced almonds for sprinkling

Almond Glaze

  • 1 cup confectioners' sugar 120gms
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream 60ml
  • 1/8 tsp almond extract

Vanilla Ice Cream!

Instructions

Piecrust

  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees
    Grease 13x9x2 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray or softened butter, line bottom with parchment paper, grease paper. Set aside.
  • Combine AP flour, almond flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Pulse to combine ingredients. Distribute butter on top of the flour mixture and pulse until coarse crumbs with a few pea-sized pieces.
  • Combine almond extract, egg yolk and 1/4 cup cold water. Add liquid mixture to food processor and continue to pulse until the dough begins to clump. Do not overdo it! Transfer the dough into prepared pan, press it evenly onto the bottom and two thirds up the sides. Wrap pan in plastic wrap and place in freezer while you make the crumble and filling.

For the Crumble

  • Add flour, almond paste and granulated sugar to food processor bowl. Pulse to combine. Add butter and process until it comes together in one mass. Remove from processor and break in bits. Cover and wrap and store in freezer until needed.

Filling

  • Combine cherries, cornstarch, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Add lemon juice and almond extract and stir well.
    To assemble pie, pour cherries into pie crust. Top with crumble and sprinkle sliced almonds on top.
  • Bake 80-90 minutes, less for fresh cherries, rotating the pan after 30 minutes and tenting with foil so it doesn't brown too much. Pie is ready when the filling bubbles thru the center.

Glaze

  • Combine powdered sugar, cream and extract in a bowl and whisk until smooth. Drizzle on pie.
  • Serve with Vanilla ice cream, that's an order.

Notes

This recipe can be halved, which is what I did.  Weigh ingredients if possible for accuracy.  
For the egg, one large egg is about 3 tablespoons.  Beat egg and mesure out 1-1/2 tablespoons for half recipe.
Half recipe can be baked in a 9 inch springform pan.
Baking time will be shorter, start checking at 50 minutes.

 

 
Got Dough? (Tasties)

Got Dough? (Tasties)

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In life there are two sides to everything.  The yin and yang of the universe.  There are those that twist their Oreos apart, lick the frosting off the cookie and then eat each cookie (seems kind of silly to me) versus those that absolutely never take Oreos apart but eat the cookie and frosting together.  Or how about vanilla or chocolate?  Coke or Pepsi?

Crust or filling? ……….CRUST OF COURSE, DUH.

So, what does one do with the scraps of dough left from the pie that’s baking in the oven?  It would be a shame to let it go to waste. Not quite enough for another pie but enough to make you feel guilty if you toss all that buttery, flaky goodness out.

Tasties to the rescue.  One of the many delightful recipes from The Art of the Pie by Kate McDermott.  This is my new bible on pie.  Detailed instructions on everything you ever wanted to know about pie crusts and fillings written in a warm easy style.  The majority of recipes are fruit based and pretty classic, apple, blueberry, strawberry rhubarb.  A small section on hand pies, mini pies and savory pies. Photos are gorgeous.  As a bonus, stories by the author add a very personal feel to the book.  Plus…she has a blog  The Art of the Pie, definitely worth checking out.

Back to the Tasties. The dough is formed into a rectangle and sprinkled with generous amounts of cinnamon & sugar.  It is then rolled into a log and sliced into 1 inch thick segments.  Sprinkled with more sugar and baked.  So simple, why didn’t I think of that?  I’m already dreaming of the next time I have leftover dough, maybe I’ll add nuts or use  jam instead.

Sprinkle generously with cinnamon sugar, add nuts if you like.

 

Parchment underneath pastry makes rolling into a log much easier.

 

Bake on parchment for easier clean-up

 

 

 

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Tasties from The Art of the Pie

Ingredients

  • Leftover Pie dough
  • Cinnamon
  • Sugar
  • egg white + 1T water
  • jam
  • finely chopped nuts

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 425 degrees
  • Gather up extra dough trimmings and smoosh together gently
  • Roll dough on parchment paper into a rectangle approximately 1/8" thick
  • Generously sprinkle dough with sugar leaving a 1/2 inch border along one long side
  • Liberally top sugar with cinnamon (see photo) use a lot of cinnamon don't be shy!
  • Sprinkle finely chopped nuts on this if desired
  • Brush border without cinnamon sugar with a bit of water.
  • Using the parchment paper as a support to roll dough into a log starting with edge opposite of the brushed water border. Like a jelly-roll.
  • Turn log over so that seam side is down to help seal it.
  • Brush roll with egg wash or milk or cream
  • If roll seems soft, chill for 15-30 minutes before cutting.
  • Slice roll into 1 inch pieces and place on parchment lined baking sheet.
  • Bake for approximately 15 minutes until golden brown.
  • Remove from oven and sprinkle with additional granulated sugar.
  • Options: I would like to try using jam instead. Make sure you use parchment for ease of clean up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Mom’s Apple Pie

Mom’s Apple Pie

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I admit this is a misnomer.  It’s really not mom’s apple pie, at least not my mom.  My mom was not a baker.  In fact, I cannot remember a single baked good made by her…nada, zilch.  That’s not to say we didn’t have desserts or baked goods, they just happen to come from a bakery or restaurant or somewhere else, just not our kitchen.  There were plenty of bakeries in the city and in Chinatown.  My parent’s after-work excursions for dinner ingredients often included a sweet treat from one of the Chinatown bakeries.

We snacked on almond cookies from Eastern Bakery.  Swooned over the best damn sugar doughnuts in town (providing you ate them in the first 5 minutes after they were made) from Sun Wah Kue.  Hiked up the hill to the Fortune Cookie Factory.  For special occasions, we walked over to Victoria’s Bakery in North Beach, a stone’s throw away from Chinatown, and picked up a St. Honore.  Imagine a cake with layers of rum-laced pastry cream, covered with billows of whipped cream, and then wait for it…little cream puffs perched around the edge.  My mom’s absolute favorite cake.

Our favorite desserts came from a deli-restaurant we went to all the time, Ping Yuen Bakery Cafe.  Their Apple Pie was an American-Chinese mash-up.  Strictly sweet apples layered in a crust made with lard and painted with an egg wash that gave it a crackly pattern on top.  This was the apple pie of my childhood.

All About the Pie

Whoops, lost in nostalgia.  My first attempt at pie-making was an apple pie and it remains my favorite pie to make.  The crust is made with butter and a little bit of shortening, double F-bombs, flavor, and flaky (gotcha).  My current fav is Dorie Greenspan’s crust which you can find here.  For the filling, I have opted for mace instead of nutmeg, substituted brown sugar for some of the granulated sugar (caramel overtones), and added a squeeze of lemon (cuts the sweetness).  You could call this my lifelong project-perfect pie. When apple season rolls around I head to my favorite purveyor of apples Prevedelli Farm.  My favorites include Mutsu, Jonagolds, Pippens and Granny Smiths.  I  combine 2 or 3 different varieties of apples to hit sweet, tart, crisp, and soft all in one bite.  Experiment, that’s my mantra.

This is a good old-fashioned all-American apple pie, packed with apples, a hint of cinnamon and nutmeg surrounded by a flaky, buttery crust!  YUM.  Now go make one!

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Mom’s Apple Pie

My go-to Apple Pie recipe, been using this for years. Tried and true.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword Apple Pie, Cinnamon Bun
Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes

Ingredients

My current favorite pie crust recipe is from Dorie Greenspan. It makes a generous amount of dough so you will have excess that you can use for hand pies or small pie.

  • Pastry for 9 inch Two-Crust Pie
  • 3/4 cup sugar 1/2 cup granulated sugar + 1/4 c dark brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour*
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground mace
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • Dash of salt
  • 6 cups thinly sliced pared tart apples about 6 medium
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 tablespoon KA Boiled Cider (secret apple booster) optional

Instructions

  • Prepare pie crust. Place in fridge to chill while making filling.
  • Heat oven to 425 degrees.
  • Mix sugar, flour, mace, cinnamon and salt.
  • Stir in apples. Turn into pastry-lined pie plate; dot with butter.
  • Cover with top crust that has slits cut in it; seal and flute.
  • Make a 3 inch aluminum foil ring. Set aside to use if crust browns too much
  • Bake at 425 for 15 minutes. Lower temperature to 375 degrees, bake until crust is golden brown and juice begins to bubble through slits in crust, 40 to 50 minutes. Cover edge with ring if necessary.
All About that ‘Crust, No Filling (Pie Crust Recipe)

All About that ‘Crust, No Filling (Pie Crust Recipe)

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I absolutely love pie. Apple pie, Lemon Meringue Pie, Pumpkin Pie, Pecan Pie, Peach Pie and BANANA CREAM PIE. Yum.  My favorite part of the pie is the crust, all that buttery goodness in tender flaky sheets.  My current favorite pie crust recipe is from Dorie Greenspan (ok, I might still be starstruck) it is really good.  A combination of butter for flavor and shortening for flakiness.  I tweaked it a bit, little less sugar  (1/8 cup) and a little less salt (1 tsp).  The recipe calls for up to one-half cup of water.  Start with 6 tablespoons.  I usually don’t use more than 8 tablespoons which is well short of one-half cup.

I like starting with a food processor and finishing by hand, the best of both worlds.  The food processor makes short work of cutting the fats into the dry ingredients while finishing the dough by hand prevents overworking the dough and ending up with a tough crust.  By all means, try each method to see what gives you the best crust possible without having you tear your hair out.  Use the food processor throughout or make it completely by hand.  Directions for both are in the recipe.

Just remember the golden rules, keep your ingredients COLD.  If your dough gets too soft at any point put it back in the fridge to chill. Don’t overwork your dough.  This link is to Food52’s  (a great website-check it out) article on what “overwork” means…it’s spot on and now I don’t have to explain it!

And…..EAT. PIE.

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Pie Crust

Course Pie, Pie crust, Pie dough
Cuisine American
Keyword buttery, Flaky, Pie crust, tender
Prep Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • For a 9 inch Double Crust
  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/8-1/4 cup sugar
  • 1-1 ½ tsp salt
  • 2 ½ sticks very cold unsalted butter cut into tbsp size pieces
  • 1/3 cup very cold vegetable shortening cut into 4 pieces
  • About ½ cup ice water you should not need all of it

Instructions

  • Put the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor fitted with a metal blade, pulse just to combine the ingredients. Drop in the butter and shortening and PULSE only until the butter and shortening are cut into the flour. Don’t overdo the mixing- what you’re aiming for is to have some pieces the size of fat green peas and others the size of barley.*

Food processor:

  • Pulsing the machine on and off, gradually add about 6-8 tbsps of the water- add a little water and pulse once, add some more water, pulse again and keep going that way. Then use a few long pulses to get the water into the flour. If, after a dozen or so pulses, the dough doesn’t look evenly moistened or form soft curds, pulse in as much of the remaining water as necessary, or even a few drops more, to get a dough that will stick together when pinched. Big pieces of butter are fine. Scrape the dough out of the bowl and onto a work surface.

Hand Method: (My preferred method it allows for more control)

  • Pour dough into a large mixing bowl. Drizzle water onto dough and mix with fork to bring dough together. The dough will look a little dry but when pinched should hold together. Try not to add too much water. Pour dough onto a lightly floured flat surface and knead lightly to bring dough together.
  • Divide the dough in half. Gather each half into a ball, flatten each ball into a 1"disk and wrap each half in plastic. Refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour before rolling (if your ingredients were very cold and you worked quickly, though, you might be able to roll the dough immediately: the dough should be as cold as if it had just come out of the fridge).

To Roll Out Dough:

  • Have a 9 inch pie plate ready to go.
  • You can roll the dough out onto a floured surface or between sheets of wax paper or plastic wrap. If you’re working on a counter, turn the dough over frequently and keep the counter floured. If you are rolling between paper, plastic or in a slipcover, make sure to turn the dough over often and to lift the paper, plastic, or cover frequently so that it doesn’t roll into the dough and form creases.

Little tricks of the trade

  • Roll from the center of the dough ball out (away from you. Rotate a quarter turn and repeat. by constantly moving you insure it isn't sticking. I cheat, I had hubby get me plastic strips approximately 16 inches long and 2 inches wide in varying thickness, 1/8", 3/8", 1/4", 1/2". The ends of my rolling pin sit on the plastic strips so I roll evenly and to the right thickness.
  • If you have time, slide the rolled out dough into the fridge for about 20 minutes to rest and firm up.
  • When baking lower the rack to the lowest position in the oven. This helps crisp up the bottom crust.

I hate a soggy bottom, don't you?
    Crazy Stupid Lemon Love (Atlantic Beach Pie)

    Crazy Stupid Lemon Love (Atlantic Beach Pie)

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    STOP Whatever You Are Doing Right Now

    Go to your pantry, take out the box of Ritz Crackers, sugar, and that can of sweetened condensed milk from last year’s holiday dessert extravaganza.  Reach into your fruit bowl, grab a couple of lemons and from the fridge pull out eggs, butter and whipping cream.  That’s it, everything you need to make this absolutely scrumptious pie.  Six items to launch yourself into pie bliss.

    NPR-Nice Pie Review

    During my drive to work one day, a segment on NPR caught my attention when I heard the word PIE followed by “Oh My God, Oh My God, Oh My God”.  It was cookbook author Katie Workman describing her first bite of Bill Smith’s Atlantic Beach Pie.  I adore pie and here was a story about a lemon pie that originated in North Carolina and is a favorite of the folks in the South.  Is it a lemon meringue pie?  Kind of, except top the citrusy filling with billowy mounds of whipped cream.  No meringue here. The crust is made with saltines instead of graham crackers and is delightfully crispy, sweet and salty .

    I couldn’t wait to get home and make this pie.

    DSC04239Though the original recipe calls for saltines, I used Ritz crackers instead.  I love Ritz crackers and I always have a box around.  The crushed Ritz crackers (do not pulverize your crackers but should be fine crumbs) are mixed with sugar and softened butter.   The key is to mix the crumbs with the butter until they hold together similar to dough.  This is best accomplished by first pulsing your crackers in a food processor or smashing them with a rolling pin in a Ziploc. Then use your hands to combine the crumbs and butter.   Press crumbs into an 8-inch buttered pie plate.  Don’t worry, the mixture will still be loose when you are pressing it in the pie plate, especially on the rim, but it’s ok.  Bake until golden color about 15 minutes.

    Easy Peasy Lemon Squeasy Filling

    Combine egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, and lemon or lime juice (or both).  I added two tablespoons heavy cream (not in the original recipe but an optional add). Whisk together, pour the filling into the pre-baked crust and bake for 15 minutes. EASY-PEASY  As the pie cools, whip one cup of heavy cream until soft peaks form and hold their shape.  I did sweeten my whip cream slightly (1-2 teaspoons sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla).  Chill the pie until set and then pile on the cream.  Garnish with a sprinkling of coarse salt and strands of lemon zest.  DIG IN!  Yum, yum, yum.

    Yep, CRAZY good, STUPID easy.

    Here is the link to the NPR segment on Atlantic Beach Pie in Found Recipes.

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    Atlantic Beach Pie, Crazy Stupid Lemon Love

    This pie is so good it's iconic now, Atlantic Beach Pie, crumb crust, lemon filling topped with whipped cream, delicious.
    Course Dessert, Pie
    Cuisine American
    Keyword Atlantic Beach PIe, lemon, pie
    Prep Time 15 minutes
    Cook Time 35 minutes

    Ingredients

    For crust:

    • 1 1/2 sleeves of saltine crackers or Ritz crackers about 6 ounces
    • 1/3 to 1/2 cup softened unsalted butter
    • 3 tablespoons sugar

    For the filling

    • 1 can 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
    • 4 egg yolks
    • 1/2 cup lemon or lime juice or a mix of the two
    • 2-4 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream
    • 1 teaspoon lemon zest optional I added zest to increase the lemon flavor

    Da Finish

    • 1 cup heavy cream
    • 1 tsp vanilla
    • 1-2 tsp granulated sugar
    • Coarse sea salt for garnish
    • lemon or lime zest for garnish

    Instructions

    • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
    • Crush the crackers finely, but not to dust. I use my food processor or dump the crackers into a ziploc and crush with a rolling pin.
    • Add the sugar, then knead in the butter until the crumbs hold together like dough.
    • Press into a buttered 8 inch pie pan.
    • Chill for 15 minutes, then bake for 18 minutes or until the crust colors a little.
    • While the crust is cooling (it doesn't need to be cold), beat the egg yolks into the condensed milk, then stir in the citrus juice. Make sure filling is well combined.
    • Pour into the shell and bake for 14-16 minutes until the filling has set.
    • Chill until set.
    • Pile whipped cream on top of pie. Sprinkle with salt or garnish with zest