Fourth of July Pies . . .

RED WHITE AND BLUE . . . PIES!

I decided to start off my blog with a holiday, and fourth of July was the next one up.  As it is summer, to honor our nation I made some pies.

Although apple probably seems the obvious, all American, choice i wanted to go a bit further.  So I devised a scheme for a patriotic pie extravaganza.  RED, WHITE, and BLUE.  A pie for each color.


THE RED . . .

Rhubarb was the obvious choice for red.  July 3rd is my father's birthday and besides apple rhubarb is his favorite.  In addition to this it is also my favorite!  The tartness of the barb can't be beat!  In addition to pairing it with the traditional strawberry I also threw in a couple pints of raspberries because i felt like it.

The only problem i had with this pie is the usual problem I have with rhubarb.  I can't find it when i need it!!  I see it all over the place in stores but then when it comes down to the pie making it seems to be nowhere to be found.  This time i was prepared and bought an exorbitant 4lbs last Thursday cut it up and froze it.  I will not be deterred!

I did a more complicated lattice crust on this pie as my Mom bought me a nice crust cutter which makes the pretty scalloped edges.  More stuff to store in drawers but i think it is worth it.

STRAWBERRY/RASPBERRY/RHUBARB PIE

2 "Best Pie Crusts"  (recipe to follow in upcoming blog)(it is too good to get lost in the shuffle)

2 cups chopped rhubarb (1/4" pieces)

2 pints raspberries

1 pint strawberries (1" pieces)

1 cup sugar

zest of 1 lemon

1tbs triple sec (or grand Marnier if you are ritzy)

1 tbs "Minute" tapioca

1 egg

 Mix all the fruit.  Add the rest of the ingredients.  Place 1 pie crust on bottom of pie pan.  Pour ingredients in.  Place second crust on top and pinch sides  (lattice crust TBE in later post)(TBE = to be explained).  Scramble egg and brush on top crust (and by "scrambled" I just mean mixed up, not cooked and ready for breakfast).  Bake 20 min at 425◦.  Reduce heat to 350◦ and bake additional 30 minutes.  Serve at room temp or refrigerate. (Robby insists on refrigerated pies!  At least overnight.)

THE WHITE . . .

The white pie is not as obvious a choice as the red or the blue, but was actually the recipe that gave me the whole idea.  This "Orange Ricotta Pie" with Chocolate Chips has the flavors of a cannoli filling with the basic design of a french cheesecake (being that it has a pie crust).  It is delicious and perfectly white.

For the top crust here i used a cookie cutter to cut out stars.  Just be careful to place them gently on top or they will sink!

ORANGE RICOTTA PIE

2 "Best Pie Crusts"  (again you'll have to wait for the secret recipe)

32 oz whole milk ricotta cheese

1/2 cup sugar

zest of 1 orange

2 tbs triple sec

2 eggs

1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

This pie is easy as. . . . pie.  Mix the ricotta with the sugar and add the egg ("scrambled"). Next add the triple sec followed by the zest and chocolate chips.  Place one crust in a pie pan, pour in filling, and top with second full crust or crust shapes.  Brush top crust with remaining egg. Bake at 350◦ for 35-45 minutes.  Until crust is browned.  Don't worry if the pie still looks a little wobbly it will set in the refrigerator.  Refrigerate overnight before serving.

AND FINALLY THE BLUE . . . 

No shocker here the blue pie is blueberry.  So in order to not bore you I went a different direction with the crust and used my mini pie pan.

(If you don't have a mini pie pan, which i don't expect you to, just follow the directions exactly and bake it 10 minutes longer or until browned.)

The crust is not a typical pie crust at all but rather a modified scone recipe.  I still consider it a pie as it is still two layers of "crust" with fruit in the middle and after all I am in charge here.

MINI BLUEBERRY SCONE PIES

2 scone crusts (here i will be nice and include the crust recipe as it is essential to this "pie"):

1/2 cup sugar

2 cups flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter (COLD! I am serious.)

1 tsp vanilla (or 1 super squirt TBE in following posts)(TBE = to be explained)
1 egg 

1/2 cup half and half

2 PINTS OF BLUEBERRIES

1 cup sugar (taste the berries.  Depending on the tart/sweetness of the blueberries you might need more/less sugar)

1 tbs "Minute" tapioca

juice of 1/2 lemon

For the crust:

Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.  Cut the butter into small cubes add to flour mixture.  Mix lightly until the mixture is course crumbs.  Mix egg, vanilla, and milk together and add to flour/butter mixture in 3 parts mixing just to combine.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes. 

divide into equal parts depending on how many pies your pie pan holds. (For example my mini pan makes 4 pies so i need 8 equal pieces.  If you are doing one big pie you only need 2 pieces, right?  Right!)  Technically i make the bottom crust pieces slightly larger than the pieces i will roll out for the top as they need to cover more surface area.  Go ahead and roll em out and place the bottom crust in the pan/pans.

For the Filling:

MIX it all together! That is it.  Oh and scoop it over the bottom crust/crusts.  (I tend to not pour in fruit pie fillings. I leave most of the extra juice and sugar that collected at the bottom of the bowl out of the pie.  You don't want one overly sweet spot or a soggy pie.)

Bake at 350◦ for 30 minutes (40 for one big pie) or until top is nice and golden brown.

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All that's left is to serve them up.

For the crowd at my Mother's house the blueberry seemed to be the winner overall.

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I hope you all enjoyed my first attempt at blogggering.  Don't be too annoyed with my holding out on the pie crust recipe or the TBEs.  I didn't want the post to be toooo too long.  In the future when I just have one recipe to concentrate on I can explain more and provide some process pictures.

Did i make you hungry?  Then I succeeded.