Pie #27: Christmas Pie (Pumpkin Pecan Pie)

Christmas Day 2012:

• Delicious breakfast of blackberry ricotta scones and veggie egg casserole
• Christmas morning jokes via the web with Serbian guests Lane and Banysha, French guests Kirsty and a few heberge, Archbold guests Bret and Wandi, and those that live here
• Marvelous and MOM - more Christmas guests from the NW, bearing delicious dishes - tastes of old and new
• Jackson, a witty friend and great addition to our Christmas gathering
• Lots of hands helping to peel, chop, grate, stir, wash, and dry
• More food than needed - each dish combining to make dinner complete
• Leftovers boxed up for Katie, the nighttime nurse needing to sleep through dinner - the rest stored away for an impending blizzard
• Several rounds of post-dining Scum, complete with a lesson on bragging
• Bittersweet goodbyes - with promises of an imminent visit
• First round of leftover dining, whether hungry or not
• An unexpected partner swap for the nightly rounds of Euchre - more lessons about the many rules
• Cookies and Chex-Mix eaten to fill in the cracks, or because they were simply placed too near the game table
• Snuggling in for slumber after a wonderful day

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Pumpkin Pecan Pie
Simply in Season (at our house aka "The Season Cookbook")

Mary Beth Lind and Cathleen Hockman-Wert

Ingredients:
9-inch pastry shell

1 cup / 250 ml pumpkin or sweet potato (cooked, pureed)
3/4 cup / 175 ml light corn syrup
1 cup / 250 ml pecans (chopped)
3 eggs (beaten)
1/3 cup / 75 ml brown sugar
1/4 cup / 60 ml butter (softened)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt

Pie Algorithm:
1. Beat together with an electric mixer.

2. Pour into pie shell.  Bake in preheated oven at 350F / 180C until set, 45-55 minutes.

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Easy-to-make and delicious, a perfect combination!  The pie was softer and sweeter than a typical pumpkin pie, but not as sweet as a typical pecan pie.  It reminded me of sweet potato casserole - the kind with a pecan praline topping, not the marshmallow one.  A welcome addition to the end of a delicious meal!

Pie #23: Cookie Sunday Pie (Salted Pecan Mini Pies)

I've come to the point in my pie project where I'm not willing to make a pie until I have pie-eaters lined up.  Contrary to what Perry may tell you when I'm not around, he and I cannot eat all the pies that are flying out of my kitchen!  Thus, when I received an email from the church office to remind us that this is our month to contribute cookies for Cookie Sunday, I knew where my pie(s) were going to go!

Cookie Sunday happens at Columbus Mennonite on the first Sunday of every month.  Attendees gather after the service to munch on snacks (cookies, fruit, crackers, ... this month mini pies, etc) and drink coffee and tea.  This is a great time to catch up with people you know, as well as a time to talk to those in the congregation whom you don't know as well.

This week's recipe came from A Year of Pies: A Seasonal Tour of Home Baked Pies by Ashley English.  I've been on the library waiting list for this book since it came out in August, and finally worked my way to the top.  I really like that the recipes in the book are separated by season, and look forward to trying several of them!  Actually to be truthful, based on all the beautiful pictures in the book,  I'm having a hard time not trying ALL of the recipes!  I had some quantity issues with the recipe - the recipe states that it makes 36 mini tarts, but I was only able to get around 26 tarts.  I've changed the recipe slightly to reflect what I used for 24 tarts, as well as to simplify the directions in some parts.


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Salted Pecan Mini Tarts
From: A Year of Pies: A Seasonal Tour of Home Baked Pies
by: Ashley English

Ingredients:
enough dough to make one 9-inch pie crust

filling:
1/2 c. (packed) light brown sugar
2 T. unsalted butter, melted
1 large egg
1/2 t. vanilla extract
1/2 t. ground nutmeg
1/4 t. sea salt
3/4 c. pecans, chopped

1 T. coarse sea salt, for sprinkling

Pie Algorithm:

1. Prepare the crust
Roll out the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface into a 12- or 14-inch circle.  Cut out 24 rounds, using a 2 1/2 inch round biscuit or cookie cutter.  You may have to reroll the dough scraps several times to cut out all the rounds.  Do so quickly, as the more the dough is rolled, the more it activates the gluten in the wheat, which can result in toughened dough.

Place one dough round in each mini tart pan.  (See the picture of the little stirrups Perry made so we could slide these little guys right out when they were finished!)  Press the dough flat against the bottom and up the sides of the pan.

Put the tart pans in the refrigerator to chill for 20 minutes.  Meanwhile preheat the oven to 325F.

Bake the chilled crusts for 8 minutes.

Remove the baking sheets from the oven.  Turn the heat up to 375F.  Set the mini tart crusts aside to cool while you prepare the filling.


2. Prepare the filling
Combine the brown sugar, butter, egg, vanilla, nutmeg, and salt in a medium-sized bowl.  Whisk to blend thoroughly, then stir in the chopped pecans.


3. Assemble the mini tarts
Spoon 1 1/2 t. of the filling into each mini tart shell, then sprinkle each with several granules of coarse sea salt.

Bake in the 375F oven for 25 minutes, until the tops are lightly browned.

Cool the mini tarts at least 15 minutes before serving.

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Cutting out all the little crusts takes quite a bit of time, but the filling is so quick and easy the entire process isn't too bad.  Let's hope the 'cookie eaters' like them in the morning!

Update: I couldn't wait any longer to give one a taste!  Sadly, I found my cute little pie to be a bit dry.  I think it would have been fine with a good cup of coffee, but it was way to late for me to be drinking coffee!  Also, I thought the nutmeg overpowered the rest of the flavors; Wanda disagreed.  At any rate, I think I would try this again, baking them for less time.

Pie #22: Thankful Pie (Pecan Pie)

This week Perry and I were able to head home to spend some time with our families for Thanksgiving.  Without getting too mushy I must say that I am very thankful for not only my family, but also for Perry's family.  It's always wonderful to be able to catch up with the people that are important to me - whether via skype, around the dinner table, or in the family room watching 'slides'.

Since many members of our extended families live close to each other, Perry and I often have two gatherings to attend on holidays.  This year we started with lunch at the Lantzes, followed by fellowship with the Kings.  My project seemed like a good excuse to bring pie to the gatherings, so that's what I did (along with Brussels sprouts, which were a MAJOR hit!)  I don't recall eating pecan pie before, and definitely had not made one.  However it seemed appropriate to have pecan pie at Thanksgiving dinner, so with Kathy's  help that's what I made.  We had a good time and she shared several helpful pie and general kitchen tips.  I chose to use Kathy's mom's recipe from the King Family Cookbook; this recipe is less sweet than some pecan pie recipes.

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Pecan Pie

Ingredients:
single pie crust (8 inch)

3 eggs
1/2 c. white sugar
1 t. vanilla
1 c. karo (scant)
2 T. melted oleo
1/8 t. salt
1 c. pecans (slightly heaping)

Pie Algorithm:

1. Beat all but pecans in mixer.  Add pecans.

2. Bake in slow oven.  Start at 375F, then 350F for 40-50 min, or until firm.

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The pie turned out well, but I learned I do not love pecan pie.  I didn't dislike it; I just thought it was a bit plain.  Other people seemed to like it though, and I was given quite a few compliments.  Marvin (Perry's dad) even stated that he thought the consistency of the filling was just right!  I figure with all the Kathy-made pies he's eaten over the years, he must know what he's talking about!

In addition to the pecan pie I made a second attempt at the Disaster Pie from last week - this time using fresh cranberries.  It was a success - very delicious!  I would definitely recommend it.