YOU NEED TO KNOW: How to Make Pie Dough

I’ll be honest: I’ve spent the last 10 minutes debating on whether to save this post until early-Novemberish when Thanksgiving dinners and holiday soirees have us all scrambling to make photo-worthy pies filled with canned pumpkin and toasty pecans. In the end, I considered my fridge full of summer berries, Chilton County peaches, and the first of this season’s cherries and decided now was as good of time as any to teach y’all how to make and bake a beautiful (and delicious!) pie dough. If you’re looking for tips on press-in crusts or store-bought varieties, this is not the post for you, but if it’s braided double crusts and flaky pastry you’re after, you’ve come to the right place. Let’s dive in on how to make pie dough.

What Is It?

Any homemade pie crust starts with a plain pastry dough. Pie dough is typically made with three simple ingredients: flour, fat, and water. That’s it! Other ingredients can be added like eggs, sugar, and salt. These manipulate the flavor, color, and texture of your final pastry.

Flour

The right amount and type of flour can make all the difference in a homemade pie dough. Unbleached all-purpose flour is typically chosen for standard pie crusts. It must be handled appropriately to yield a crust that is both tender and flaky. Too much flour can create a tough or dry crust; not enough may flour may lead to a wet crust that shrinks upon baking. Proportions are everything to a great pie crust recipe. Even perfect pastry dough will ruin with over-manipulation. Because all-purpose flour is prone to increased gluten formation, overworked pie dough may wind up being tough and dense.

Fat

I would argue that fat is the single most important aspect of learning how to make pie dough. Fat contributes flakiness and flavor to pie dough, and different types of fat offer their own myriad of benefits. It’s widely known that shortening and lard produce the flakiest pastries thanks to its ability to coat the flour more easily than butter. Butter is often chosen for flavor, although margarine yields similar textures. Oil is a final alternative for pie makers (I made one once here!), although it’s used less frequently and often yields a grainy crust. The amount, temperature, and method of dispersing fat into the flour makes all the difference as we’ll see in a couple paragraphs.

Water

The addition of liquid to a pie dough enables leavening. As the dough heats in the oven, steam generated from the water leavens the pastry and enhances its flakiness. Water also hydrates the dough which is helpful for gluten production, although many people add vinegar, lemon juice, or even alcohol to prevent too much gluten formation. Without enough water or liquid, pie doughs are dry or too crumbly to work with, but if too much liquid is added, crusts make shrink or become too tough.

How to Make Pie Dough

First, combine the flour with salt, sugar, and any other dry ingredients. Once combined, cut the fat into the dry ingredients using a pastry cutter, a food processor, or even just your hands. Continue cutting in the fat until it is evenly incorporated in pea or marble-sized pieces. Keeping the fat cold and working quickly helps to ensure that the pastry will remain flaky and prevent gluten formation. Once the fat is thoroughly integrated, stir in ice water or another cold liquid until the flour comes together into a shaggy dough.

Quite often, chilled dough is easier to handle and enhances the final baked product. Keep in mind it may need to sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes to rolling to make the job easier.

Pastry Cutter vs. Food Processor, vs. Hands

99% of the time, I opt for my pastry cutter when it comes to preparing pie dough. The reason is simple: I don’t trust my fingers to do the job well but I also don’t love the clean-up involved with my food processor. A great pastry cutter can make the job quick and the clean-up simple, so, for me, it’s a win-win. Even so, don’t sleep on those other methods. If you’re new to pie dough, a food processor might help distribute the fat into the flour more evenly, but there are some benefits to working in the fat by hand too; as your fingers flatten the fat into the flour, those chunky pieces will create holes in your crust that enhance its overall flakiness. The bottom line is, this is a choose-your-own adventure kind of deal. Do what works best for you.

How Is It Used?

Once prepared and chilled, homemade pie dough makes any number of treats. Although it’s typically used for dessert pies, you’ll find it’s delicious for quiche, hand pies, and more! For today’s post, I’m going to spend time talking about the areas I get the most questions about: storing pie dough, rolling, crimping, and braiding pie dough, and baking pie dough.

Storing Pie Dough

Once prepared, most pie dough need some chill time. This isn’t a Netflix and chill kind of situation: this is a temperature situation. I like to ready my pie dough for the fridge by patting it into a flat round disk and wrapping it in plastic wrap. The wrap will protect it from drying out in the fridge. If you plan to make a slab pie or any kind of squared-off pastry, you may find it easier to chill it in a flat rectangle shape that will be easier to roll out after chilling.

If you don’t plan to use your pie dough right away, you can typically store it in the fridge up to a week in advance. Any longer, and you’re better off leaving it in the freezer. Simply wrap your plastic-wrapped dough in a sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil and freeze on a flat surface. Once frozen, pie doughs keep in the freezer up to 6 months. When you’re ready to use it, just thaw out overnight in the fridge and allow it to rest at room temperature about 10 minutes or until it’s pliable for rolling.

Rolling Pie Dough

As with most pastry dough, rolling pie dough works best on a cool, lightly-floured surface. My marble counters make an excellent place for rolling, but pastry mats and other flat surfaces will work brilliantly as well. Using a lightly floured rolling pin, begin rolling from the center of the dough to the outer edges, using short, firm strokes. Every few rolls or so, gently slide your hand under the dough to ensure the work surface is thoroughly floured. If more flour is needed, roll the dough onto the floured pin and sprinkle additional flour. Most recipes call for pie doughs rolled out to 1/8″-1/4″ thickness. Check to make sure your dough is large enough by holding your pie plate over the rolled-out round of dough; the dough should be an inch wider on all sides, larger if you’re working with a deep-dish pie plate.

To transfer your pie dough to a pie plate, gently roll the pie dough onto your rolling pin and unroll into the pie plate! If this method doesn’t suit you, you can try folding the dough into quarters, picking it up, and unfolding it into the pie plate. Once in the pan, tuck the dough into the edges of the pan and begin crimping or braiding your dough as desired. If you are making a double-crust pie, you can transfer your pie dough top the same way you did the bottom crust: simply roll the dough onto your rolling pin, unroll it centered on the pie, and begin crimping your edges together as desired.

Latticed Pie

A latticed pie is one of those things many people aspire to. In fact, there are tons of Instagram accounts, Pinterest boards, and more dedicated to intricately woven pie tops. Below, you’ll see a few of my favorite simple lattices. In my own kitchen, I love to use a pizza cutter and a clear sewing ruler to keep my trimmed strips the exact size I want them to be. I don’t have the patience for much beyond this, but if you do, know the principles are the same: keep your dough cold and work quickly!

Crimping Pie Dough

Again, nothing fancy here, just a few of my favorite crimps! When in doubt, the back of a fork is your friend. Just pinch your edges together and crimp away!

Preparing Pie Dough for Baking

At some point in your baking career, you’ll stumble upon a recipe that calls for an egg wash. More often than not, this is solely for aesthetic purposes. An egg wash combines all or part of an egg with some kind of liquid (water, milk, or cream) which you then brush in a thin layer on a prepared pie dough crust prior to baking. The protein, fat, and water in the wash adds color or gloss to the finished pie crust. Below, you’ll see a sampling of a few different wash varieties. Choose whichever works best for you or go for my favorite: whole egg whisked together.

Blind/ Par-Baking

A blind baked (or par-baked) crust is one that has been partially or fully baked prior to adding the filling. Usually done only on single crust pies, blind baking can help prevent soggy bottoms and ensure that crusts are cooked thoroughly and evenly. To blind bake, start by docking (or poking holes with a fork) the bottom and sides of your chilled pie dough that has been rolled into a pan. Fit a crumpled sheet of parchment paper into the bottom and sides of the dough and fill it with pie weight, dried rice, or dried beans. The weight will prevent steam from bubbling underneath the dough and ensure that the crust remains flat in the pan.

More Help on How to Make Pie Dough

We’re nearing the end of this lengthy (but hopefully helpful?) tutorial, so I wanted to wrap things up with a few frequently asked questions. Most of these are internal questions that blaze across my brain when a failed pie attempt has me searching Google for answers or help, but some of these are questions that have been posed me to by readers like you! We’ll end on this note, but be sure to see below for my favorite double crust pie recipe. It’s been tried and true for me for years, the combination of shortening and butter yielding a flaky yet flavorful crust. Give it a try and let me know what you think! Without further ado, here’s some FAQ!

Why is my pie dough sticky?

Two possible situations: either it’s not cold enough or you added too much water. Pop it in the fridge for 30 minutes or so to see if that helps!

Why did my pie crust shrink in my pan?

Again, it’s probably a hydration issue. Next time, add a little less water and chill the pie crust prior to baking it. I even like to pop crusts in the freezer sometimes!

What kind of rolling pin is best?

This is a personal preference thing. I prefer a wooden rolling pin with traditional handles, but you may opt for a French pin or one that is made with marble or plastic! The important thing is keeping that pin floured the whole time you roll out your dough!

Can I use different flours in my pie crust?

Sure. The internet is loaded with recipes for people looking to use alternative flours. I don’t have a recipe here that I’d recommend, but I’m sure you’ll find something on the interwebs.

Is a deep-dish pie the same as a standard one?

Not typically. On this site, I always specify where a deep-dish pie pan is needed, because they always hold more volume. If you attempt to make a deep-dish pie recipe in a standard pie plate, you’ll wind up with too many ingredients and not enough room. Tread lightly.

So what kind of pie plate is best?

Again, this is a preference thing. I live and die by my William-Sonoma Goldtouch Pan, but many other people swear by glass or even ceramic. I will say that glass is helpful when you’re wanting the ensure a crisp, golden bottom- after all, you can look under the pie and see how the cooking is coming!

Do I have to flour or grease my pie plate?

Nope, not unless the recipe you’re following specifies to do so.

How can I get a crisp-bottomed pie?

Par-baking is a great option for single pie crusts, but I also love to bake my pies closer to the bottom third of the oven. Other recipes may specify to add an egg wash to the bottom of the pie.

How do I know my fruit pie is done?

I always look for bubbling fruit in the middle of the pie.

What do I do if my pie crust is too brown before the filling is bubbling?

Use a sheet of aluminum foil to gently cover the top. If it’s just the edges getting too dark, make a foil collar to rest around the edge of the pie like a crown.

Where can I learn more about your favorite pie crust?

Check out a super old post here!

What pies should I make?

For a cream pie, check out my favorite Southern Coconut Cream Pie . For a summer favorite, look no further than this Peach Berry Pie . And for something a little different, try these Raspberry Champagne Pop-Tarts.

My Favorite Pie Dough

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A pie crust equal parts buttery and flaky, lightly golden, and perfectly baked- this is the only recipe for a double pie crust that you’ll ever need.

Author: Kate Wood
Prep Time: 10
Total Time: 10 minutes
Yield: 1 Double Crust
Category: Pastry

Ingredients

3 ½ cups (420 gm) all purpose flour
3 teaspoons (12 gm) sugar
3/4 teaspoon (4 gm) salt
2/3 cup (135 gm) chilled solid vegetable shortening, cut into pieces
3/4 cup (1–1/2 sticks, 170 gm) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
10 tablespoons (approximately) ice water

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Instructions

Give the dry ingredients a whiz in the food processor to combine.
Pulse in the shortening and butter, just until barely evenly dispersed.
Begin adding ice water, 2 tablespoons at a time until moist clumps begin to form.
Remove dough from food processor and separate in two round disks. Wrap in Saran wrap and chill for at least two hours prior to use.
When ready to use, roll out to 1/4″ thickness and line the bottom of a 9″ pie pan. This is enough dough to fill a deep dish pan as well. Prior to baking, brush with an egg wash, if desired. This is done by whisking 1 egg with 1 tablespoon of water and lightly brushing crust prior to use.

Notes

This recipe makes a double crust. If you want extra dough for decorating the top, I recommend doubling the recipe and saving leftover crust for a future pie! The dough freezes nicely when wrapped well.
Chilling the dough is essential. If your dough gets too warm while you are rolling it out or decorating the top, you may not get as flakey of a crust as you might desire. So work swiftly!
Patch up holes or tears in the crust with leftover dough. Even small holes on the bottom of the pie plate can make a burned and sticky mess of your pie and you’re not going to want to waste a drop of this deliciousness!
You can easily substitute the shortening for butter and visa versa, however I cannot vouch for any other substitutions. Unless you’re super anti-shortening or anti-butter, I strongly recommend this combination for a buttery, flaky crust.

Cheddar Apple Pie

6 Comments / Pies and Tarts

My favorite recipes are the ones that evoke memories. Nana’s banana bread. My mom’s baked spaghetti. Mimi’s chicken and dumplings. The foods that come attached with a series of moments or a special person are the ones that I find most comforting. They just taste like home. Since this is the first recipe of the *official* fall season (let’s be honest, I’ve been secretly dreaming of fall via my denim-filled online shopping carts and cozy coffee creamer choices for about a month now), I thought I’d go all out and share a super fallish recipe: cheddar apple pie.

“Good apple pies are a considerable part of our domestic happiness.” – Jane Austen

Apple pie, for me and likely every other Thanksgiving-celebrating American, is an incredibly nostalgic recipe. One of my first real baking experiences was spent with floury hands in a bowl of pie dough destined to encase a gooey apple and cinnamon filling. My Mimi, who makes apple and pumpkin pies every Thanksgiving, first let me saddle up at the counter with her as a middle schooler. With two forks and some serious forearm endurance, we cut fat into dry ingredients, pat together clumps of shaggy dough, and gingerly rolled out thin slabs to fit inside of the glass dishes. It was a technique and recipe she had used for years, and I learned how to make pie dough by studying her methodical movements over the edge of the counter.

Pie dough is still sometimes a mystery to me, and although I have a favorite classic recipe, an all-butter recipe, and even a savory cornmeal dough, I’m always tinkering with the ingredients and technique to try out new combinations. Still, very few pie crusts taste as good to me as the ones that hold my Mimi’s apple pie filling, because you just can’t beat nostalgia.

Cheddar Apple Pie

This cheddar apple pie is a variation of sorts of a few different pie dough and filling recipes that I’ve used over the years. Here, the classic apple, sugar, cinnamon, and spice combination is complimented by a cheddar cheese and butter crust. Yes, we literally take a delicious block of Kerrygold aged cheddar cheese, finely shred it, and work all that goodness into the flour and butter. The final outcome is a crust whose flavor is subtle but entirely unique, a pairing that goes really well with the autumnal filling.

If you’re new to pie making, don’t let this cheddar apple pie scare you. Adding savory elements to dessert is never really my favorite thing, but here, the cheese only barely scents the crust of what is otherwise an entirely sweet and cozy pie. Loads of sugar and apple pie spice bake in with juicy apples until the insides are bubbling and thickened. If you notice you crust starts to brown too much before the filling has had a chance to thicken up, just lightly drape it in a sheet of tin foil. I always like to bake the pie with a larger sheet pan or piece of foil directly beneath it to catch any bubbled-over juices as well.

A Few Tips:

Don’t overwork the dough! Cut your fat into the dry ingredients and stir in the water with as few steps as possible to keep your dough tender. If you work with it too long it will get tough.
Work with a chilled dough. Slightly warm or less than cold doughs will slouch and not keep their shape in the pan!
Know that all pie plates bake differently. I prefer to bake pies in my hearty metal pan because I find this yields the most evenly baked pies. Beware that pie crust tends to sag or shrink back in ceramic pie plates. I like to briefly freeze my bottom crust to help prevent this from happening.
Leave a little hangover. When you roll out your bottom crust, you’ll need about a 1-2″ hangover of dough on all sides to give you enough to work with.
Bake until the juices are bubbling! Bubbling juices in the center of the pie means that your filling will have had time to bake up. No bubbles means a runny filling.
Be patient while you wait for your pie to cool. I like to let my pie come to room temperature throughout before cutting into it. You can speed up this process by placing it in the fridge.

Honestly, there’s probably a million other things I could say about pie baking, but I’ll leave you alone for now. In the meantime, many thanks to Kerrygold for sponsoring this delicious post. I hope you all pick up some of their fab aged cheddar and butter to make this cheddar apple pie. You won’t regret it! Happy fall, y’all!

If you like this cheddar apple pie you should try:

Caramel Apple Pie

Apple Frangipane Tart

Brown Sugar Apple Bundt Cake

Chicken Pot Pie with Cheddar Cornmeal Crust

Cranberry Pear Pop-Tarts

Cheddar Apple Pie

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This is a traditional cinnamon-spiced apple pie with a cheddar cheese and butter pie crust!

Author: Kate
Prep Time: 40
Cook Time: 60
Total Time: 240
Yield: 9
Category: Dessert

Ingredients

For the crust:

2–1/4 cups (350 gm) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup (230 gm) unsalted butter, cold and diced
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup ice water
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

For the filling:

4 lbs apples (I used about 7 fuji apples), peeled, cored and sliced 1/8” thick
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon apple pie spice
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
1 egg white whisked with 1 teaspoon water

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Instructions

To prepare the crust:

Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse in the butter until pea-sized clumps exist throughout. Pulse in the cheese to combine barely. Pour the vinegar into your ice water and stir. Add about 5 tablespoons of the water mixture into the bowl of the processor and pulse a bit. Add water a tablespoon more at a time until the mix begins to come together into a shaggy dough. Don’t overwork it. Dump the dough out onto a clean surface and bring it together into a ball. Cut the dough in half and flatten each piece into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and allow to chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

To prepare the pie:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Use a floured rolling pin to roll out half of the dough onto a floured surface into a circle about an inch wider than your pie plate on all sides. Roll the dough back onto the pin and then unroll it into the pie dish. Brush a thin layer of the egg white wash onto the pie dough and place in the freezer while you prep your filling. Combine the sliced apples with the sugar, brown sugar, flour, lemon juice, spice, vanilla, and salt. Toss to evenly coat the apples. Gently ease the dough into the edges of the pie dish and dump the filling into the prepared pie dish. Roll out the second half of dough onto a flour surface and use it to cut lattice strips or top your pie. Cut a few vent strips into the top of the pie if you opt out of a lattice and crimp the edges of the pie together as desired. Brush a thin layer of the egg white wash on top of the pie dough and place in the oven. Decrease the oven heat to 400 degrees and bake for 20 minutes. Decrease the heat to 375 and bake for an additional 30 minutes or until the filling is bubbling under the crust. You can top the pie crust with a sheet of aluminum foil if it begins to look too dark. Allow to cool completely prior to cutting!

Lemon Olive Oil Pie

9 Comments / Pies and Tarts

How’s that post-Thanksgiving hangover treating you? Have you exhausted your drawstring pants and oversized tees? Have you polished off your final few turkey sandwiches and leftover slices of pie?

With our move-in date looming just around the corner, we opted to stay close by for Thanksgiving to celebrate with Brett’s family. I’m obsessed with the cornbread dressing and bacon-y green beans that this Southern Thanksgiving provided me, but I missed the things that really make it feel like the holidays. I miss my grandparents scurrying around the kitchen and nibbling on trays of olives with my Mom. I even miss passing around that carrot salad that absolutely no one eats. It’s funny how much things like that, the atmosphere and the faces and the flavors that you grow up with, shape your idea of what a holiday or gathering should look like. I think the absence of those things deepens my love and appreciation for the people who created those moments for me.

Lemon Olive Oil Pie

With Thanksgiving behind us, its easy to want to dive right in to the Christmas cookies and pound cakes and peppermint-flavored everything that comes with December, but in an effort to transition gracefully from turkeys to Christmas trees, I have a delicious and elegant pie that is perfectly appropriate for this limbo time of year. This lemon olive oil pie, a spin on a Southern lemon chess pie, is fragrant and flavorful, a treat that is as tasty as it is beautiful.

I’m sharing this recipe today in partnership with my friends at Lucini Italia. You might recall the cheesy rolls I served alongside their sauce a few weeks ago, but did you know that they also make premium olive oils as well? This lemon olive oil pie is the perfect showcase for quality oil, as the flavor and smells of it come through in a really unique way.

How to Make an Olive Oil Pie

First, we have an olive oil pie crust. Adapted from my trusty, no-fail crust, this pie dough has the addition of olive oil to it! Although it does just barely change the texture of the crust, it provides a subtle whiff of that olive oil flavor that is interesting and super tasty to eat. The filling here, similar to the chocolate chess pie I shared this time last year, is scented with lemon zest and utilizes olive oil in place of the butter. The texture of this filling is really very similar to any normal chess pie, but again, the flavor of the olive oil meshes perfectly with the tangy citrus. It’s really lovely.

The key here really is the olive oil. The flavor is extremely subtle, but oil that doesn’t have a definitively delicious flavor will make the pie taste greasy. Gross, right? Lucini is a brand I trust to provide quality olive oil for a variety of my baking and cooking needs; it especially shines in this pie. If you’re on the hunt for a favorite olive oil, I would highly suggest giving Lucini a try.

Finishing the Pie

I like to finish this lemon olive oil pie with freshly whipped cream. This is totally optional, but I think it adds a nice finishing touch to an already fab pie. Although I lean on pies during holidays, this pie would be perfectly delicious in the spring or summer as well. It’s bright, fresh, and flavorful while still maintaining it’s status as an indulgent, rich dessert.

Happy pie making to you all! I hope you’ll give this pie a try in the coming weeks!

This post is sponsored by Lucini Italia. Thank you for supporting brands that make Wood and Spoon possible.

If you like this lemon olive oil pie you should try:

Salted Maple Pie

Cherry Lime Hand Pies

Blueberry Lemon Pop-Tarts

Blueberry Lemon Bars

Alphabet Cream Pie

Lemon Olive Oil Pie

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★★★★★

5 from 1 reviews

This lemon olive oil pie is a tangy and refreshing take on a Southern chess pie. Topped with whipped cream and flavored with quality Lucini olive oil, this is a delicious pie perfect all year round.

Author: Kate
Prep Time: 25
Cook Time: 60
Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
Yield: 9
Category: dessert

Ingredients

For the crust:

1–3/4 cup (245 gm) all-purpose flour
1–1/2 teaspoons sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ cup (60 gm) olive oil
6 tablespoons (85 gm) unsalted butter, cold and chopped
Ice water

For the pie:

4 large eggs (240 gm), plus an additional for brushing the pie crust, if desired
1–1/2 cups (300 gm) sugar
1/3 cup (80 gm) olive oil
1/3 cup (80 gm) buttermilk
¼ cup (60 gm) fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon salt

For the whipped cream:

1–1/4 cups (300 gm) heavy whipping cream
¼ cup (50 gm) sugar

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Instructions

To prepare the pie crust:

Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Add the olive oil and cold butter and use a pastry cutter to cut in the fat until small clumps are throughout. Do not overwork the dough. Add about 6 tablespoons of water, more as needed a tablespoon at a time, to bring the floury clumps together into a shaggy dough. Again, do NOT overwork- this will yield a tough crust. Dump the dough out onto a counter and bring it into a ball and then flatten it into a round. Cover it with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rest in the fridge for at least an hour, but preferably for several hours.

To prepare the pie:

When ready to bake the pie, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Allow the dough to sit out at room temp for about 5 minutes and then roll it out with a rolling pin on a floured surface until it is about an 11” diameter circle. The dough needs to be an inch large on all sides than the diameter of your pie plate. Roll the dough up onto the rolling pin and unroll it into the pie plate. Gently nudge the dough into the edges of the pan and trim off any excess around the top, leaving a ½” over the edge of the lip of the pan on all sides. Fold the dough until and press to seal the crust. Crimp your edges as desired and then place the pie dish in the freezer while you prep the pie filling.
Whisk the 4 eggs and sugar in a large bowl. Add the olive oil, buttermilk, lemon juice, and vanilla and whisk just to combine. Add the lemon zest, flour, and salt and stir just until combined. Pull the pie plate out of the freezer, and, if desired, whisk the remaining egg in a small bowl and brush a thing layer of the mixture on the edges of the crust. This only helps with browning and is not necessary. Pour the filling into the pie and bake in the preheated oven about 40 minutes or until the crust and top of the pie is golden and bronzed. You may need to rotate the pie the last 10 minutes to allow it to brown evenly. Allow to cool to room temperature prior to serving.

To prepare the whipped cream:

Whip the heavy whipping cream on medium speed until frothy and slightly thickened. Add the sugar and continue beating until smooth, thick peaks form. Top the pie and serve immediately.

Salted Maple Pie

33 Comments / Pies and Tarts

I can’t claim the recipe for this salted maple pie as my own, but I love it so much that it feels like my child. This pie, straight from a brand-spanking new book called “Sister Pie” is a winning treat that your falls need. Trust me.

Something I’ve been learning about over the last five or so years of my life is how to celebrate others. There was a period of time in my life where my own insecurity prevented me from whole-heartedly cheering on the people around me. I guess I thought that if someone else was successful, hitting milestones faster than me, or achieving things I wanted in my own life it would somehow diminish my own gifts and the good things in my life. Like someone else’s advancement meant I was stuck behind. Obviously that type of mentality was gross and damaging for a number of reasons, but I think the thing I missed out on most was the opportunity to share in the joy of someone else’s successes.

Small Town Life

One of my favorite things about life in a small town is how friends, neighbors, and even complete strangers can come to feel like family. In the confines of a tiny city, it’s easy to recognize how closely your life is knitted to the people around you and wanting the best for them becomes an absolute no brainer. Their struggles become your struggles, their joys become your joys, and the triumphs and blessings in their lives will eventually trickle down to affect yours in a positive way too.

When one person succeeds in a small town, everyone eventually shares in that reward, and I’ve found that taking part in their stories, investing passion and love into the things that are important to them, almost always feels like a shared victory in the end. This way of living, this crazy love and support for the people around you, is is one of the most heart-filling things I’ve ever experienced in my life, and if you’ve felt it too, I bet you’d agree.

Sister Pie

This notion of sharing with and loving your community is all over the “Sister Pie” cookbook. Reading the book, you’ll know that these gals are all about taking care of the people (and bellies) around them. The stories are great, but the recipes are crazy good, so much so that I knew I had to share one with you. The salted maple pie was my first bake from the book, and I have a feeling it’s one I’ll be making for years to come.

Salted Maple Pie

With it’s rich, almost chess pie-like filling, equals parts sweet from maple syrup and salty from finishing salt, this salted maple pie satisfies my dessert cravings on so many levels. There’s the buttery crust, the gooey (think Crack Pie from Milkbar) filling, and those perfect crunches of salt. I shared this pie with a group at our church and I literally had someone come up to hug me because it was so good. If you think food can’t bless the pants off of someone, think again.

Making the Pie

To make it, we start with Sister Pie’s crust. Their classic all-butter pie dough utilizes European style butter. Euro butter has a higher fat percentage and less water. This means more flake and more flavor in your pie. The crust blind-bakes until set and starting to turn golden. In the meanwhile you can prep your filling. Just like with my favorite chocolate chess pie, this pie gets whipped up in a single bowl. Eggs, butter, maple syrup, and cream stir together. Pour the filling in and complete the baking process until the filling it barely puffed and only jiggles a little. Allow the pie to cool on the counter, about 4 hours, until set. Finish with a sprinkle (or two) of salt.

This salted maple pie is like a gooey autumnal hug. The flavors are cozy and complex, an extremely satisfying ending to any meal. I hope you’ll give it a try and check out the new “Sister Pie” cookbook! There’s loads of inspiration, both sweet and savory, within its pages; I think it’s one you’ll reach for for years to come. Happy reading, happy baking, and happy Wednesday!

If you like this salted maple pie you should check out:

Maple Apple Cake

Brown Sugar Cheesecake with Oatmeal Cookie Crust and Butterscotch

Mocha Hazelnut Cream Pie

Strawberry Pretzel Tart

Cookie Butter Pretzel Mousse

Salted Maple Pie

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From the author:

The Salted Maple Pie is our signature flavor at Sister Pie because it is an homage to the bakeries where I got my professional chops: Momofuku Milk Bar in Manhattan and Four & Twenty Blackbirds in Brooklyn. It is reminiscent of the addictive quality of both Milk Bar’s Crack Pie and Four & Twenty’s Salty Honey Pie. We created our own version of a classic chess filling with robust Grade B maple syrup from Imlay City, Michigan and highlighted with local heavy cream, eggs, stone-ground yellow cornmeal, and light brown sugar. On Saturdays at the shop, we’ll buy applewood-smoked bacon from the market to crisp up in the oven right before opening. It’s a match made in pancake breakfast heaven.

Author: Kate Wood
Prep Time: 15
Cook Time: 60
Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Yield: 9
Category: Dessert

Ingredients

1⁄2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 1⁄4 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 cup Grade B maple syrup
3⁄4 cup packed light brown sugar
1⁄4 cup fine yellow cornmeal
Heaping 1⁄4 teaspoon kosher salt
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
3⁄4 cup heavy cream, at room temperature
1–1⁄4 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
One 9-inch crust made with All-Butter Pie Dough, blind baked and cooled (see below)
1 large egg, beaten
Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling top

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Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350°F.
Make the filling: In a medium bowl, combine the melted butter and maple syrup. Whisk in the brown sugar, cornmeal, and kosher salt.
Crack the eggs and yolk into another medium bowl. Add the cream and vanilla and whisk until combined.
Slowly pour the egg mixture into the maple mixture and whisk just until combined.
Place the blind-baked shell on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush the crimped edge with the beaten egg. Pour the maple filling into the pie shell until it reaches the bottom of the crimps.
Transfer the baking sheet with the pie on it to the oven and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the edges are puffed and the center jiggles only slightly when shaken. It will continue to set as it cools.
Remove the baking sheet from the oven and transfer the pie to a wire rack to cool for 4 to 6 hours. Once fully cooled and at room temperature, sprinkle generously with flaky sea salt, slice into 6 to 8 pieces, and serve.
Store leftover pie, well wrapped in plastic wrap or under a pie dome, at room temperature for up to 3 days.

All-Butter Pie Dough

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From the author:

This is our go-to dough, and it’s how each pie begins. Every pie baker, professional or at home, seems to have an opinion on the best combination of fats for the flakiest crust—is it lard, shortening, butter, or a mix? Our basic dough is a pure and simple ode to unsalted butter and all-purpose flour—we think it produces the best-tasting, lightest, flakiest pie crust.

Author: Kate
Prep Time: 15
Cook Time: 60
Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Yield: 1
Category: Dessert

Ingredients

2–1⁄2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted European-style butter, straight from the fridge
1⁄2 cup ice-cold water-vinegar mixture (see below), or more if needed

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Instructions

In a large stainless steel bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and salt and stir to mix well. Place the sticks of butter in the bowl and coat on all sides with the flour mixture. Using a bench scraper, cut the butter into 1⁄2-inch cubes. Work quickly to separate the cubes with your hands until they are all lightly coated in flour. Grab that bench scraper once again and cut each cube in half. I always tell my pie dough students that it’s unnecessary to actually cut each cube perfectly in half, but it’s a good idea to break up the butter enough so that you can be super-efficient when it’s pastry blender time.

It’s pastry blender time! Switch to the pastry blender and begin to cut in the butter with one hand while turning the bowl with the other. It’s important not to aim for the same spot at the bottom of the bowl with each stroke of the pastry blender, but to actually slice through butter every time to maximize efficiency. When the pastry blender clogs up, carefully clean it out with your fingers (watch out, it bites!) or a butter knife and use your hands to toss the ingredients a bit. Continue to blend and turn until the largest pieces are the size and shape of peas and the rest of the mixture feels and looks freakishly similar to canned Parmesan cheese.

At this point, add the water-vinegar mixture all at once, and switch back to the bench scraper. Scrape as much of the mixture as you can from one side of the bowl to the other, until you can’t see visible pools of liquid anymore. Now it’s hand time. Scoop up as much of the mixture as you can, and use the tips of your fingers (and a whole lot of pressure) to press it back down onto the rest of the ingredients. Rotate the bowl a quarter-turn and repeat. Scoop, press, and turn. With each fold, your intention is to be quickly forming the mixture into one cohesive mass. Remember

to incorporate any dry, floury bits that have congregated at the bottom of the bowl, and once those are completely gone and the dough is formed, it’s time to stop.

Remove the dough from the bowl, place it on a lightly floured counter, and use your bench scraper to divide it into two equal pieces. Gently pat each into a 2-inch-thick disc, working quickly to seal any broken edges before wrapping them tightly in a double layer of plastic wrap. If you’re portioning for a lattice-topped pie, shape one half into a 2-inch-thick disc and the other half into a 6 by 3-inch rectangle. Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours or, ideally, overnight. When you go to roll out the crust, you want the discs to feel as hard and cold as the butter did when you removed it from the fridge to make the dough. This will make the roll-out way easier.

You can keep the pie dough in the fridge for a few days or in the freezer for up to 1 year. If frozen, remove the dough and place it in the refrigerator to thaw one full day before you intend to use it. If you’re planning to make only one single-crust pie, wrap the discs separately and place one in the freezer.

To Blind-Bake:

Preheat your oven to 450°F with the rack on the lowest level. Remove the pie crust from the freezer, tear off a square of aluminum foil that is slightly larger than the pie shell, and gently fit it into the frozen crust. Fill the crust with the dried beans (they should come all the way up to the crimps) and place the pie pan on a baking sheet. Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and bake for 25 to 27 minutes. Check for doneness by peeling up a piece of foil—the crimps should be light golden brown. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack. After 6 minutes, carefully remove the foil and beans. You did it! You are now ready to fill the pie.

Notes

For the water/vinegar mixture, fill a 1-cup liquid measuring cup about halfway with ice, then add water and 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar.

Roasted Summer Vegetable Quiche

9 Comments / Food and Drink, Pies and Tarts

Today’s recipe is a roasted summer vegetable quiche, also known as your new throw-all-your-leftovers-into-a-one-dish meal. This is the no-frills, adapt-as-you-wish type of dish that you can enjoy as breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Truly, if it gets any simpler than this, I don’t want to know.

This roasted summer vegetable quiche came out of a desire to use up all of my fresh produce. All summer long we have subscribed to a farmer’s market basket, and as a result, our fridge has been stocked with some seriously random (albeit delicious) produce. Some weeks I’d have a baby eggplant, a bag of okra, a handful of greens, and a pint of tomatoes. Other weeks they’d deliver me a Ziploc full of banana peppers, three giant zucchini, and fresh oregano. At the end of the week, I’d scrape together all the leftovers in my fridge and scour the Internet for a clue on what to do with them.

This roasted summer vegetable quiche is the answer to all those leftovers. Nearly any forgotten tomato, chicken breast, or leftover sausage link would find a home nestled inside a buttery, flaky pie crust. If you’re in a dinnertime rut or just need to clean your fridge out, I really think that quiche is the answer!

Making the Quiche

To make this roasted summer vegetable quiche, we start with the crust. I’ve switched out my trusty, all-time favorite pie crust for an all-butter pastry. You can make this ahead of time, storing in the fridge or freezer prior to use. If you use a tart dish like I did, you’ll want to make sure you roll your dough out large enough to build the edge of the crust up an inch out of the pan. I find that pie dough shrinks pretty easily, particularly when using glass or ceramic dishes like I did. Fit the dough into the pan and par-bake until the crust is set and ready to receive the filling.

The filling is just about as easy as it sounds! The eggs and dairy serve as the glue, holding together all the little morsels of savory veggies and meats your heart desires. Whisk four eggs with one cup of milk, salt and pepper, and a little bit of seasoning as well. I used cheddar and parmesan for my quiche, but you can really use whatever kind of melted shredded goodness you have on hand. Goat cheese, feta, and mozzarella would be killer here as well, just keep your proportions true to the original recipe and you’ll be in good shape.

Making Substitutions

For this roasted summer vegetable quiche, I included 2 cups of cooked veggies. You can use 2 cups of just about any filling your heart desires, but it is important that it’s already been cooked. Vegetables and meats will often release a whole lot of juices which could attribute to a watery or undercooked mess. For convenience, I’ve given instructions on how to roast a pan of summer veggies below.

Bake the quiche in the oven until the crust and filling have begun to bronze. Serve warm with a fresh salad or even just on it’s own! This roasted summer vegetable quiche should be as easy to serve as it is to make.

I’m sharing today’s recipe with a bunch of other bloggers who are featuring tomato-filled foods on their sites! Thank you to Annie, Rebecca and Ruth for hosting this #wesaytomatoes round-up. Be sure to check out their site for the full list of recipes. I hope you enjoy this savory treat today and come back next week when we resume the onslaught of sugary treats. Love to y’all!

If you like this roasted summer vegetable quiche you should check out:

Tomato Olive Rolls

Tomato Galette with Basil Pesto and Feta

Cheddar Cornmeal Chicken Pot Pie

Buttermilk Biscuits with Pepper Bacon, Cheddar, and Egg

Roasted Summer Vegetable Quiche

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This roasted summer vegetable quiche is filled with fresh summer veggies, melty cheese, and is served in a flaky all-butter pie crust. Substitute in your favorite filling options in this seriously adaptable dish!

Author: Kate Wood
Prep Time: 35
Cook Time: 35
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Yield: 12
Category: Lunch
Cuisine: French

Ingredients

For the pie dough:

2–1/2 cups (350 gm) all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (230 gm) unsalted butter, cold and chopped
½ cup ice water, plus more as needed

For the quiche:

1 cup (240 gm) milk
4 large eggs, plus one extra for pie wash
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¾ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
½ cup grated parmesan
2 cups roasted vegetables (see notes)
½ cup shredded cheddar cheese

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Instructions

To make the pie dough:

Stir the flour, sugar and salt together. Use a pastry cutter or the backs of two forks to cut in the butter until there are pea-sized clumps throughout. Add about 6 tablespoons of the ice water into the flour mixture and begin to stir together. It will likely be dry and require more ice water, so keep adding water 2 tablespoons at a time until a shaggy dough comes together. Dump the mixture out on the counter and use your hands to form the dough into one ball. It should come together as a dough without feeling wet or too tacky. Cut the ball in half and flatten each half into a disk. Wrap each with plastic wrap and store in the fridge for at least an hour or up to a week. You will only need one half of the dough for this quiche. The other can be wrapped in foil and frozen for up to two months.
To prep the quiche:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Use a floured rolling pin to roll the dough out onto a floured work surface into a round of dough about an inch and a half wider on all sides than your 9” tart dish. Roll the dough back onto the rolling pin and the transfer it to the dish, unrolling as you go. Gently work the dough into the edges of the dish and trim off any excess dough, leaving about an inch of excess hanging on all sides. Fold the dough under itself and gently crimp the edges into the dish, allowing the top of the dough to extend about ¾-1” above the lip of the dish. This will help keep your crust tall even after baking. If your dough has gotten soft or warm while rolling it out, place it in the freezer for 5-10 minutes to chill up again.
When ready to bake, place a crinkled sheet of parchment paper into the bottom of the crust and fill it with pie weights or uncooked dry beans. Bake in the preheated oven about 10 minutes, then remove the paper and weights and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, or until the bottom of the crust doesn’t look too wet and soggy. While the crust is baking, begin to assemble your filling.
Whisk together the milk, 4 eggs, garlic powder, salt and pepper. When the crust is finished baking, crack your additional egg in a separate bowl and brush a thin layer of egg white over the bottom of the crust. This will help to keep the crust from becoming soggy. Sprinkle the parmesan evenly over the crust and then spread out the roasted veggies. Sprinkle on the cheddar cheese and then carefully pour the egg mixture into the dish. Be careful to not overflow the tart or the eggs could run over the edge of the crust and into the bottom of your dish. Whisk together the egg from the egg wash and use a pastry brush to brush a thin layer over the exposed crust. Bake in the preheated oven for about 35 minutes or until the top is golden and the center is no longer jiggly. Serve warm or reheat individual slices in the toaster oven!

Notes

To roast your own veggies at home, cut a mixture of vegetables (I use eggplant, tomatoes, onion, bell peppers, and squash) into ½” sized pieces. You’ll need about 6 cups fresh vegetables to make about 2 cups roasted vegetables. Toss the chopped veggies with 3 tablespoons of olive oil on a large rimmed sheet pan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast at 420 for about 20-25 minutes, tossing every 8 minutes or so, until the vegetables are tender and beginning to brown around the edges. You can make these in advance and store in the fridge until ready to use in your quiche!
As an alternate to the pie wash, you can reserve a small bit of egg white from one of the 4 eggs for the filling. Brush this over the bottom of the quiche and then add the remainder to the filling mixture.

Strawberry Pretzel Tart

20 Comments / Pies and Tarts

Hey friends! I’ve got your weekend entertainment round-up here, complete with a few things to read and a bright and cheery strawberry pretzel tart that is just begging to be made.

This week was a cluster in our house, thanks to sick babies, unfinished to-do lists, and an underwhelming amount of time spent making myself looks presentable (Sorry, Brett. I swear I’ll change out of these sweatpants eventually.) Luckily, a few hours spent snuggling with my sick Aimee girl on the couch (read: trying not to let me brain melt from Lysol fumes and watching back to back episodes of “Paw Patrol”), I reacquainted myself with the interwebs and got caught up on what was going on in the world. For example: apparently Donald Trump is president? What? And someone announced the wrong winner for “Best Picture” at the Oscars? And Ryan Gosling is the world’s most perfect human? (Okay, kidding, guys. I’m not that out of touch.) Here’s a few things that have my eye this week:

50 Things We Learned About Feeding Kids in the Past 6 Years

This little article from Bon Appetit Magazine has so many truths in it. If you’re a parent, you have to give it a read. I promise you’ll identify with something. I’d like to add a few of my own learned lessons to the list:

A tub of baby wipes is a legitimate tableware item.
No one will known that there is Crown Royale in your water if you are drinking it from a Yeti cup.
Squeeze packs counts as vegetable servings.
(More seriously) Find a reason to celebrate at least once a week. Set a date and make a mealtime a party. It’s good for morale.

March Madness

March Madness starts next week! Ok, ok, I know that audience for this blog is primarily women aged 25-34, but it would be entirely sexist to assume that there aren’t at least a few women out there who are beyond excited to watch some basketball. Everyone likes to watch the University of Kentucky win, AMIRITE? Check out this link to get your bracket filled out before the whole shebang starts. And Go Cay-uts.

The Piglet

If basketball doesn’t do it for you, maybe cookbooks are more your thing. We are knee deep in the quarterfinal round of Food52’s tournament of cookbooks! 16 notable publishings from this past year face off in a NCAAstyle tournament to determine the best cookbook of the year! I’ve got my money on “Dorie’s Cookies” to take the whole thing.

La Pitchoune

Brett and I have some traveling coming up. I’m not going to tell you where or when we’re going, because, geez, I don’t really know who could be reading this! Maybe some Charles Manson psychopath character has been following this blog for some time just waiting for me to reveal my actual location. SORRY CHARLIE, NOT TODAY. But for future vacay planning purposes, I’m keeping this idea on the back burner: Julia Child’s summer home in Provence France that is now a vacation rental and cooking school. You sleep where she slept, cook where she cooked, and no, this is not a drill. Amazing, right?

Strawberry Pretzel Tart

If you’re planning to make a few treats this weekend, keep this strawberry pretzel tart in mind. This is a brown sugar and pretzel crusted tart, adapted from my favorite pretzel pie crust. It’s filled with a no-bake cheesecake filling of sorts and topped with sliced strawberries. With less than 30 minutes of active prep time and requiring less than 10 ingredients, this strawberry pretzel tart is a cinch to make and quite the looker. With spring strawberries just around the corner, this is the tart you’ll make from now until the very last taste of summer. Count on it.

I adapted this recipe from one printed in the newest issue of Bake from Scratch. Bake from Scratch is a newer publication, dedicated to baking culture and the recipes, bakeries, and movers and shakers that make our world a little bit sweeter. You may remember that I was featured in a previous issue as one of nine baking bloggers to follow in 2017 (!!!), and while I am incredibly honored to have been featured, I’m really just thrilled to have a seat at the table. Getting to bake and write and interact with all of you is more fun than all of the basketball games, cookbooks, Provencial summer homes that the world has to offer.

Keep this strawberry pretzel tart on your list of weekend plans and save a slice for me! Let me know if you’re reading or doing anything extra fun this weekend and take a peek at the links I shared with you! Happy weekend and cheers to you!

Strawberry Pretzel Tart

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★★★★★

5 from 2 reviews

This strawberry pretzel tart has a sweet and salty pretzel crust, a no-bake cheesecake filling, and is topped with fresh strawberries.

Author: Kate Wood
Prep Time: 30
Total Time: 30
Category: Dessert

Ingredients

For the pretzel crust

5 ounces (ends up being about 1–1/2 cups of crumbs) of pretzels
1/4 cup (55 gm) brown sugar
Heaping 1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup /1 stick (115 gm) of unsalted butter, melted

For the cheesecake filling

1– 8 ounce block (225 gm) of cream cheese, at room temperature
3/4 cup (150 gm) sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup (240 mL) heavy whipping cream
1 lb (450 gm) of strawberries, hulled and sliced

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Instructions

To prepare the crust

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a food processor, whiz the pretzels, brown sugar, and salt until the pretzels are crumbs. Add the melted butter and pulse to combine. Alternatively, you can crush the pretzel and stir the other ingredients in to combine.
Pat out the crumbs into the bottom and sides of a 10″ tart pan. Bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes until set. Allow to cool completely before using.

To prepare the cheesecake filling

Beat the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla on medium speed in the bowl of a stand mixer until smooth and without lumps. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed.
In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream using a whisk or whisk attachment of a stand mixer until stiff peaks form. Fold half of the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. Once fairly integrated, add the remaining whipped cream and continue to fold until uniform. Take care not to overwork the mixture as this can cause it to lose its fluffiness. Spread the mixture out into the bottom of the cooled tart crust. Allow to chill in the fridge until ready to serve. Once ready to eat, arrange the sliced berries to decorate the top of the tart. Serve chilled.

Notes

Pretzel crust is best eaten within two days of preparation. It maintains its delicious flavor for several days but the crust can become soggy.

Adapted from: Bake From Scratch

Cheddar Cornmeal Chicken Pot Pie

16 Comments / Food and Drink, Pies and Tarts

Full disclosure- it’s 65 degrees outside. I can almost promise that there’s not a single person in the state of Alabama that is actually interested in eating this cheddar cornmeal chicken pot pie right now. But sometimes we do weird stuff on this blog, so let’s not shy away from it. Let’s just go for it.

Growing up, I can remember eating those personal pot pies that came frozen in a tiny foil pie pan. I’d pick out the peas and hide them under the rim of my bowl until the dog got close enough to eat them out of the palm of my sticky little paw. Now, as an adult, I appreciate pot pie for its comfort. A thick and buttery stew, bubbling with chunks of chicken and diced veggies, all topped with a flaky pie crust, somehow feels cozier than a cable knit sweater. Pot pie dinners feel like home.

Cheddar Cornmeal Chicken Pot Pie

This, my friends, it not your average pot pie. This cheddar cornmeal chicken pot pie is the sexy, Southern cousin of the regular ole’ pot pie that swoops in from out of town, steals your boyfriend, and sends everyone running to the store for cheddar cheese so that they can be cool like the new kid.

The Filling and Crust

The filling, adapted from Ina Garten’s famous recipe, is unassumingly delicious. Carrots, peas, chicken, onions, and enough butter to grease up Danny Zuko and the rest of the T-Birds, comes together in one pot to make a thick and creamy filling. The surprising part of this dish- the part that would make you slap yo mama and sing the Hallelujah Chorus- is the crust. Cornmeal and sharp cheddar cheese are the stars of this show, providing a crunch and creamy tang with every bite. Spiced with black pepper, garlic, and a few savory herbs, the crust on this cheddar cornmeal pot pie is like a pie crust meets Southern cheese straw. If that doesn’t shoot this dish to the top of your dinner menu, then I don’t know anything, apparently.

Since coming up with this dish, my somewhat critical eater of a husband has said that this is the single best dish in active rotation at our house, so I tend to make it quite a bit. Thankfully, this is a dish that requires little active cooking time, and the cheddar cornmeal crust can be made (or even frozen!) ahead of time. I haven’t tried freezing and reheating a whole pot pie yet, but I have high hopes that there’s potential there. If anyone tries this out, please, do inform.

If you’re somewhere cold or in need of a dose of comfort food, you should definitely give this cheddar cornmeal chicken pot pie a try. Although, if you’re reading this from Alabama, maybe just wait until we’re back to the regularly scheduled January weather. Or not. No one is judging, so if you make it now, I won’t care. Cheers to you and Happy Tuesday!

Cheddar Cornmeal Chicken Pot Pie

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★★★★★

5 from 2 reviews

This cheddar cornmeal chicken pot pie is a traditional chicken pot pie, filled with chicken, carrots, peas, and buttery onions, all topped with a cheddar, cornmeal, black pepper, and herb crust.

Author: Kate Wood
Cook Time: 120
Total Time: 2 hours

Ingredients

For the cheddar cornmeal crust

1/2 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary (optional)
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme (optional)
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
1/4 teaspoon onion powder (optional)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cubed
1/3 cup shortening, cold and cubed
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I prefer sharp cheddar)
2–4 tablespoons ice water, more if needed

For the pot pie filling (adapted from Ina Garten)

2–1/4 cups chicken stock
1 chicken bouillon cube
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1–1/2 cups chopped yellow onion
6 tablespoons all purpose flour
3–1/2 cups of diced cooked chicken (I use cooked breast meat)
1 cups small diced carrots
1 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley leaves (you can substitute a reduced amount of dried parsley)
Salt and Pepper
1 egg

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Instructions

To prepare the cheddar cornmeal crust

In the bowl of a food processor, whiz together the cornmeal, flour, salt, sugar, pepper, and dried herbs and seasonings for about 30 seconds. Add the butter and shortening and pulse in the processor until marble sized clumps form. Add the cheese and pulse a few more times until well combined and the pea sized clumps forms. Add 2 tablespoons of the ice water and pulse until the dough begins to come together, adding an additional tablespoon of water or two if needed. Do no over-process.
Dump the dough crumbles out on to the counter and form into a round, flat disk. Cover in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least an hour, or up to three days.

To prepare the pot pie

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
In a small saucepan, warm the chicken stock and bouillon cube over medium heat, but do not boil. In a large dutch oven or pot, add the butter and onions, cooking over medium heat and stirring frequently until the onions are translucent (about 10 minutes). Add the flour and cook for 2 minutes, stirring all the while. Add the chicken stock mixture and continue to cook while stirring for an additional minute. Once the sauce has thickened, add the chicken, carrots, peas, parsley, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Mix well and turn the heat off.
Pour the pot pie filling into a 10″ cast iron skillet, or another glass/ceramic baking dish that the pot pie can nearly fill to capacity. Whisk the egg with a tablespoon of water and brush the mixture on the lip of the pan. This will help the pot pie crust to stick to the pan, but is optional and may not be necessary depending on your pan.
On a floured surface, roll your crust out until it is 2 inches wider on all sides than the size of your pan. Be sure to keep your surface and pin well floured to keep from sticking. Transfer the crust to the skillet (I roll the dough loosely back on to the rolling pin and then gently roll it back out on top of the pan), trimming the edges, and crimping them as desired. Brush the top of the pie with the egg wash and cut a few vent slits on the top of the pie. Place in the oven and bake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the filling is bubbling underneath. If the crust or edges are golden or burning before the filling is bubbling, cover loosely with a piece of foil. Allow to set for about 20-30 minutes before serving.

Notes

The herbs and seasonings in the dough are optional but highly recommended as they add tremendous flavor!
I have tested many variations of this dough, and this is the one I was most pleased with. I have attempted using all butter, and while the taste is terrific, the texture is not as preferable to me. It’s quite delicate and may be somewhat crumbly crye shaping it for the pot pie lid, but the taste is worth the effort.