Maude Knox’s Buttermilk pie

December 2nd, 2009
by: Sue

I found this recipe in Marguerite’s files, she attributed the recipe to her mother, Maude Boesch Knox. I don’t remember Mema ever making the pie, but we love it! We baked it for Thanksgiving 2009 and it was the first pie to go.

1/2 cup butter, melted
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 Tablespoons flour
3 eggs, beaten
1 pinch salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup buttermilk
1 deep dish pie shell

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Beat the butter and sugar together until light. Add the eggs, beat thoroughly. Sift the dry ingredients together and add to the batter alternately with the buttermilk; beat until smooth. Pour into a deep dish pie shell and bake at 400 for 10 minutes. Lower heat to 350 and bake for 50-60 additional minutes. Done when pie is a nice golden brown and a knife inserted comes out clean. Best while still warm.

Variation: Use lemon extract and lemon zest in lieu of vanilla.

Try this recipe when you have buttermilk you need to use.

Hint: I like to prebake the pie crust for a few minutes, and skip the high temperature beginning, baking for 80 minutes or more at 325.

Fresh Pear and Cranberry Cobbler

September 28th, 2009
by: Sue

Every year around Christmas, we receive a wonderful box of Harry and David pears. Most of them we eat sliced, but I sometimes make this dish that resembles an apple betty since it has a crumb topping. Delish! The first time I made it, my grandson Tommy nearly ate the whole thing himself.

4 fresh Bartlett pears
2 tablespoons vanilla
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Topping:
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cups fresh cranberries

Preheat the oven to 350.

Peel the pears and cut them in half through the stem end. Use a melon baller to scoop out the cores. Put the pear halves in a large bowl, sprinkle with vanilla and toss. Sprinkle with brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg and toss to coat the pears with the flavorings. Line the pears up in a buttered (brown) sugared 9 x 12 baking dish rounded sides up.

In the same bowl, mash together the warm butter, brown sugar, flour and salt with your hands. Toss in the cranberries. Crumble the mix over the pears and bake until the topping is crunchy and the pears are tender. 35 or 40 minutes. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream to top.

Cinnamon Chess Pie

September 28th, 2009
by: Sue

I remember eating this pie at the Overton’s home right after WWII. It was always served with coffee, which Mem would cool by saucering it a little at a time so I could sit in his lap and have real coffee laced with cream and sugar. We visited the Overton’s very often and always had a delicious piece of pie or cake and coffee. That was the only time I was allowed to have coffee, so I always looked forward to our visits. We served this pie for most holidays and never grew tired of it.

1 cup sugar
1 heaping Tablespoon flour
1 large can condensed milk
3 beaten egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
1 unbaked pie crust

Add sugar to flour, whisk in milk, egg yolks, cinnamon and vanilla.
Pour into unbaked pie crust, and bake at 400 for 5 minutes, lower heat to 325 and bake until center is firm.

Variation: Make meringue of 3 egg whites, and spread on baked pie. Bake in oven until meringue is lightly browned.

Note: The crust will do better if you prebake it. Line the crust with parchment paper and fill with dried beans. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes, remove from oven and remove paper and beans. Brush the crust with beaten egg, then pour in filling; bake at 325 until center is set.

German Apple Pie

September 27th, 2009
by: Sue

This apple pie is the pie of my dreams. It’s important to choose the freshest apples available with a firm texture and the sweet tart flavor that resembles pineapple. Unfortunately the best apples for this run about $3 a pound, but it’s worth it! If you’re going to the trouble to make it, do it with the best possible ingredients.

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shortening
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 to 3 tablespoons ice water

FILLING:
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
6 cups thinly sliced peeled tart applies (1/4″) approximately 6 apples
1 cup heavy cream

Whipped cream optional to top.

In a small bowl, combine flour and salt; cut in the shortening until crumbly. Add vanilla. Gradually add water, tossing with a fork until dough forms a ball. Roll out pastry to fit a 9 inch pie plate. Transfer pastry to pie plate, trim to 1/2 inch beyond edge of pie plate. Pinch or flute edges to make a pretty edge.

For filling, combine the sugar, flour and the cinnamon. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons of this mix into the crust. Layer with half the apples, then sprinkle with half the remaining sugar mixture. Repeat layers. Pour cream over all.

Bake at 450 for ten minutes. Reduce heat to 350 and bake for 50-60 more minutes until apples are tender. Cool and store in the refrigerator. Top with whipped cream if desired. Delicious!

Candy Bar Pie

September 27th, 2009
by: Sue

Darrell’s sister Nancy served this to us at her home in Taos. This frozen pie has the crunchy almond pieces complemented with the coffee flavoring and a flaky crust. It tastes much more complex than the recipe looks. Great for summer when it’s too hot to fire up the oven for long, we never have this pie hanging around for very long.

1 8 ounce Hershey bar with almonds, broken
1 teaspoon instant coffee granules
1 Tablespoons hot water
1 13 1/2 ounce Cool Whip
1 8″ baked pie crust

Combine candy bars, coffee, and hot water in small saucepan. Stir over low heat until candy is melted and coffee is dissolved. Cool, and fold into whipped topping until smooth. Spoon filling into crust, then freeze for several hours. One 8-inch pie. Serve with coffee, enjoy!

Mississippi Mudder Pie

September 27th, 2009
by: Sue

This recipe has a luscious chocolate crust, creamy two chocolate filling, with a whipped cream top garnished with chocolate curls. If you are a chocolate lover this is your dish.

Pie crust:
1 5/8 cups all purpose flour, plus extra for rolling out
2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa (dark preferably)
5 1/2 ounces butter (11 Tablespoons)
2 Tablespoons superfine bakers sugar
1-2 Tablespoons cold water

Sift the flour and cocoa into a mixing bowl. Cut the butter into little chunks, then put in bowl with the flour mixture. Rub in the butter with the fingertips until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. (The warmth of your fingers will aid in this). Stir in the sugar, then add enough cold water to make a soft dough. Form into a ball, wrap in plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes. While this is chilling, relax and have a glass of mint iced tea.

Filling:
6 ounces butter (1 1/2 sticks)
1 3/4 cups packed dark brown sugar
4 organic eggs, lightly beaten
4 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa, preferably dark
5 1/2 ounces semisweet chocolate (preferably Callebaut)
1 1/4 cups light cream
1 tsp vanilla

When the dough is chilled, roll out on a lightly floured counter and use it to line a 9 inch pie pan. Line with parchment paper and fill with dried beans. Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for 15 minutes, remove from the oven and take out the paper and beans. Put crust back in the oven and bake for another 10 minutes.

To prepare the filling, beat the butter and sugar together in a deep mixing bowl then gradually beat in the eggs with the cocoa. Melt the chocolate (I like to do this in a double boiler) and beat it into the mixture with the cream and vanilla.

Reduce the oven temperature to 325. Pour the filling into the pie shell and bake for 45 minutes, until the filling has set but don’t overbake.

Let the pie cool completely. Top with whipped cream and milk chocolate curls. Chill until ready to serve. Serves eight. May garnish with sprigs of mint. I believe a glass of red wine would go great with this dessert but you may just want more mint tea.

This pie is rich, so you may want to slice into more than 8 pieces.

Pie Crust for Fruit Pies

April 4th, 2009
by: Sue

3 cups unbleached flour (King Arthur)
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
3/4 cup butter, cut into small cubes (organic is the tastiest)
1/2 cup Crisco or lard (or you may use all butter)

Cut in shortening and butter with a pastry blender.
The mixture should have little flakes of butter throughout.

In a small bowl, mix together:

1 egg, beaten
5 Tablespoons COLD water
1 Tablespoon vinegar (I prefer Bragg’s Apple Cider Vinegar)

Add to a depression scooped into the flour mixture, mixing with a fork gently until you can form a ball. On dry West Texas days I find I often have to add another Tablespoon of cold water (or two, but try to add as little as possible!) Separate into two balls, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Roll out to fit your pie plate, handle as little as possible. Roll dough up on your rolling pin, and transfer to lightly floured pie pan, gently rolling out. Add filling, roll out the second crust, making little cuts in the crust to allow steam to escape. You can also cut out circles in the dough with a biscuit cutter. Transfer to the pie, again rolling on the rolling pin and unrolling onto the top of the pie. Flute the edge of the crust.

You may glaze the crust by brushing a light wash of egg white and water with a pastry brush. Cook fruit pies very slowly (275 to 300) to prevent the crust from burning. This will also produce the flakiest, best crust.