Recipe: Peach Pie

My husband and I recently held a party.  This is great.  I knew that I wanted to provide a dessert.  For me, dessert pretty much has to involve chocolate somewhere.  I do make desserts that don't include chocolate, but I generally prefer to do that when I have a guest who doesn't like chocolate.  One of our recent parties was just such an occasion.  My friend Patricia doesn't like chocolate.  She's gotten increasingly tolerant of chocolate since having her first child, but she still isn't what you would call a fan.  That leaves fruity desserts.  My favorite fruit of this particular season is the peach.  Therefore, I was going to make a peach pie. 

 

I was actually pleasantly surprised by how this came out.  Like I said, I don't generally enjoy non-chocolate desserts, but this one was actually pretty good.  The pastry, which I've been struggling with lately, came out tender, flaky and delicious, and the almond flavoring in the pastry matched very well with the peaches.  I would advise using a very light hand with the cloves; a little really does go a very long way.  Unfortunately, by the time that the pie was served Patricia had to leave.  I had also intended to garnish this with raspberries but forgot, so the raspberries are still sitting in my fridge.  Still, the remaining guests seemed pretty happy with the non-chocolate treat! 

 

Peach Pie (serves 10; approx. $0.73/serving)

2 quantities Fearless Sweet Shortcrust Pastry

6 peaches

1 cup turbinado sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

2 teaspoons ground cardamom

scant 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

2 tablespoons butter

Soy milk, for brushing (optional)

Equipment:

• 9" pie plate
• Rolling pin
• Scissors
• Cookie cutter
• Pastry brush (optional)
• Aluminum foil
• Large bowl

1. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. 
2. Peel your peaches and slice them thinly.  Put the slices in the large bowl.  Resist the urge to eat the slices right now. 
3. Add the sugar, corn starch and spices to the bowl.  Mix well.
4. Unzip the top of the zip-top bag containing 1 quantity of the pastry.  Roll it out, while still in the bag, so that it fills the whole bag. 
5. Using the scissors, cut the sides of the zip-top bag all the way to the bottom.  Press the pastry into the pie plate and remove the plastic. 
6. Mound the contents of the bowl into the center of the pie plate. 
7. Cut the butter into the smallest cubes you can manage and sprinkle them liberally over the top of the filling. 
8. Roll out the second quantity of pastry the same way you rolled out the first.  Carefully cover the filling with the second crust. 
9. Crimp the edges of the two crusts together; I essentially rolled them together with my fingers, but use whatever process works for you. 
10. Press the cookie cutter into the center of the top crust.  It is not necessary to remove the cut-out piece; there should be enough separation to allow steam to escape. 
11. If desired, brush the top of the pie with soy milk (or regular milk, if that's what you have.)  This will help the pie to brown and crisp up nicely.
12. Use aluminum foil to cover the edges of your pie.  This will prevent the crust from burning while the rest of the pie cooks. 
13. Bake the pie for 30 minutes.  Placing the pie plate on a baking sheet will minimize boil over from your pie making a mess in your oven, but it isn't strictly necessary. 
14. After 30 minutes, remove the foil and bake another 20 - 30 minutes depending on your oven.  The crust should be nice and brown when you are done. 
15. Serve either hot or at room temperature.

Technorati Tags: Recipes,pie,dessert,sweet food,peaches,cardamom,allspice,pastry,original recipes

Comments

[Peter]

I think peach pie is one of the most summery pies there can be.

[Dave]

Mmmm...cardamom, cloves, and allspice. Sounds wonderful.