I find myself baking more than usual in the winter. Not that we have much of a winter here. It’s mild, at 72 degrees in the day, and 57 degrees at night. That’s an LA winter. I’m grateful it’s not going to be 92 degrees this year, so I don’t have to run the air conditioning while I’m baking. That was the worst last year. It’s 3am, and I just ate one of my mini pecan pies that I made. I’m exhausted, but damn, it was delicious and worth it.
This year, we are going to Brooke & Derricks for Thanksgiving. I’m in charge of the pies of course, and some other misc. things. (Green Bean Casserole, Fresh rolls, and cranberry sauce). I am trying a new pie on Thanksgiving that I’m excited about. It’s a cranberry pie. Excited to see what that will taste like. But meantime, here are a few classics, best best best.
PECAN PIE-
My favorite will always be Pecan Pie. Always always. I actually dislike pumpkin, so very much. But you can never go wrong with a pecan pie.
Ingredients:
- 1 Cup of Light or Dark Karo Syrup
- 1 Cup Sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 teaspoons of vanilla
- 4 Tablespoons of melted butter, 1 more for roasting the pecans.
- A pinch of sea salt
- 2 cups of pecans
- 1 pre-prepared crust *See Basic Pie Crust recipe from yesterday.
Preheat your oven to 425.
Stir all the above together except the pecans. Melt one tablespoon of the butter in a pan. Pour your 2 cups of pecans in the pan and pan fry them, turning every other min. Do this for about 7 min or until your pecans are golden brown. Pour the pecans over the liquid mix.
Place your pie crust in your pie pan, and cut the edges off with kitchen sheers. Fill your pie crust with the pecan mixture. Place in your oven. Cook at 425 for 15 min, and then reduce heat to 375 for the other 45 min. Keep an eye on the pecans on top, make sure they don’t burn. If you see signs of burning on the crust, cover them with foil.
Remove from the heat and let cool.
APPLE PIE-
I used to sneak in the fridge in the middle of the night when I was a kid, and eat the crust off of ALL of my dads apple pie. I remember it being chewy, and kinda soggy from the apple juice goop that it had been soaking in. I never really LOVED the apples in the pie though. Then I tried making one with THINLY SLICED SLICES. Whoa, that made a huge difference. And if you put some fresh whip cream on top... or a scoop of ice cream on a fresh hot slice of apple pie (a la mode). That was when I fell in love.
Ingredients:
- 2 Pre made pie crust
- 7-8 apples, I use Granny & Honey Crisps. Tart and Sweet.
- 1 Tablespoon of Lemon Juice
- 1/3 cup flour
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar
- 1/8 salt
Preheat your oven to 375.
1- Thinly slice your apples. I mean, THIN. I use sharp knives that changed my life... but you can use a mandolin.
2- Throw them in a large bowl, toss them with lemon juice
3- Combine all the dry ingredients together and then sprinkle them over the apple / lemon mixture.
4- Set aside and let the juice soak in.... about 20 min if you can.
5- Line your pie pan with pie crust. Pour your apples in. Lattice your 2nd crust. If you dont’ know how to Lattice, you can learn quick. You are weaving the crust. Basically like making a friendship bracelet when you were a kid.
6- Bake for 45-60 min at 375.
7- Let cool on a rack for at least an hour before diving in. :)
TRIPLE BERRY PIE-
This is one of my all time fave. I have to say that this batch of fruits were not as sweet due to me taking a shortcut and not letting it sit in it’s juices for 20 min (see step below I skipped to save time). I think no one noticed but me.
Ingredients:
- 2 pre-made pie crust (store bought or fresh made).
- 3 cups blueberries
- 1 1/2 cup blackberries
- 1 1/2 cup raspberries
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch of sea salt
Egg Wash for brushing the crust before you put in the oven:
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon very cold water (i set some aside in ice for 5 min, and remove the ice)
- 2 Tablespoons Turbinado sugar or other coarse sugar for topping.
Directions:
1) Combine the 3 berries in a large bowl.
2) Add Sugar, cornstarch, ginger, cinnamon & salt.
3) Stir with a large spoon to mix well, mashing the berries gently with the back of the spoon to release their juices. Cover the bowl with a kitchen cloth and leave to sit for 15 min.
4) Pour the mixed berry filling into the chilled crust.
5) Add your lattice topping, this is super easy... arrange your strips over the pie filling in alternating rows, weaving the six strips horizontally and six vertically. Trim the lattice stripes to 1 inch overhang and tuck the top and bottom overhangs under the bottom crust. Crimp the edges decoratively with a form or as desired.
6) Whisk the egg yolk and water in a small bowl, then use a pastry brush to brush the wash over the lattice and edges of the crust.
7) Sprinkle the sugar evenly over the pie.
8) Place the pie in the fridge once assembled for at least 20 min. TRUST ME , THIS WILL MAKE A HUGE DIFFERENCE, THE FRUIT WILL BE SWEETER, I took this shortcut last night and could taste the difference.
9) Meanwhile you should be preheating your oven to 425.
10) Transfer your pie to a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil to catch any overflow juices that spill out.
11). Bake for 15 min at 425.
12) Reduce the over temp to 375 and bake an additional 35 min , until the crust is golden, and the juices should be bubbling in the center of the pie.
Cool at least for 4 hours before you dive into.
Serve with fresh made whip cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
And Enjoy. ❤️
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