Original recipes to master the art of pie making this holiday season.
Recipes by Sarah McCullen | Photographed by Joe Worthem
Cherry-Apple Pie
3 tablespoons butter
5-6 large apples, peeled and thinly sliced
1 ½ cups frozen tart cherries
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 disks pie crust dough (http://www.invitationmag.com/post/perfect-pie-crust)
1 large egg
3 tablespoons water
Sparkling sugar
Preheat oven to 325°F. In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium; add apples, and cook, stirring, until apples are soft, about 5 minutes. Add lemon juice. In a small bowl, stir together sugar, brown sugar and cornstarch, and add to apples. Cook, stirring, until thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Add cherries, stir, and cook 1 minute. Remove from heat, and stir in salt and cinnamon. Let cool 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
While pie filling cools, roll out each dough disk into a 12-inch circle, about 1/8-inch thick. Lay 1 dough circle in the bottom of a 9-inch pie plate. Cut remaining circle into strips to create the lattice (to braid it, as pictured, cut some strips into 3 thinner strips). Pour cooled filling into pie crust.
Use dough strips to create a lattice over top of pie. Whisk together egg and water in a small bowl, and brush lattice with egg mixture; sprinkle with sparkling sugar. Bake in preheated oven until pie is bubbly and fragrant, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Let cool to room temperature before serving.
German Chocolate Pie
1 disk pie crust dough (http://www.invitationmag.com/post/perfect-pie-crust)
½ cup milk chocolate chips
1 tablespoon plus ¼ cup butter, divided
1/3 cup plus ½ cup granulated sugar, divided
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 ½ cups milk
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup evaporated milk
1 large egg, beaten
1 1/3 cups shredded coconut, toasted
½ cup chopped pecans
Preheat oven to 350 F. Roll out dough into a into a 12-inch circle, about 1/8-inch thick. Place dough circle in pie plate, and trim to fit. Crimp crust as desired. Pierce the dough all over with a fork, fill with pie weights, and bake in preheated oven until golden and fragrant, 15 to 20 minutes.
In a double boiler, melt chocolate chips and 1 tablespoon butter over medium until smooth, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat. In a small bowl, stir together 1/3 cup sugar and cornstarch.
In a medium saucepan, cook milk and egg yolks over medium, whisking constantly, until hot, about 4-5 minutes. Whisk in sugar mixture, and boil until thickened, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in vanilla. Fold in chocolate mixture until well combined. Pour mixture into baked pie crust.
In a small saucepan, bring evaporated milk, 1/2 cup sugar, and 1/4 cup butter to a boil over medium heat, stirring, about 4-5 minutes. In a large bowl, whisk egg, and slowly drizzle about . cup of the hot mixture into the egg, whisking constantly so the egg doesn’t cook. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan, and fold in coconut and pecans.
Let cool for about 5 minutes, then pour over the top of the chocolate pie.
Cover and refrigerate 1 hour before serving.
Honey Custard Pie
1 disk pie crust dough (http://www.invitationmag.com/post/perfect-pie-crust)
4 large egg yolks
2 ½ cups heavy whipping cream
1 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup honey
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 large egg
3 tablespoons water
Sweetened whipped cream (for topping)
Roll out dough into a 12-inch circle, about 1/8-inch thick. Place dough circle in pie plate, and trim to fit. Crimp crust as desired. Whisk egg yolks in a large bowl, about 1 minute. In a medium saucepan, bring heavy whipping cream, brown sugar, cornstarch and salt to a boil over medium, whisking constantly. Boil, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in honey and vanilla. Slowly pour 1 cup of hot mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly. Then whisk the egg yolk mixture into the rest of hot mixture in saucepan.
Whisk together egg and water, and brush edges of pie crust with the egg mixture. Pour the custard mixture into crust, and bake in preheated oven until pie is no longer jiggly, 45 minutes to 1 hour.
Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving topped with sweetened whipped cream.