Emily vs The Pie Maker

As I mentioned a few posts ago I was recently given a personal pie maker by my cousin Katie as a bridesmaid gift. Since then I've spent far too much time making and consuming small pies. I've never been a big 'pie' girl, or rather, I've nearly always been disappointed by pie crusts because they tend to be bland, crumbly and not worth the excessive calories and fat. As such, I've always been more partial to fruit crisps, which combine the goodness of pies without the crusts. However, when one is given a mini pie maker, one puts it to use.

It has definitely taken a few tries for me to make pies that aren't either a little burnt or too undercooked (hint: never listen to mini pie recipe bake times...), but I've come up with some new insight into pie-making along the way.

First, it's crust time:

If you aren't like me and actually have a rolling pin and a food processor I'd suggest checking out this recipe for a twice-baked crust via the New York Times. I've read great things about it on various food blogs across the internet. 

Since I lack the proper equipment I decided to give frozen pie crusts another chance via Trader Joe's brand. They were surprisingly tasty, although rather fragile unbaked. Definitely my go-to frozen pie crust from now on. But the real revelation came with my mini pie maker's explicit instructions not to use traditional pie crusts to top the pies. Instead, you are instructed to use puff pastry.

Now, hands down the best pie I ever had was at this family restaurant near Bryce Canyon, Utah. The filling was good but it was the crust that really stood out: So light, so flaky, so tasty! Naturally, they had it printed on their menu that they didn't under ANY circumstances give out their recipes, but you were more than welcome to buy whole pies, etc, etc. Using puff pastry on top of these mini pies was the only thing that has ever come close to those Utah pie crusts. I'm not sure how it would work out on a regular sized oven baked pie, but I'm definitely going to try it out.

 Hmmm, I'm clearly still trying to gauge the proper cooking time....

Now for the filling:

I kept things pretty simple since I was admittedly more focused on the crust, but I discovered that Trader Joe's jarred Morello cherries are a pretty decent substitute for fresh berries and definitely better than anything that comes out of a can. I simply added a little vanilla and some sugar to the mix. 

In addition to my pie press, I was given a little recipe book which included a a yummy and incredibly easy sounding S'mores pie.  You simply layer a pie crust with graham crackers and chocolate, then top with marshmallows and stick under the broiler until toasted.

Awww a little S'mores pie fresh out of the broiler!

All in all, the pie maker got me to explore an area of baking that I had heretofore written off. Though I do wish I could still zip up my skinny jeans...