February 16, 2016

apple hand pies

February 16, 2016/ Kelsey Siemens

So, here we are, halfway through February and I'm already yearning for Fall. Seriously, if we could just have Fall keep going and skip Winter, that would be great.

In the midst of my pining I decided to make pie. Hand pies to be specific! I used up some of the last few Elstar apples that we had in storage, and what a perfect ending it was for them. Now hand pies take quite a bit more time than normal pie does! Ha! I grew a bit impatient halfway through the process, but I promise that they're worth it. I think these little parcels of perfection would be so great for a picnic, or bbq where more dishes would just be a hassle. That's the beauty of a hand pie...you just pick it up with your hand, and eat it! Heck yes!

Now, if you've been around the blog for a while you'll be aware of the fact that I don't actually like pie all that much.....well USED to not like pie that much. You see, when I was younger, I really didn't like the idea of cooked fruit, and then I was not too sure about pie crust (what was I thinking?), and as I got older I clung to the idea that "I didn't like pie". First of all, because I was stubborn, and then because I was scared of all the pie I would consume if I decided I liked it...since my mom is the queen of pies and we tend to bake quite a number of them around our house.

Anyhow, I ate a hand pie to make sure that they were good......and then I ate another one, and maybe another. So yeah. I am now officially converted. I LIKE PIE! (And am no longer a freak of nature.)

So, without further ado....here is the recipe!

Apple Hand Pies

pastry recipe yields: dough for 4 pies - (we refrigerate whatever we don't use)
pastry recipe: Jean Pare - Company's Coming: Desserts

Directions

1) Mix together flour, salt, baking powder and brown sugar in a large bowl.

2) Cut up lard and add to dry ingredients.

3) Using a pastry cutter (or a plain old fork works as well), cut in lard until your mixture is crumbly.

4) Break your egg into a liquid measuring cup and beat well.

5) Add vinegar to the measuring cup.

6) Add very cold water to the measuring cup, until the mixture measures to 1 cup.

7) Pour liquid mixture over flour mixture slowly, and stir.

8) Use your hands to work the mixture together until it no longer crumbles apart. This is where experience will come in, as you don't want to overmix the dough! Once you make it a couple of times, you'll get the feel of it.

9) Divide into 4 equal parts. Each part will make one pie (or quite a number of hand pies), so you can choose to use it all at once, store some of the dough in the fridge* for up to 2 weeks, or pop some of into the freezer for later!

*If you do refrigerate your dough overnight (or for a few days), be sure to take it out at least an hour before you roll out it. Otherwise it will be too stiff!

Pastry Ingredients

5 cups Flour

2 tsp Salt

1 tsp Baking Powder

3 tbsp Brown Sugar

1 lb Lard (or vegetable shortening)

1 Egg

2 tbsp Vinegar

Cold water

Hand Pie Apple Filling and Assembly

**NOTE: the number of hand pies this recipe yields will be dependent on how much pastry dough you use, and how big you make the pies. I made a bunch of filling, and then filled hand pies until I was sick of it! Hand pies have a higher ratio of dough to filling, so you may want to double the filling recipe if you plan on making a lot of hand pies.

Hand Pie Assembly

First, assemble your apple filling. Peel your apples, and then dice them into smaller pieces than you would for a regular pie. Toss the apples in a medium bowl with cinnamon, flour, and sugar.

If your dough is in the fridge, be sure to take it out about an hour before you want to roll it out.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pie dough, and then use a round cookie cutter to cut out circles. (Note: you want your dough very thin, but not so thin that it will rip once you start stuffing it with apples! this might take a couple trials to get just right).

Spoon a bit of apple filling onto half of the circles, and then place a matching circle on top of each of them.

Use a bit of water on your fingers to wet the inside edge of one of the circles, and then pinch the edges together tightly until it seals. Then, use a fork to further seal the edges and make a decorative pattern (see photos below). Place each hand pie on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a baking mat.

Cut one or two small vent holes in the top of each hand pie. Brush a bit of milk (or whisked egg) on top of the dough to help them get brown and glossy, and sprinkle with a bit of coarse sugar.

Bake at 400 degrees for 18-22 minutes, or until bubbling occurs and apples are soft!

Apple Filling

3 medium Elstar apples (or any tart apple of your choice)

3/4 tsp Cinnamon

2 Tbsp Flour

1/3 cup Sugar

So the moral of the story today is....don't be stubborn, and pie is delicious.

-Kelsey

November 19, 2015

classic pumpkin pie

November 19, 2015/ Kelsey Siemens

Now it's been over a month since us Canadians have celebrated Thanksgiving, but that doesn't mean that we can't still eat pumpkin pie...right?

If you're new around here, you'll know that I'm not the biggest fan of pie (I know, I know! I'm a weirdo...haha), but I do love making it for people. I had never tried making a pumpkin pie from scratch, because let's get real, when you can get a huge one from Costco for cheaper than buying the ingredients, why bother making one homemade? ha! Anyway, I decided to try my hand at a classic pumpkin pie, and here it is!

Also, it's time for some real talk. After meticulously slicing and removing the first piece of pie in order to be plated for the final photos....I dropped it. Pumpkin pie all over the floor. It's not the first time I've dropped food all over the floor, and my family wasn't surprised...although they were entertained. Thankfully the second piece I cut fared much better!

So here it is! A classic pumpkin pie.

Classic Pumpkin Pie

recipe slightly adapted from: Eagle Brand - allrecipes
yields: one 9-inch pie (about 8 servings)

Directions:

1) First you'll want to bake and puree your pumpkin if you're making your own. You'll also want to make your pie crust if you're making your own as well. Bonus points if you do!

2) Optional: If you'd like to make some leaf decorations for your cake, roll out some extra pastry dough about 1/4 inch thick and cut out leaves. Bake at 350 degrees until the tops get slightly brown. Remove and set aside.

3) Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

4) Mix together the pureed pumpkin, sweetened condensed milk, eggs, spices, and salt in a medium bowl until nice and smooth.

5) Pour the pumpkin mixture into your pie crust.

6) Bake your pie at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. After the initial 15 minutes, turn your oven down to 350 degrees and bake for another 35-40 minutes. Your pie will be done when a knife inserted a few inches from the crust comes out clean. *If you're not sure, just keep cooking it. It's better to slightly overcook a pumpkin pie than to have it be gooey!

**Tip: Place some tinfoil or a pie crust shield around the edges of our pie so that the crust doesn't burn! I did that about halfway through the baking time.

7) Chill in the fridge for at least 3 hours for the pie to properly set. Or even make it the night before you'd like to serve it. We found ours even better the day after it was made!

Ingredients:

1 9-inch pie crust (pre-made, or make your own!)

2 cups pureed pumpkin (or one 15oz can)

1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk (14oz)

2 large eggs

2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon salt

Happy Baking!

-Kels

September 10, 2013

tasty tuesday: apple pie

September 10, 2013/ Kelsey from {ps:heart }

I'm really not sure why it's taken me so long to talk about pie here....especially since I live on an apple and berry farm, and my mom's known as the best pie-maker in town, and we seem to have pie in the house every other week in summer/fall.

It may have something to do with the fact that I don't actually like pie. Ahem, yes you read that right. I'm not a huge fan....and my friends do enjoy teasing me endlessly about it! Because truly, who the heck doesn't like pie? Whatevs.

Anyways, I love making people happy...so if they want pie, I will give them pie!

My mama helped me out with this post...so not only did it look good, but it tasted amazing as well (or so I've been told...haha). I believe her two main tips for a deliciously flaky crust are: don't overmix your dough, and be sure to chill your dough for 20-30 minutes!

Apple Pie

Pastry recipe from: Company's Coming - Desserts
(Yields enough pastry for 4 pies)

Ingredients:

Pastry

5 cups Flour

2 tsp Salt

1 tsp Baking Powder

3 tbsp Brown Sugar

1 lb Lard (or vegetable shortening)

1 Egg

2 tbsp Vinegar

Cold water

Pie filling:

Ingredients:

6ish medium Elstar apples (or any tart apple of your choice)

1 tsp Cinnamon

1/4 cup Flour

3/4 cup Sugar

Directions:

1) Mix together flour, salt, baking powder and brown sugar in a large bowl.

2) Cut up lard and add to dry ingredients.

3) Using a pastry cutter (or a plain old fork works as well), cut in lard until your mixture is crumbly.

4) Break your egg into a liquid measuring cup and beat well.

5) Add vinegar to the measuring cup.

6) Add very cold water to the measuring cup, until the mixture measures to 1 cup.

7) Pour liquid mixture over flour mixture slowly, and stir.

9) Divide into 4 equal parts. Each part will make one pie, so you can choose to use it all at once, store some of the dough in the fridge* for up to 2 weeks, or pop some of into the freezer for later!

*If you do refrigerate your dough overnight (or for a few days), be sure to take it out at least an hour before you roll out it. Otherwise it will be too stiff!

Directions:

1) Once your pie dough is ready, you can peel and chop apples (the exact number will depend on the size of your apples, and how full you want to make your pie). We used Elstar apples, which are nice and tart, and are wonderful for baking with!

2) Mix all ingredients in with your diced apples, stir, and let sit for a few minutes.

3) Take approximately an eighth of your dough, and roll it out in a circle. You want your dough circle to be big enough to cover the bottom of your pie plate, and to cover the outside edge at least a half an inch.

4) Add your apple mixture to the pie plate and roll out another dough circle for the top.

5) Before adding the top of the crust, dip your fingers in a tiny bit of water, and run them along the edge of the bottom crust. This will help the top adhere well to the bottom crust.

6) Cover the pie with the top crust, trim any extra dough hanging over the side...leaving about a quarter of an inch over the pie plate.

7) Pinch together the crusts, and fold inwards (this is so any juice that bubbles out won't end up in your oven). Then, you can choose to crimp the edges however you like!

8) Sprinkle the top lightly with sugar, poke several holes (for ventilation) in the top, and you're ready to go.

*If you want to be fancy, you can cut out shapes from the top crust (or from extra crust) to add decorations to your crust. We added a few cute leaves to ours!

9) Bake at 425 degrees for the first 15 minutes, and then reduce heat to 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes until nice and bubbly.