Pies

  Since my post with those amazing pie recipes, I have not been able to get pie off my mind! The fact that my husband, a true Southern Boy, lives for pie (he has 2 favorites... hot and cold) and talks about them on a regular basis probably doesn't help. That got me to thinking that I needed to do a better part in pie education. So here goes a brief history of our flakey little friend:
The pie began as a European dish. The original purpose of a pastry shell was to serve as a multi-tool... baking dish, storage container, and serving vessel all in one. The crusts were often too hard to eat. For hundreds of years, it was the only form of baking dish used, in other words... everything was considered a pie. The first "pies", called "coffins" (meaning a box) were savory meat pies with the crusts that were sealed with tops. Open-crusted pastries (no tops) were known as "traps". These pies also held assorted meats and sauces that were baked more like a modern casserole with the shell serving as the pan. The crusts were often made several inches thick to withstand many hours of baking. Though not the ideal meal, the crusts were often fed to servants and the peasants.
  Circa 1620, Pilgrims brought their pie recipes with them to America. The colonists and their pies adapted simultaneously to the ingredients available to them in the New World. Round, shallow pans were used to cut corners and stretch the ingredients. Pies were generally served with every meal, making this pastry a unique form of American culture. With food at the heart of gatherings and celebrations, pie quickly moved to the forefront of American cuisine.
Today pie contests are a traditional happening at fairs, picnics, and other social events. Pies are continually being adapted to changing conditions and ingredients and tastes.

So, now that that is out of the way I would like to share another recipe with you... an Apple Pastie (an old fashioned style pie). This is the same tasty treat that I Coop, Mulrooney, and WPDH Staff will be having for breakfast.

Apple Pasty
Filling Ingredients:
1 large granny smith apple, peeled, cored, cut into 1/4-inch dice
3 Tbs raspberries
1/8 c Agave
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp vanilla
1/8 c honey
1/4 c low-fat cream cheese
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Crust Ingredients:
3 1/2 c flour
1 1/2 c shortening
1 tsp salt
1 tbs sugar
Enough water to hold together

Method:
1 Pre-heat oven to 400°F. Grease a large baking sheet
2 In a medium bowl, mix together apples, raspberries, and agave. In a seperate bowl mix cinnamon, vanilla, honey, and cream cheese.
3 Combine pastry ingredients just until a soft dough forms
4 Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface. Cutinto 5" circles.
5 Divide the apple mixture among the rounds, leaving half the pastry unfilled. (If you are using an already prepared puff pastry sheet, dot the mixture in each pastry with a little butter)
6 In a small bowl mix the beaten egg with a teaspoon of milk. Use a pastry brush to brush the egg mixture on the border of the pastry.
7 Fold each pastry in half, enclosing the filling, and crimp edges with a fork. Brush the tops of the pastries with more of the egg wash. Cut 2 or 3 small steam vents in the top of each turnover.
8 Place the pastries in the oven and bake at 400°F for 20 minutes, or until puffed and golden.
Cool turnovers to warm before serving.

Enjoy!

Chef Heather
The Chocolate Mousse
http://www.chocolatemoussecatering.com/
845-518-6533