Pie #5: Surprise Pie (Zucchini Pie)

I love to plan surprises.  Sometimes they are happy surprises, other times they are simply funny surprises.  Take for instance the day I had dinner with my friend while wearing a hippie costume.  I gave her a long, intricate story about why I was dressed in costume, why she needed to drive me to her house, why she needed to change course and instead go to her parents' house, and how it was that Perry ended up in costume inside her parents' house.  In the end, the surprise was her hippie-themed 30th birthday party.  She was VERY delighted!

Another surprise I can remember happened when I was a kid.  I really wanted to think of a good April Fool's Day joke to play on Bret (the guy featured in week #4).  Every day he would wake before dawn and do the dishes in the sink.  I knew that this would be my chance to get him - I would be tucked safely in bed and he would never suspect me!  So, after he had gone to bed on March 31, I colored a rubber band black and tied it around the sprayer in the kitchen sink.  I can't remember if the plan worked or how much trouble I was in, but the idea of the surprise still makes me laugh!

It is in this spirit that this week's pie was created.  Knowing that the Stopher's are due for a visit at the end of the week, I found just the right pie.  However, there was a bit of unfortunate timing in that the Leatherman's were to visit today!  Having only 9 years of surprises together, I wasn't sure that I could serve them surprise pie in case it turned out poorly.  I was in a bit of a pickle!  To make a long story short, I ended up making 2 pies: Surprise Pie and second Blueberry Lattice Pie.  In doing this I knew that at least one of them would turn out!

The problem with surprises is that I sometimes have trouble keeping them a secret.  I toyed with the idea of posting a partial blog today with a picture and pie review, and then posting the surprise ingredient and full recipe later in the week.  However, I'm SO excited about this pie - perhaps because it's a surprise or perhaps because I love how it tastes!  Thus, you will get the full scoop immediately!

I wish I could make you promise that you'd try the pie after revealing the surprise ingredient.  However since no one is forced to read this blog (let alone make any of the recipes), I guess I'll just say that this pie is a keeper.  And now the secret ingredient...ZUCCHINI!

This recipe came from Ilene Nofziger and can be found in West Clinton Mennonite's 100 Years  of Recipes and Reflections cookbook.

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Zucchini Pie

Ingredients:
1 pie shell
1 c. zucchini (2 small ones will work)
1 c. sugar
1 c. evaporated milk
1 egg
1tsp. vanilla
1 T. margarine
2 T. flour
1/2 t. salt

Pie Algorithm:
1. Peel, seeed, and chop zucchini.  Cook in small amount of water for 10 minutes and drain.  Measure after cooked.
2. Put all ingredients in blender and mix.  Pour into unbaked pie shell.  Sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg on top.
3. Bake at 400F for 15 minutes.  Reduce heat to 350F and bake for 30 minutes.  Pie will be slightly wiggly, but should be mostly firm to ensure that it is cooked through.

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painting by Noah Yoder

It turns out that I would have been safe simply making the surprise pie for Marv and Kathy.  It tasted a lot like Sugar Cream Pie (a.k.a. Old Fashioned Cream Pie), and they both seemed to enjoy it!  While I really liked the blueberry last week, this also ranks as one of my favorites so far!  I guess there won't be such a big surprise for Bret after all!

Pie #4: Chair Pie (Blueberry Lattice Pie)

Bret (my dad) has recently become what one might call an amateur-expert in caning chairs.  Having retired from teaching high school a year ago he has filled his time with running the furniture end of his local thrift store.  Part of this task requires refurbishing donated furniture, and hence a new hobby was born!  After Perry and I purchased an antique table several months ago, Bret decided that perhaps we needed some caned chairs to go with it.  We thought that sounded like a great idea and therefore found ourselves each parked in front of an unfinished chair - Bret's days of teaching far from over!

Having the most experience, Bret was the only one to finish his chair that weekend.  Wanda (Mom) and Per came close, and I was dead last.  I'm not convinced that I'll ever become an amateur-expert; maybe Perry will finish the remaining three chairs!?!?



This story brings me to the pie of the week.  I can count on one hand the number of times I've made a double-crust pie; all have occurred since I've been married.  When I was growing up, the Stopher household loved pies that didn't require double crusts.  The Leatherman house had a much larger pie repertoire however, and did have double crusts.  With so many hours of experience weaving, I figured it was time to pull off a lattice pie.  Blueberries are still in season, so the recipe was settled!















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Blueberry Lattice Pie

Ingredients:
2 unbaked pie crusts (9.5 inch)

Filling:
4 c. blueberries
2/3 c. sugar
7 T. cornstarch
1/2 t. cinnamon
3 shakes ground cloves
3 T. water
2 T. lemon juice
1 t. vanilla


Wash for top crust:
1 egg yolk
1 T. milk
extra sugar (optional)


Pie Algorithm:
1. Wash berries.  Put in bottom of unbaked crust.
2. Mix sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and cloves in bowl. Add water, lemon juice, and vanilla.  Stir until mixed well.  Pour mixture over berries.
3. Weave top crust into lattice over berries.
4. Beat egg and milk together.  Brush over lattice and sprinkle with extra sugar if desired.
5. Bake at 375F for 1 hour, or until filling is bubbling and has thickened a bit.

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Pie #3: Not Quite Like Mom's Pie (Butter Brickle Banana Cream Pie)

This week there's no formal guest reviewer, but as always Perry is happy to stand in as the unofficial taster!  Knowing his love for bananas, I decided to try a recipe entitled Butter Brickle Banana Cream Pie from Pie, Pie, Pie: Easy Homemade Favorites by John Phillip Carroll.  I don't love banana pie, but the brickle makes me keep coming back for more!

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Butter Brickle Banana Cream Pie

Ingredients:
1 baked pie crust (9-inch)

butter brickle:
1/2 c. sugar
5 T. butter
1/2 c. sliced or slivered almonds

filling:
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. cornstarch
1/4 t. salt
2 1/4 c. milk
3 egg yolks
3 T. butter
1 t. vanilla extract
2 large, ripe bananas

whipped cream:
1 c. heavy (whipping) cream, chilled
4 t. sugar
1/2 t. vanilla extract

Pie Algorithm:
1. (Brickle) Line a shallow baking pan with foil.  Combine the sugar, butter, and almonds in a large skillet.  Place over medium-high heat and cook, stirring almost constantly, until the bubbling mixture turns golden brown, about 5 minutes.  Pour into pan and cool completely; it will harden as it cools.  Break the butter brickle into pieces and chop coarsely in a food processor.  Set aside.

2. (Filling) In a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, and salt.  Pour in the milk and whisk until smooth.  Place over medium heat and cook, whisking almost constantly, until the mixture boils.  Cook, whisking constantly, for about 2 minutes, then whisk in the egg yolks.  Bring the mixture back to a boil, reduce the heat, and cook for 1 minute more.  Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla.  Set aside to cool for about 20 minutes, stirring 2 or 3 times.

3. (Topping) Combine the cream, sugar, and vanilla in a bowl large enough for whipping, and beat until you have nearly stiff peaks.

4. (Assembly) Spread about 1/2 c. of brickle in baked pie shell.  Peel bananas and slice them about 1/4 inch thick, placing the slices over the brickle as you work.  Cover the bananas with the filling and cool to room temperature.  Sprinkle the filling with another 1/2 c. of the butter brickle.  Spread whipped cream over pie and sprinkle with remaining brickle.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.  For best results, eat within a couple of hours.  If you must wait longer, the brickle will gradually soften, but will not lose its flavor.

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After his first slice was complete, Perry's first words were "It's not quite like my mom's."  He went on to say that the pudding filling was different from what he remembered as a kid, but had a hard time figuring out why because he kept getting distracted with the crunchy, salty, nutty brickle.  While it may not be quite like my mother-in-law Kathy's pudding, I was quite pleased that it turned out!  I had tried to make homemade pudding pie several times in the past, each time without success.  This time there was no scorching, no chunks, and it tasted very similar to what I anticipated!

The recipe listed above has not been altered at all; for once I'm pretty satisfied with the results.  If I were to make the pie again, I would perhaps use Kathy's pudding recipe or Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream's Almond Brittle recipe.  In all reality though, Kathy's recipe is similar to that above and the brickle recipe above is almost too easy not to use.  Perhaps I would simply omit the banana's on my half of the pie!

Pie #2: No Power Pie (Blueberry Lemon Cheesecake Pie)

Looking ahead to a possible full week without power due to storm damage, I started to get a bit nervous about keeping on schedule with my pie challenge.  While I don't ALWAYS meet my goals, completing just 1.92% of my goal before faltering didn't thrill me.  Thus, I scoured my recipe books for a tasty idea that would not require electricity.  Thankfully our power was only out for around 77 hours, rather than the 7 days as projected.  Thus, I did cheat with my hand mixer for the cheesecake layer...however I could have created this week's masterpiece with my whisk, gas stove, and matches alone.

The concept for this week's pie came from Perry's aunt Suz and a family friend Susan Roth.

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Blueberry Lemon Cheesecake Pie

Ingredients:
1 graham cracker pie crust (10-inches)

cheesecake filling:
2 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 (8 oz) Cool Whip
3/8 cup fresh lemon juice
2 t. lemon zest (from the lemons mentioned above)
1/4 powdered sugar

blueberry topping:
3 c blueberries, fresh or frozen
3/4 cup sugar
2 T. butter
2 T. fresh lemon juice
1 t. lemon zest (from the lemons mentioned above)
1 T. cornstarch

Pie Algorithm:
1. Cheesecake filling: Cream together all cheesecake filling items.  Pour into crust.  Chill for several hours.

2. Blueberry topping: Combine all ingredients in saucepan over medium-high heat.  Bring to simmer and cook berries down, about 4 minutes.  Let cool; refrigerate until cold.  Pour over pie when ready to serve.

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This week I have two special pie guests:

Peer Reviewer, Wanda Stopher

Pie Displayer, Kirsten Stopher

Wanda enjoys writing concise reviews (50 words or less); you may find some of her previous work here: http://myportraits-stopher.blogspot.com/  She had the following to say about No Power Pie:

In fifty words or less, this No Power Pie packs a really mighty, powerful punch.  The tangy lemon cream and blueberry glaze combo is cool and creamy and light and oh so refreshing!  The initial hint of blueberry is followed by a just slightly stronger lemony zest.  I love it!