Tuesday, October 22, 2013

The Ever-So Scrumptious Peach Pie

Scrumptious is a big word. With an exciting definition. Its a word that I use rarely, mainly because it leaves my mouth with an extremely awkward feeling that I don't necessarily crave. I don't why I get that feeling, but I do. But when I say something is scrumptious, then its gotta be delicious. No doubt.

Oh no.  I'm rambling about words and my feelings about them....... again. But honestly, I can't help it. The peach pie was so good, that I wasn't finished with just one slice. Or...... just 3 slices. I'm sorry, Not Really Peach Pie is one of my weaknesses. Oh, don't give me that look..... its gonna be one of  your weaknesses too. :)

Also, this recipe was adapted from many different sites: Taste of HomeFood,Nita's Peach Pie (PD)









                First, chop up the peaches and toss them all into a bowl. I usually get my peaches  from                 the local grocery store, but you could definitely try the farmers market. And about the chopping, you may cut to your own desire.  :)




           In the meantime, in a separate bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients. The cinnamon, flour, and the sugar...




Just pour all the dry ingredients into the very patient bowl of chopped peaches. Give it a few tosses, and be very careful to make sure the dry ingredients aren't all stuck on the bottom. 

Ta-da! ; )



This is  my semi-thawed  pie crust. Its store bought. Why? I think I was feeling lazy that day or something. 
But don't worry, my top crust is homemade.



So I take out my pre made pie dough, that was lying in the refrigerator ( psst! Look for my Pie Crust Recipe on my previous post). I take out a rolling pin and a cutting board, and roll out my dough in order  to prep for the lattice pattern that going to go on the top.



Unfortunately, my latticing skills just weren't  on spot, so it was a bit funny. Hehe. Please don't judge me. 




After crimping the edges, and forgetting to cover the edges with foil (a mistake I deeply regretted later), the pie went into the oven. Trust me, it was a glorious moment. :)





Tadah! This is the finished product, and it was delish! And also, sorry about the terrible mistake...it was solely on my bad memory. Enjoy!



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Ingredients:

- 1/2 -1 cup sugar (Depends on whether you have a sweet tooth or not; also keep aside 2 tbsp of sugar for later)
 - 5 cups of  fresh peaches, approximately 4 large  peaches.
- enough pastry dough for a double crust 9-inch pie
- 1/2-1/3 cup of all-purpose flour
-1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
-2 tablespoon of butter

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Instructions:

- Preheat the Oven to 425 degrees F.
-Into  a bowl, stir the cinnamon, flour, and sugar together, and set  it aside.
- Wash and slice  up the fresh peaches ( peeling is optional)
- Mix the peaches with the dry mixture that was  set aside.
- Put the mixture into the pastry-lined pie tin and dot it with butter.
-If you want to do the lattice pattern, roll out the top crust, cut into strips accordingly (roughly 3/4 wide),  and  place them in a "one over, one under" pattern.
-After placing/latticing the top crust, sprinkle the top with sugar
- Cover the edges with aluminum foil to prevent browning (oops!); remove foil for last 15 minutes of baking.
-Bake for around 30-45 minute, or until the crust browns and juice begins  to bubble through the slits in the crust.


Thursday, October 10, 2013

Simple and Delicious Pie Crust

Aaaaahhh.....September was so darn busy, I hardly got any blogging done at all! And I sincerely apologize for that. School work can honestly drag you down hill. :(

But I'm back and totes ready to enjoy some pie with you. :) Normally, I don't make pies, I just somehow don't feel like making pies. But peaches and apples are in its peak season right now, so I decided to just throw on an apron and whip up a peach pie.  And surprisingly, its quite simple.....:)









Gather up all the ingredients: Water, Salt, Sugar, Flour and Butter. I know the bowls look empty, but I assure you they contain something. 





  
                                      

              You're gonna want to pulse it about 7 times, and work in rest of the steps until it looks perfecta-mento ( you can probably guess my amazing Spanish skills)  



          
                         
       
Once its firm, meaning that it  doesn't crumble when you shmoosh two pieces together, take it out of your food processor and place in on a flat clean surface. The  key is to knead, but not over knead.






                                                                   
                                                           What You'll Need:
                                                         
-2 1/2 Cups  all-purpose flour,  keep some extra for when you're  going to roll it out
- 1 Cup ( 2 sticks pr 8 ounces) of unsalted butter, cold, and cut  into 1/2 inch cubes
-  1 teaspoon salt
-  1 teaspoon sugar
-  6-8 tablespoon ice water

               



Steps:


-Combine flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor; pulse to mix. Add butter and pulse 6 to 8 times, until mixture resembles coarse meal, with small pieces of butter. Add ice water 1 Tablespoon at a time, pulsing until mixture just begins to clump together and become doughy. If you pinch some of the crumbly dough and it holds together, it's ready. If the dough doesn't hold together, add a little more water and pulse again. Note that too much water will make the crust tough.

 -Remove dough from machine and place in a mound on a clean surface ( I had it lay down on wax paper, and it worked just fine). Gently shape the dough mixture into two round circles (disks). Work the dough just enough to form the disks, do not over-knead. Sprinkle a little flour around the disks. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour, and up to 2 days.

 - Remove one crust disk from the refrigerator. Let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes in order to soften just enough to make rolling out a bit easier. Roll out with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface to a 12-inch circle; about 1/8 of an inch thick. As you roll out the dough, check if the dough is sticking to the surface below. If you find it sticking to the surface below, sprinkle a little bit of flour on the surface to keep the dough from sticking. Carefully place onto a 9" pie plate. Gently press the pie dough down so that it lines the bottom and sides of the pie plate. Use a pair of kitchen scissors to trim the dough to within 1/2 inch of the edge of the pie dish.
*This recipe was adapted from Simply Recipes