Fancy Pear Tart

Want to get me rousted out of bed and out the door early on a Saturday morning?  Well I have two words for you:  Amish farmers!  Like, horse and buggy, white bonnet, friendly bearded Amish people selling the fruits and veggies from their farms.  The Saturday market in Tower Grove features a few Amish farmstands, and because I have zero self control, I found myself at home that afternoon with about six pounds of pears.  

My husband and I made a deal.  I would make him a pear tart if he would make me a pear-based cocktail.  So I googled and googled, and as soon as I saw the words "butterscotch pastry cream" thrown in, I was sold.   Never mind that I had never made a tart before.  A tart is just a shallower pie, right?

With the holidays approaching, it's time to think about festive treats that solicit "ooohs" and "aaaahs" from your party hosts.  This tart fits that bill perfectly.  While it has a few different components, they can all be made ahead of time, and the tart assembles in a snap.  People are always impressed when you make your own pie crust, and this one does not disappoint. 

Piesignment #2 - Allison's Three Berry Pie

I have something I need to say about pies. They don't scare me. Never have, never will. I know this may sound a little cocky, or maybe a little silly to those of you who are also unafraid of pies, but I just had to put that out there. See, I hear all the time about the fear that pie crust instills in people, and I just don't get it. I guess I can see how it would be daunting; all that talk about keeping things super cold you think you'd have to live in Alaska to make an ok crust. Or how about the very specific instruction that the butter must be pea-sized before mixing in the liquid? I still don't know if I've ever achieved the perfect pea-sized piece of butter. And then there's the rolling out, and the horror stories of pie crust sticking and tearing, and ok this does sound a little terrifying.
But here's the thing, the most important thing about pie crust: homemade pie crust always taste better than store-bought, always! At least, that's what has been my experience. And so even if you mess something up, or it looks a little funky, you're still way ahead of the game in the taste department. When I began to bake about ten years ago, one of the very first things I ever made was pie, and since then I have continued to bake pies probably more than any other dessert. There usually is a pie of mine at every family gathering, every summer BBQ, and don’t get me started on Thanksgiving when the baking starts two days before the event and usually ends in 5 or 6 different pies.

Why so much pie? Part of it I think is because pie is just so darn simple to make, and anything that’s simple appeals to the lazy side of me. That’s right, pie is simple! Especially fruit pies. Because most pie crust recipes use the same method (cut cold fats into flour until it looks like coarsemeal, drizzle with a cold liquid and mix until it just comes together), the only part you really have to memorize are the ingredients. So once you’ve got the method down, and the ingredient portions memorized, you will never need a recipe again! Trust me, you'll love the feeling of having a pie crust recipe under your belt; it's like having a secret dessert weapon in your arsenal at all times.

Piesignment #2 - Mary's 4th of July Peach Pie

Peach pie on a retro tablecloth.  I'm not sure if it gets much more summery than this.  It kinda makes me feel like the blonde mom on the Wonder Years.

If I'm giving an honest holiday recap, the weather did not show up in So Cal this year.  I think the high temperature of the day may have reached a blistering 65 degrees, and our Malibu-soaked watermelon, while delicious, was not exactly needed to beat the heat.  Instead of packing the car and heading for the beach, we had a good old fashioned backyard party with family.  Jill, Nicole, and I were secretly a little bit happy with this outcome, as it gave us a chance to get down to business and do what we do best:  cook one handed (while the other hand holds a margarita).  Our missions:  Nicole went to town on breakfast, salsas, carnitas, and side dishes.  Jill threw down some killer guac and a big stack of homemade tortillas.  I took it upon myself to make pie happen.  And oh did pie happen.

Pie Spectacular #1 - Allison's Sweet Cherry Pie

When it came to the first piesignment for our Summer Pie Spectacular, I didn't think too far out of the box. This is just a traditional lattice-topped, slice of Americana kind of pie. It's the kind of pie that makes me think of Fourth of July BBQ's, state fair baking competitions, and pie-eating contests. To me, cherry pie has such a retro feel to it that it takes me back in time. Back to those days that people like to refer to as "simpler." It makes me think of a pie being cooled on a windowsill (if that sort of thing actually occurs), the scent enticing those who walk by to try and steal a piece. Which is exactly what I attempted to do before realizing my windowsills were not made to accommodate pies, and that I live out in the boonies so if there was somebody happening to be walking by I would be more freaked out than charmed.

I may not have been able to make my homespun vision a reality, but I was able conjure up some of those images while making and enjoying this good old fashioned pie. The pie itself isn't completely traditional though. I did jazz up the filling a bit with some Cointreau and almond extract. I love the combination of almond and cherries, and the citrus kick from the liqueur was the perfect counterbalance. I would love to make a cherry pie with fresh sour cherries which are traditionally used in cherry pie, but unfortunately we just don't see those around these parts. So I went with the sweet cherry varieties that are available instead. I used half Bing and half Rainier which are both very sweet and very delicious in their own different ways.

I'll admit that I had never tried Rainier cherries before last week. I kept passing them over at the farmer's market; maybe it was something about their yellowish hue that didn't appeal to me? I don't know what it was, but I had gone my entire life without consuming one. But when I set out to make pie for this assignment I knew that I couldn't possibly make a sweet cherry pie without trying all the different varieties. Once I popped one in my mouth however, it was love at first taste. These yellow beauties were even sweeter than the Bing cherries that they would be sharing a pie with. I'm just bummed I have been missing out on them this whole time!

Pie Spectacular #1 - Mary's Ranier Cherry Pie

The day is finally here!  It's pie-signment #1, and Allison and I can't wait to see your cherry pies.  As it turns out, my pie duties could not have come at a more opportune time.

Friends, I gotta be honest.  In the last few days, I haven't been feeling like myself.  First I single handedly killed the wireless internet in my house.  Next I bought a new facial cleanser that does not take its cleansing duties very seriously, hello breakout city.  Then, after agreeing to look after my neighbors' cats while they were in Joshua Tree, one of the cats went rogue and disappeared for about 10 hours (I'm so a dog person).  Oh and that job that I love and am lucky to have?  It's kicking my ass, stressing me out, and making me want to hide in a bunker with a 64 ounce milkshake and a stack of Martha Stewart Weddings magazines.

In a brief moment of overwhelmedness, I thought about bailing on this week's piesignment.  I figured you all would be in good hands with Allison, and that you didn't need to hear Eeyore talk to you about pie.  But as it turns out, this baking project was just what I needed.

Apricot Hand Pies

Ah summertime, there’s nothing quite like it. Each day is a little longer, a little warmer, a little more magical than the one before it. It’s the perfect time for casual entertaining, trips to the beach, camping with friends, and these delicious little hand pies. Because just one of the many things that is great about this dessert is how portable they are, and they would be more than welcome at any of those places I just mentioned. Sure they take a little bit more work to put together than your average pie, but when you get to your destination with a container full of little packages of flaky crust and juicy fruit that need little more than a pair of hands to enjoy, you’ll agree that it’s well worth it.
Summer and pie just happen to go hand in hand (pun intended), and we here at Butter + Cream love our pie any way we can get it. Whether it be covered in a lattice top, filled with a creamy filling, topped with whipped cream, or folded up into a handy treat, they’re allll good. In fact, we love pie so much, this summer we are having what we like to call the Butter + Cream Pie Spectacular! We will be putting up piesignments twice a month and hopefully all of you will play along with us. Click here to catch up on all the details. So needless to say, pie is going to be a very good friend around these parts for awhile, and I can't think of a better way to kick of the summer of pie than with these portable tasty treats.
These hand pies are so good it's ridiculous. Imagine a big bite of your favorite fruit, encased in a buttery flaky crust that fits in the palm of your hand. This is definitely a dessert for anyone whose favorite part of pie is the crust (you know who you are), because there tends to be a higher ratio of it to the fruit. The pies are completely customizable and can be filled with whatever type of fruit or filling your heart desires. I’m a sucker for any fruit or vegetable with a short growing season as it seems to make every bite that much more extraordinary. Which meant that when apricots started showing up at the weekly farmer’s market, I knew I had to make something special out of them that would showcase the fleeting fruit, because blink and they’ll be gone.

It's Summer... Let's Bake Some Pie!

Back in April, I baked a fruit pie.  It made me nervous.  Pies can be temperamental.  Pies are intimidating.  Pies are like that cute boy at the 8th grade dance who agrees to dance with you, even though your hair is frizzy and you have serious acne issues and you sweated through your deodorant.  Wait, is that just me?  Awkward...

In trying to alleviate my own pie-anxiety issues, I looked for tips on the internet.  My favorite advice was as follows:  "bake a lot of pie".  So I was thinking...  Do you want to bake pie with us?  A lot of pie?  Like, all summer?

Introducing:  The Butter + Cream Summer Pie Spectacular!  Here's how it works.  Twice a month, we'll give a piesignment.  Choose a recipe, bake the assigned pie, and blog about it.  On a predetermined date, we'll post  our our pie experiences with all of your links.  You do the same.  Sound good?  We think so!

Without further ado, here's your first piesignment:

 Photo from FruitAcresFarms.com

Cherry pie!
Cherry season is short and sweet.  Out here in California, we're right in the thick of it, as our season runs from Mother's Day to Father's Day.  We see mostly Bing and Ranier cherries in our neck o' the woods, but if you're in Michigan, Utah, New York, or Washington, you probably see your fair share of sour cherries.

Cherry pie is classic Americana.  In 1926, President Coolidge and his wife were presented with a 46 pound cherry pie from the Grand Traverse Cherry Growers of Michigan.  The band Warrant released their hit Cherry Pie in 1990, and it reached number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.  In 2006, a cherry pie won Best in Show in the National Pie Championship.  Clearly, it's an important pie.  Let's see what you do with it!  If fresh cherries are hard to come by in your neck of the woods, grab some canned cherries and work your magic.  Go traditional with a lattice top, or get funky with a crumble or cream cheese filling.  Bonus points if you make a Rainer pie, or if you build a callous while pitting cherries.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to bake a cherry pie and blog about the recipe.  You have two weeks to bake, post, and send us your link.  On June 23, 2010, we'll post our cherry pies, and we'll link to yours!  Not a blogger?  Don't worry about it!  Shoot us an email with your recipe and your photos, and we'll do our best to give you a shout out!

Best of luck, now go get your pie on!

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

 In the great cake vs. pie debate, I've always sat squarely on Team Cake.  Don't get me wrong, I won't turn down a warm piece of apple pie with a scoop of ice cream on top if someone else is making it.  But when it comes to how I want to celebrate my birthday or special occasion, there better be a big tall cake with a hefty dose of chocolate.  Not so for BFF Jill.  For her birthday, she wanted pie.  Fruit pie.  If cake is my comfort zone, fruit pie is the middle seat on an airplane wearing spanx that are one size too small.

When I brought up my baking plans to some friends, I learned that a lot of people are serious about their love for pie.  And then I made this strawberry rhubarb pie with a lattice-topped crust, and now I'm confused.  Why have I spent the last 26 years avoiding homemade pie dough?  And why did it take this long for me to eat my first rhubarb?  And what's so great about cake anyway?  Ok, maybe I'm getting carried away, but I assure you that this pie is a summer classic, and a huge crowd pleaser.  And I'm thinking a lot about pie.  More on that later...  But for now, let's talk about pie dough.