PIES

I've made pies on the show before, but it's about time that I talk about the basics of making a really good pie - whether it's blueberry, apple, or pumpkin.

Special Equipment List

Food processor

Shopping List

For the Standard Pie Crust:

6 ounces all-purpose flour
1 tsp kosher salt
1 stick unsalted butter, frozen
Ice water

For the Double Pie Crust:

10 ounces all-purpose flour
1 tsp kosher salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, frozen
Ice water
1 beaten egg white
Granulated sugar

For the Lattice Pie Crust:

10 ounces all-purpose flour
1 tsp kosher salt
2 sticks unsalted butter (frozen)
Ice water
1 beaten egg white
Granulated sugar

For the Apple Pie:

3 pounds Honey Crisp or Granny Smith apples
Lemon juice
¾ cup sugar
2-3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
Lemon zest
Kosher salt
½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
½ tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
Allspice
Ground cloves

For the Pumpkin Pie:

½ cup ogranulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
1 tbsp flour
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground allspice
½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
1 can pumpkin puree
3 eggs
1 cup heavy whipping cream
Cloves
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
Maple syrup
Whipped cream

For the Blueberry Pie:

Fresh or frozen blueberries (48oz)
½ cup sugar
¼ cup corn starch
Lemon zest

Method

Standard Pie Crust

Combine 6 ounces of all-purpose flour with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and dump it into a food processor using the blade attachment. Pulse a few times to combine.
Using the grating attachment and allowing it to spin, press 1 stick of thoroughly frozen unsalted butter through the feed tube and into the flour mixture. Add mixture to a bowl. Toss to make sure that all of the butter is coated in flour.
Slowly begin to add 1 tablespoon of ice water at a time to the mixture. The amount will depend on many different factors, so continue adding the ice water slowly and mixing the dough together until it just starts to hold its shape. It took about 15 tablespoons for me.
Turn the dough out onto a flat, floured work surface and gently knead it into one cohesive mass. Don’t worry if the dough looks a little dry and crumbly because it will continue to hydrate once it is placed in the fridge.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and pat it out into a thick round disc so that the dough is easier to roll out later. Place the dough into the fridge and let sit for at least 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes has passed, the dough should be nice and firm and should look like it has hydrated nicely. In addition, it should be visibly dappled with little bits of butter. Take half of the dough, wrap with plastic, and place it back into the fridge for later.
On a flat work surface that is covered with flour, and adding flour as needed, roll the dough out to a diameter that is one to two inches wider than the pie plate you intend to use.
Once the dough is rolled out to your desired specifications, use your rolling pin to lift it up over countertop and transfer it over to your pie plate.
Instead of pressing the pie dough into the corners, lift and drop it into the corners to avoid stretching the pie dough. Make sure that the dough is generously hanging over the sides of the plate. Trim off any excess dough on the edge of the pie plate and and wrap up the excess dough for later.
“Flute” the edge of the pie crust by placing your finger and thumb on the crust and and pressing the dough up between them repeating around the circumference of the crust until you have achieved a pattern. Let sit in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Once 30 minutes has passed, line the pie dough with aluminum foil and fill it with the pie weight of your choice, such as rice or dry beans. Place in a 400°F oven for 12 to 15 minutes until lightly brown. Remove the foil and “dock” the crust by poking several little holes in the bottom of the crust using a fork. Place back into the oven for another 7 to 9 minutes until a little more golden brown.

Double Pie Crust

Combine 10 ounces of all-purpose flour with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and dump it into a food processor using the blade attachment. Pulse a few times to combine.
Using the grating attachment and allowing it to spin, press two sticks of thoroughly frozen unsalted butter through the feed tube and into the flour mixture. Remove from processor and add mixture to a bowl. Toss to make sure that all of the butter is coated in flour.
Slowly begin to add 1 tablespoon of ice water at a time to the mixture. The amount will depend on many different factors, so continue adding the ice water slowly and mixing the dough together until it just starts to hold its shape. It took about 16 tablespoons for me.
Turn the dough out onto a flat work surface and gently knead it into one cohesive mass. Don’t worry if the dough looks a little dry and crumbly because it will continue to hydrate once it is placed in the fridge. Take a knife and divide the dough into two slices.
Wrap the dough in plastic and pat it out into a thick round disc so that the dough is easier to roll out later. Place the dough into the fridge and let sit for at least 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes has passed, the dough should be nice and firm and should look like it has hydrated nicely. In addition, it should be visibly dappled with little bits of butter. Take half of the dough, wrap with plastic, and place it back into the fridge for later.
On a flat work surface that is covered with flour, and adding flour as needed, roll the dough out to a diameter that is one to two inches wider than the pie plate you intend to use.
Once the dough is rolled out to your desired specifications, use your rolling pin to lift it up over countertop and transfer it over to your pie plate.
Instead of pressing the pie dough into the corners, lift and drop it into the corners to avoid stretching the pie dough. Make sure that the dough is generously hanging over the sides of the plate. Place it into the fridge and let sit for 30 minutes.
Once 30 minutes has passed, line the pie dough with aluminum foil and fill it with the pie weight of your choice, such as rice. Place in a 400 degree Fahrenheit oven for 12 to 15 minutes until lightly brown. Remove the foil and “dock” the crust by poking several little holes in the bottom of the crust using a fork. Place back into the oven for another 7 to 9 minutes until a little more golden brown.
After the crust is removed from the oven, let it cool for a few minutes before using a fork to poke and deflate any puff ups. Trim off the excess pie dough around the circumference.
To make the additional layer of crust, roll out the other half of your dough to the same thinness and cover the filling making sure that it is evenly distributed. Trim off any excess dough and tuck it in gently underneath the par baked crust.
Cut a couple of vents in the top of the dough and brush the entire thing down with a beaten egg white and sprinkle with a few pinches of granulated sugar.
Place into a 425°F oven for 35 to 50 minutes. Let it cool for at least 4 hours.

Lattice Pie Crust

Combine 10 ounces of all-purpose flour with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and dump it into a food processor using the blade attachment. Pulse a few times to combine. Set aside in a mixing bowl for later.
Using the grating attachment and allowing it to spin, press two sticks of thoroughly frozen unsalted butter through the feed tube and into the flour mixture. Toss to make sure that all of the butter is coated in flour.
Slowly begin to add 1 tablespoon of ice water at a time to the mixture. The amount will depend on many different factors, so continue adding the ice water slowly and mixing the dough together until it just starts to hold its shape.
Turn the dough out onto a flat work surface and gently knead it into one cohesive mass. Don’t worry if the dough looks a little dry and crumbly because it will continue to hydrate once it is placed in the fridge.
Wrap the dough in plastic and pat it out into a thick round disc so that the dough is easier to roll out later. Place the dough into the fridge and let sit for at least 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes has passed, the dough should be nice and firm and should look like it has hydrated nicely. In addition, it should be visibly dappled with little bits of butter. Take half of the dough, wrap with plastic, and place it back into the fridge for later.
On a flat work surface that is covered with flour, and adding flour as needed, roll the dough out into a large rectangle and cut into 10 equally sized strips and add it to an additional pie crust that has been refrigerated and not baked just yet.
Add your mixture to the crust and then lay 5 of your strips evenly and parallel to one another across the top of the pie. 1 in the center, 2 each to the right, and 2 each to the left.
Lift up 2 of the strips and snake another strip in underneath them perpendicular. Then, lay those 2 strips back down on top of the new strip and repeat the process with the 3 strips that you didn’t pull back during the last round.
Trim the edges, tuck them underneath the bottom crust nice and tight, and brush the surface down with 1 beaten egg white and a few sprinkles of granulated sugar. Place in a 400°F oven for 30 to 45 minutes until deeply golden brown. Let cool completely before digging in.

Apple Pie

Start out by following the instructions above for the double homemade pie crust.
Peel your apples and cut the apple flesh off of the core and slice into half-inch pieces. Then, place the apples into a large bowl and toss them with a little squeeze of lemon juice to prevent the apples from turning brown.
In a bowl, combine ¾ cup of sugar, 2 to 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour, lemon zest, a pinch of kosher salt, ½ teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg, ½ teaspoon of ground ginger, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, and a little sprinkling of both allspice and ground cloves.
Use a tiny whisk and whisk together separately from the apples before pouring the mixture on top of the apples and tossing.Make sure that all of the apples are evenly coated in the mixture. Fill the pre-made pie crust (instructions above) with the apple filling.
For a double-crusted apple pie, follow steps 5 through 15 under the pie crust recipe listed above.

Pumpkin Pie

Into a large bowl, combine ½ a cup of granulated sugar, ½ cup of light brown sugar, 1 tablespoon of flour, a pinch of kosher salt, ½ teaspoon of ground ginger, ½ teaspoon of ground allspice, ½ teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg, a little sprinkling of cloves, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, and a few twists of freshly ground pepper.
In a separate bowl, whisk together 1 can of pumpkin puree to the mix along with 3 eggs and 1 cup of heavy whipping cream.
Next, add your premade pumpkin pie spice and mix together. For taste, add a little glug of maple syrup.
Pour the mixture into the standard pie crust and place into a 400°F oven for 45 to 55 minutes. To prevent from burning, take the pie out of the oven at 25 minutes and wrap the edges of the crust in a thin strip of aluminum foil.
Another 20 minutes later, the pie should be perfectly brown. To prevent the pie from cracking, take the pie out of the oven when the filling is only set around the outside two inches. The center should still be wobbly. Let it cool before digging in. Add a little bit of whipped cream to the top of the pie and enjoy!

Blueberry Pie

In a small bowl, whisk together ½ cup of sugar, ¼ cup of corn starch, and the zest of one lemon. Combine this mixture with the bowl of blueberries and toss accordingly.
Add the blueberry mixture to your standard pie crust.
Follow the steps for the lattice pie crust above.
Bake at 400°F for 30 to 45 minutes until deeply golden brown. Allow to cool for at least four hours before digging in.