Teach Pie Early!

Growing up - come Thanksgiving time - the Pumpkin Pie was MINE!  I'm unsure how this tradition started, but it is still here.

Partly, it may have to do with how much I loved eating the raw pie crust, but that's another story.  Functionally it comes down to the fact I started making pie crust before I was mentally equipped to be nervous about the results.  I was just experimenting.  (OK, maybe I never got over that).  But because I was just playing around, I had the time to do it wrong on the way to right.

 That was true for the pie filling as well.  There was the year I left out the eggs.  OOPS!  But my mom simply decided that year the pie was sauce for the ice cream.  It wasn't ruined, it was just different.  It still tasted great, the form had just changed.  (Part of me thinks that was key in my continued kitchen exploration - step 1: make it taste good.  The rest is details.)

But back to the crust.  Because I started working with pie crust before I knew it was an object of fear and loathing, I've never really had trouble with it.  In fact, one year at camp they had a pie making contest and I busted out an apple pie off the top of my head.  

So with that in mind, it was High Time for the offspring to learn pie crust.  A valuable skill out there in the big bad world.

So what makes pie crust (and thus pie) so easy AND so hard?  It is simple - but needs to be adjusted by experience.  It's not a hard and fast ratio like water (H2O - Always 2 hydrogens to 1 water - no matter what).  It is close to a hard and fast ratio - start with 2 C flour and 1 of fat - but then it needs a little adjustment, a little water, don't forget the salt.

And less is more.  Manipulate it less.  Overworking it makes a rock hard crust.  Walking away when it seems sort of unfinished is the key.  And use your hands.  Get floury and buttery.  The crust will come out better for it.

And the key of all keys.  Wrap it and let it rest.

Because if you do that - then your child(ren) can learn to do this:

Oh - and Julia Child's kitchen wisdom recipe (more or less)

For 2 9(ish) inch Pie Crusts

Equipment: 

large bowl

2 butter knives or a pasty cutter

clean hands

square of plastic wrap/wax paper/produce bag/tea towel

very clean, dry counter

And later - 

rolling pin

2 9-ish inch pie pans

Ingredients:

2C flour - if you have it, use 1/2C cake flour and 1.5C AP flour, but don't sweat it if you don't.

1C cold butter (that's 8oz or 2 sticks) Lots of people (inc. JC) swear by 4oz butter + 4oz vegetable shortening or lard.  That works great too, but again what you have is what works best.

1 Tbs + ice water

1tsp salt

Prep:

Scoop up 1 heaping cup of flour.  Level it off with a butter knife.  Dump it into the bowl.  Repeat to get 2 cups of flour.

Pour the flour into a large bowl

Add the salt and stir it in.

Chop the butter (or butter/shortening mix) into large pea sizes.

Dump them into the flour and proceed to cut the butter into smaller and smaller pieces - until the flour looks like coarse corn meal.  Add in the 1 Tbs of ice water - dribbling it all around the flour.

(Can also have the food processor do the above cutting/mixing.) 

Using clean hands, squish the whole thing into a ball, and dump it onto the counter.

Use the heel of your hand to push out a portion of the dough into a "tongue".  Pull it back in.  

Do this about 5 times to get all the loose flour incorporated (more or less).

Smoosh it all back together, cut it in half, and pat together into 2 disks about the size of the circle you can make with your 2 hands together.  Wrap it up.

Let it rest for at least 30 min in the fridge.  Or up to 2 days.  If its going to hang out any longer than that - freeze it.

Roll it Out:

Let fridged dough sit on the counter for 1-5 min (depending on how long its been in there).  Frozen dough needs a solid hour on the counter - or just remember to thaw it in the fridge the night before (I know - I crack myself up sometimes).

Sprinkle flour on the clean, dry counter top, (or a very smooth tea towel), rub some on the rolling pin (device), and get plenty on your hands.  Have flour out to keep things unsticky.  As long as your sprinkle lightly, don't worry about using too much.

Roll out the pie dough.
Sprinkle flour on the clean, dry counter top, (or a very smooth tea towel), rub some on the rolling pin (device), and get plenty on your hands.  Have flour out to keep things unsticky.  As long as your sprinkle lightly, don't worry about using too much.

Try to roll up and down.  Then turn the dough 90˚ (1/4 turn).  

Flip, do this to the other side.  This will keep the dough in a basically circular shape (a rounded rectangle) and fairly even thickness.

Repeat until it is quite a bit bigger than the pie plate - giving room for the pie crust to come all the way up the sides and drape over the edge.

When it's big enough - with floury hands - lift it into the pie plate.  Jiggle it down and either drape it over the edge and cut off the excess.

 If you are feeling fancy, you can pinch the extra into fluted edge - then cut off the extra extra, or even cut out leaves or other shapes and place them around the edge.

Fill it with sweet or savory!

Lamb Meat Pies

Best Leftovers EVER! – So Far.

These take some work – but freeze wonderfully – so make a double (or more) recipe, and have quick suppers or party food on hand.

Lamb Meat pies... & Yogurt Sauce

Equipment :

Cookie Sheet/½ Sheet pan

Rolling pin

4 – 5” circular cookie cutter

Large bowl

Dish towels (non-fuzzy)

Spoon (regular size)

Small sauté or sauce pan

Whisk

optional - collander

Ingredients:

Leftover roasted potatoes

Leftover Lamb stew  

(actually any hearty filling works… don’t be scared - 

the British go with corned beef and smashed potatoes)

2 Tbs flour

1 Tbs butter or oil

1 tsp yeast

1 tsp salt

3 Tbs sugar

1 C warm (105˚F) water + another ½ Cup

4 C AP flour + more for dusting

Non-stick cooking spray

Optional for yogurt sauce:

½ C plain yogurt

a large handful of thinly sliced cucumber

1 tsp salt

fresh herbs (mint, parsley, basil – any combination to your taste)

1 – 2 cloves crushed garlic

more salt to taste.

Prep:

Mix yeast, salt, sugar & 1 C water.  Set aside until it is a little frothy.

Pour as much broth out of the stew as you can – at least a cup.  If it is more – great.  If less, make up to at least a cup with water or vegetable or chicken broth.

Chop the meat up into smallish pieces, add it and the roasted potatoes into your stew.

Optional yogurt sauce: thinly slice cucumber, sprinkle with the tsp of salt  - let sit for 10 – 30 min.

Rinse off the salt, lay the cucumber on one of the dishtowels.  Roll up and squeeze mercilessly.  It is now drained and ready for the yogurt sauce. (can be refrigerated for later at this stage)

Cook:

 In a large bowl, stir the yeasty water into the flour.  Stir with a fork – or your hands.  Add a little more water until it starts to hold together in one dough ball.  Work on a floured counter – kneading to make a stiff dough (or use your mixer with a dough hook).  When it has all come together, divide into 2 balls, cover with a clean towel and set aside for 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350˚F

Make a roux from the broth from the stew.  A roux, you ask, what’s that?*

In a small sauté pan over med high heat, add the flour, stir it gently to toast the flour lightly (it will start to smell a little like… toast), add the butter or oil, stir to coat all the flour particles.  Let the mixture froth for about a minute. 

While whisking the mixture, pour in your stew liquid, a dribble at a time, making sure to stir in each dribble.  

When all the liquid is stirred in, set aside, let it cool, and admire your roux.  Taste it, and see if it needs salt.  Correct any deficiencies. It will help make your meat pies extra delicious.

After you finish your roux, the dough is ready for the next step.

Roll out one dough ball to about 1/8” thickness (this is a workout) and cut out circles.  Lay them out on your baking sheet – do the same with the other ball.  Combine the scraps, and make a few more rounds (expect 12 – 16 circles).

Cover with a clean towel and let these rise for 15 more minutes.

Set up your meat pie assembly station:

The stew with the chopped meat + potatoes

Your tasty roux

Dough circles

A baking pan with non-stick spray (or a Silpat)

Layout your dough circles – place about 1 tsp of roux on the bottom, and a heaping tablespoon of stew in the center. 

Pinch together the circle half way up one side, then bring the other side up to make a triangle – or something that looks like a three cornered hat.  Squeeze the seams together leaving a little space for steam to escape at the top.

Place these on the baking pan – pop in the oven.  Cook for about 30 minutes – until they start to take on a lightly toasted appearance - if you are planning on serving right away.

If they are headed for the freezer, stop the cooking at 10 minutes, cool, freeze on a flat pan, and seal in a zip top bag or other airtight container when they are solid.

Reheat at 350˚F in a baking pan covered with foil for about 25 minutes – when they take on a light golden color, and the gravy is bubbling inside.

If you’d like the yogurt sauce, combine the yogurt, drained cucumbers, herbs, garlic and salt to your taste, and serve with the meat pies.

Excellent party food!  And from stew – who knew?

*Cajun cooking may have made roux famous – in its variety (white, brown, brick etc…) but roux comes from French cooking, the stodgy grandparent of Cajun Cuisine.  Really, it’s just a quick way to thicken or add body to any sauce.  Get the hang of this technique – and gravy at Thanksgiving will be something you can do with one hand tied behind your back.