Tie-dye cake

I know. I know. This is in no way related to "pie," but hey, it's dessert. It'll do.

I bought this mix at Target...

Got the colored batters all ready! As you can see, I messed up the math on the drops for red and orange, so they're more pink and melon colored.

.

Cake pans all ready!

Finished product:

It tastes like cake, so nothing special, but it is pretty cool and colorful. Didn't come with frosting which was lame. Wouldn't do it again, but it was fun to experiment with creating colored batter from one mix.

Baby Pumpkin Pie

This is a baby:

This is a pie:

Both are made of pumpkins!  Mmmm yummy pumpkins.

This pie turned out a little too clovey. It's important to measure things... apparently.

Ingredients:

1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch single crust pie
3 eggs
1 egg yolk (or not as I dropped mine in the sink)
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (using a 1/2 tablespoon spoon isn't bright)
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg (using a 1/2 tablespoon spoon isn't bright)
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger (using a 1/2 tablespoon spoon isn't bright)
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves (using a 1/2 tablespoon spoon isn't bright)
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (I was out of this and used extra milk)
2 cups pumpkin puree

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C.)
2. In a large bowl, combine eggs, egg yolk, white sugar and brown sugar. Add salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves. Gradually stir in milk and cream. Stir in pumpkin. Pour filling into pie shell.
3. Bake for ten minutes in preheated oven. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C), and bake for an additional 40 to 45 minutes, or until filling is set.

Original recipe: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Moms-Pumpkin-Pie/Detail.aspx

How to carve up a pie pumpkin:

Wash the exterior of the pumpkin in cool or warm water, no soap.
Cut the pumpkin in half.
Scoop out the seeds.
Put it in a microwaveable bowl
Put a couple of inches of water in the bowl, cover it, and put in the microwave.  It may take 20 minutes or more.
Scoop out the cooked pumpkin
Blend for 2-3 minutes
Done!

Science Builds a Better Pie

Amy Rowat, a biophysicist and assistant professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, teaches a class on science and food in which students examine all aspects of apple pie. She shares some of her insights and explains how the home baker can apply them in the kitchen.

nytimes.com/interactive/2013/07/03/dining/science-builds-a-better-pie.html

Liz Lemon Custard Pie

aka Grandma's Lemon Meringue Pie

This pie was an exercise in what can I make without going out. I made some of my own substitutions, and some from the comments. It probably didn't help I was very distracted by a hungry baby during the early boiling stages. It turned out very thick and egg custard like. But yummy lemony goodness abounded!

Ingredients:

Pie Guts:

1 1/4 cup white sugar

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups water

2 tablespoons lemon extract

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons butter

4 egg yolks, beaten

1 (9 inch) pie crust, baked

Topping:

4 egg whites

6 tablespoons white sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

To Make Lemon Filling: 

1. In a medium saucepan, whisk together 1 1/4 cup sugar, flour, cornstarch, and salt. 
2. Stir in water, lemon and vanilla extract. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until mixture comes to a boil. If you're me, decide this is a good time to feed the baby. Let sit boiling on stove for 15 minutes.
3. Stir in butter. 
4. Place egg yolks in a small bowl and gradually whisk in 1/2 cup of hot sugar mixture. 
5. Whisk egg yolk mixture back into remaining sugar mixture. 
6. Bring to a boil and continue to cook while stirring constantly until thick. If you're me, you will take this opportunity to check on the baby. Return to super thick mixture you've concocted.
7. Remove from heat. 
8. Pour filling into baked pastry shell.

To Make Meringue: 

1. In a large glass or metal bowl, whip egg whites until foamy. Decide that it's kinda foamy and add the sugar now.
2. Add sugar gradually, and continue to whip until stiff peaks form. Realize this is a watery mess. Break out your electric mixer. Mix on low so as not to wake the baby for 15 minutes. It still won't be stiff, but it's more like foam now.
3. Spread meringue over pie, sealing the edges at the crust.

Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes, or until top is golden brown. Or 15 minutes if you're me, and the baby insisted on being fed again. It's amazing my recipes ever turn out honestly.

Sunday's Apple Pie

So aptly named! Plus it didn't require brown sugar which my supply of is quite old.

Sunday's Apple Pie

Ingredients

•  2 prepared 8 inch pastry shells
•  6 tart apples - peeled, cored and sliced
•  1/2 cup white sugar
•  2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
•  2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
•  3 tablespoons butter

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Place sliced apples in a large bowl. In a small bowl combine sugar, cinnamon, and flour. Stir well and pour mixture over apples. Cut half of butter or margarine into small pieces and add to apples. Toss apples until thoroughly coated.
3. Pour apples into pastry-lined pie pan. Dot apples with the rest of butter or margarine. Place second pastry on top. Seal edges and cut steam vents in top crust. I also brushed the top of the crust with softened butter.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 45 to 55 minutes, until crust is golden brown.

From http://allrecipes.com/recipe/sundays-apple-pie/detail.aspx

This is possible THE BEST pie I have ever made.

Last Minute Pecan Pie

This pie was an exercise in "crap the stores are closed" plus "what can I substitute for what."

Didn't have a pre-made crust and couldn't buy one so I made one of the simplest pie crusts I could find. Thank you, Internets!

PECAN PIE - PIE CRUST
CRUST:
3 c. plain flour
2 sticks butter
6 tbsp. water

CRUST: Mix well and pat with fingers into pie pan (will make 2).

from http://www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,1637,158175-234193,00.html

and then for the filling, I used a more complex recipe...

Pecan Pie filling

Ingredients 

•  1 3/4 cups white sugar
•  1/4 cup dark corn syrup (thank goodness we had this! would've ruined the whole thing)
•  1/4 cup butter
•  1 tablespoon cold water
•  2 teaspoons cornstarch
•  3 eggs
•  1/4 teaspoon salt
•  1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or almond extract, rum, maple syrup, whatever's handy)
•  1 1/4 cups chopped pecans 
•  1 (9 inch) unbaked pie shell (or make your own like me!)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, corn syrup, butter, water, and cornstarch. Bring to a full boil, and remove from heat.
3. In a large bowl, beat eggs until frothy. Gradually beat in cooked syrup mixture. Stir in salt, vanilla, and pecans. Pour into pie shell.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes, or until filling is set.

from http://allrecipes.com/recipe/pecan-pie/

How it looked...

at first it was a little scary, bloated coming out of the oven, but after a few minutes, it settled down.

 

How it tasted....

Bland. Apparently using the old bag of pecans I had on hand, even unopened, was a bad plan. Pecans are very important!

Or possibly I just expected the pie to make me OD on sugar like Grandmas, and this is what regular pecan pie actually tastes like...

Key Lime Pie

This was the easiest key lime pie ever! I even screwed up the ingredients, and it was still awesome!

Key Lime Pie VII from AllRecipes.com


Ingredients

1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust
3 cups sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup sour cream
3/4 cup key lime juice (or 1/4 cup from one lime if you're not able to find "key lime juice")
1 tablespoon grated lime zest (or a lot more if you're measuring-challenged like me)

Directions


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In a medium bowl, combine condensed milk, sour cream, lime juice, and lime rind. Mix well and pour into graham cracker crust.

Bake in preheated oven for 5 to 8 minutes, until tiny pinhole bubbles burst on the surface of pie. DO NOT BROWN! Chill pie thoroughly before serving. Garnish with lime slices and whipped cream if desired.