renegade pie maker

I love to cook. I like to bake. I’m pretty good at both. Pie crusts on the other hand are my downfall.  My mom always made (and still makes) fantastic pies – maybe this is why I always seem to fail when it comes to the crust.  They aren’t as flaky, no matter how cold the ingredients are.  The sides fall down. I could go on and on with my low pie moments. 

So against all things homemade, I broke down and finally used a store-bought, refrigerated pie crust.  No fail this time!

Besides the store-bought pie crust, I tend to free-form my fillings – very unlike my mom’s pies which followed a recipe to the T most times.  Hence the term renegade – I feel like a rebel when I throw caution to the wind and flip the bird to traditional recipes. How do I accomplish these rebellious acts you might ask?  I use brown sugar (most fruit pies use white sugar), rarely ever use the same fruit combos or amounts twice, and switch up my flavorings (though I went standard with vanilla this time).  I’m really living on the edge here, in my head perhaps.  Sorry for projecting.  The pie is delicious though.

You can change-up the type of fruit depending on what you like or what you need to use up.   You just need enough fruit to fill up the pie dish.  If you are more skilled than I, definitely make your own pie crust. Store-bought crust is good, but I must admit homemade still tastes better (unless I’m the one making it).

Mixed Berry Pie

• 13 oz to 1 lb strawberries sliced
• 1/2 lb to 12 oz blueberries picked over to remove stems
• 1 plum peeled and cubed
• 1/2 c brown sugar, plus extra for dusting the crust
• 3 tbsp corn starch
• pinch of salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract, lemon or orange juice/zest, almond extract, cinnamon, liqueurs, etc
• 1 package (2 crusts – one for the top and one for the bottom) refrigerated pie crust at room temperature
• 1 tbsp butter, sliced into thin pats
• 3 tbsp milk

Preheat over to 400f.

Toss all the ingredients, except for the crust, butter, and milk in a bowl.  Mix so that the sugar and cornstarch are mixed with the fruit juices and vanilla.  Set aside.

Unroll one pie crust and line a pie plate with the crust. Make sure it is down into the corner edge at the bottom of the plate.   Trim excess from the edges if you are feeling frisky (leaving enough for crimping), or leave it if you lazy like me.

Dump you fruit mixture into the pie plate.  Dot with the pats of butter.

Unroll the second crust and lay across the top of the pie.  If you are feeling frisky again, trim off any excess crust from the edges or leave it as is.

Crimp your edges to seal your pie.  Make them look pretty, or if you are like me again, make half the crimps ugly and hit your pretty crimping stride when you have already massacred half the crust.  You just want to make sure the pie crusts’ edges are sealed together.

Make some slits in the top of the pie to let out steam.  Brush the top of the pie with the milk and sprinkle with extra brown sugar.

Pop it in the over for 10 minutes at 400.  You can place a baking sheet lined with tin foil under the pie plate to catch any filling that bubbles over.  I was a rebel (with an oven already in need of a cleaning) and didn’t put any protection down under the pie.

When the crust begins to brown a bit, it is time to turn the oven temperature down to 350/375f.  At this point you want to wrap the edge of your crust in tin foil  (make a narrow collar type contraption) to prevent it from burning.

Cook for another 20-40 minutes depending on your oven and fruit.  The pie is done when the filling in bubbling and the crust is golden brown.  If the filling doesn’t bubble up then it will not thicken and you will have a runny, corn starchy filling – yuck.

Let the pie cool a bit before serving.  This allows time for the filling to set.  Slice and serve with a scoop of ice cream or some fresh whipped cream.

katie’s shepherd’s pie

For the past three years my best friend Katie “the cheese lady” has been throwing a St. Patrick’s day party that has evolved into a local legend… Of course, she had to start this delicious tradition after I moved away.  Now I cry myself to sleep at night wishing I could attend her shindig for the week preceding Patty’s day.   To pull me out of my bout of seasonal depression, Katie has kindly shared two of her party recipe standbys. 

The first one I am going to share with you is her Shepherd’s Pie.  Katie says “you can do a lot of substitutions here depending on what is available and what you like, [but] this is [her] personal favorite way to cook Shepherd’s Pie!”

If you can find it, I would highly recommend using the cheese Katie recommends – Boschetto al Tartufo (aged truffle cheese).  She is the “cheese lady” after all (no really I mean it, she is a cheese lady – a gourmet food buyer and she specializes in cheese and chocolate –  part of her ever growing job description), so trust her suggestion on this one.  I guarantee a delicious result!   

I apologize for the lack of pictures, but I will be posting her soda bread recipe later with some photos, so stay tuned.

This is a large casserole and should serve 8-12 depending on the size of your troop and their level of hunger. 

Katie’s Shepherd’s Pie

6 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1 inch dice

3 turnips, peeled and chopped into 1 inch dice

2 tbsp butter

¼ cup milk

½ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 lb. ground beef

1 lb. ground lamb

2 oz. bacon diced

1 yellow onion, small dice

4 carrots, small dice

2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Salt and pepper

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp onion powder

3 tbsp tomato paste

1 cup liquid (I use beer, chicken stock or white wine)

1 cup frozen pearl onions

1 cup frozen corn kernels

Boschetto al Tartufo or another kind of aged truffle cheese, shredded.

1.) In a large pot, bring the potatoes and parsnips to a boil and cook until tender.

2.) While the potatoes and cooking, in a large skillet brown the lamb and beef over medium high heat.  Pour off most of the fat and set aside the browned meat. 

3.) Next add the bacon, onions and carrots to the skillet and let cook over medium-high heat for about 8 minutes until the carrots and onions begin to soften.  Then add the minced garlic and cook for another 2 minutes. 

4.) Add the Worcestershire, tomato paste, parsley, thyme, onion powder, and reserved meat to the skillet and stir together.  Then add the liquid, pearl onions and corn.  Combine the mixture and season with salt and pepper.  Cook over medium heat, covered for 15 minutes.

5.) Preheat your over to 375°F

6.) While the filling is cooking, drain the potatoes and parsnips and add the butter, milk and cheese.  Mash well.  Season with salt and pepper if needed.

7.) In a large casserole dish, spread the meat mixture in one even layer, then top with the mashed potatoes and parsnips.  Do this carefully, using a flat spatula, to make sure that the meat mixture is covered evenly.  Cover with aluminum foil.

8.) Bake for 30 minutes and then remove the foil. Sprinkle with Boschetto al Tartufo cheese, return to the oven and bake until golden brown for another 10 minutes.