Raspberry Lime Pie with Tequila-Raspberry Sauce

This is another of the pies I made for Pie Night and it was quite the hit. This one had no alcohol in the pie itself, and just a couple tablespoons in the sauce for it. The recipe was adapted from a recipe I found at the Driscoll’s berries web page.

Ingredients

  • 6 ounces worth of gluten free shortbread cookies
  • 4 ounces worth of gluten free graham crackers
  • 2 tablespoons crystallized ginger
  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 1 package (¼ ounce packet) unflavored gelatin
  • 1 cup canned unsweetened cream of coconut (not coconut milk)
  • sugar
  • 1/3 cup plain yogurt
  • 4 or 5 limes
  • 4 six ounce packages raspberries
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 2 tablespoons tequila

The gluten-free shortbread cookies had a lot of moisture in them, and didn’t work out quite like the original recipe called for. My first attempt at the crust from this turned into a cake. In my second attempt, I substituted gluten free graham crackers for some of the shortbread cookies, and that worked out much better.

The original recipe also called for sweetened cream of coconut. I was unable to find this product. Instead, I used unsweetened cream of coconut. Then I looked up online how much sugar was in the sweetened version of the product, subtracted how much was in the unsweetened version, and added the difference. However, I didn’t write down the amount. I think it was 3 tablespoons but I could be way off.

Crust

  1. Preheat oven to 350°
  2. Chop the ginger
  3. Process shortbread cookies, graham crackers and ginger in a food processor
  4. Melt the butter
  5. Add butter to the cookie mixture
  6. Process until thoroughly mixed
  7. Press into a pie plate
  8. Bake for 10 minutes
  9. Allow to cool

Filling

  1. Mix gelatin and ¼ cup water in a glass mixing bowl
  2. Simmer a pot of water on the stove
  3. Once gelatin has bloomed, place the mixing bowl over the pot of water until the gelatin has dissolved
  4. grate about 1 teaspoon worth of lime zest
  5. squeeze enough limes to get ¼ cup of lime juice
  6. Combine cream of coconut, sugar, yogurt, lime zest and lime juice in a large bowl
  7. Stir until smooth
  8. Mix dissolved gelatin thoroughly in
  9. Mix in one package of raspberries
  10. Pour into the pie crust
  11. Refrigerate 4 hours or until set

Sauce and whipped cream

  1. Process remaining raspberries in food processor until they are so much pulp
  2. Strain raspberry pulp into a bowl (i.e., remove all the seeds)
  3. Combine heavy cream and confectioners’ sugar in a mixing bowl
  4. Whip the cream until stiff peaks form
  5. Mix half the raspberry puree into the whipped cream
  6. Spread whipped cream over top of the pie
  7. Combine remaining raspberry stuff with honey and tequila

Serve pie with raspberry-tequila drizzle.

Caramel-Bottomed Guinness Chocolate Pie

This pie turned out quite well. Everyone at Pie Night loved it. The caramel was a bit boozier than I thought it would be, but I coulda been doing it wrong. Recipe comes from Dennis Wilkinson. As is normal, I’ve modified it slightly.

Crust

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 stick cold butter
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • dash salt
  • 1½ ounces cold water
  • 1½ ounces vodka

Pretty standard crust, except there’s a bit more liquid than I normally would use for one crust.

  1. Mix the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor
  2. Cut the butter into 1 tablespoon pieces
  3. Add the butter to the flour mixture
  4. Pulse the food processor until all the chunks of butter are less than pea size
  5. Transfer the flour mixture to a bowl
  6. Combine the water and vodka into a cup
  7. Add the liquid to the flour, alternately adding some and mixing it with a pastry cutter or fork
  8. Work the dough until the liquid is pretty thoroughly combined and the flour forms a ball
  9. Mush the dough into a disc
  10. Wrap it in sandwich paper
  11. Chill for a half hour to an hour in the fridge
  12. Roll into a crust
  13. Place the crust in a 9 inch pie plate (deep dish works better, but I didn’t do that)
  14. Crimp the edges
  15. Weight with foil and pie weights
  16. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes, then remove the weights and bake for 10 more
  17. Remove from oven and allow to cool

Caramel

  • 1 cup sugar
  • ⅓ cup water
  • 1 tablespoon corn syrup
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 2 ounces Grand Marnier (original recipe calls for 1 ounce, but I don’t have a 1 ounce measure)
  • 1 orange
  1. Grate all the zest from the orange
  2. Combine sugar, corn syrup and water in a saucepan
  3. Cover and bring to a boil
  4. Remove the cover and continue boiling until sugar starts turning brown
  5. Swirls the pan on the burner periodically until the sugar is reddish brown (it really does turn a reddish brown)
  6. Add the cream and Grand Marnier
  7. Stir until dissolved
  8. Continue boiling until it’s pretty thick (original recipe says thread stage which I have no clue how to judge)
  9. Add the orange zest
  10. Pour it into the pie shell
  11. Cool

The caramel was boozier than I expected. Perhaps sticking to the original amount mighta made it more acceptable to me, as I don’t drink or eat anything with more than a trace of alcohol left in it. I kinda expected it to have cooked off considering how long it was boiling.

Filling

  • 4½ semisweet bakers chocolate
  • 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 2 tablespoons corn starch
  • ⅔ cup sugar
  • dash salt
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 can (14½ ounces) Guinness stout
  • ¼ cup water
  • 1 packet gelatin
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  1. Combine the water and gelatin in a small saucepan
  2. Separate the egg yolks and discard the egg white
  3. Melt the chocolate in the microwave
  4. In a medium saucepan, combine the cocoa powder, corn starch, sugar, and salt
  5. Whisk in the cream
  6. Whisk in the egg yolks
  7. Whisk in the Guinness
  8. Whisk in the chocolate
  9. Cook and stir the mixture over medium-high heat until thick enough to coat a spoon
  10. Heat the gelatin until it dissolves
  11. Whisk in the gelatin
  12. Remove from heat and strain the chocolate through a strainer into a bowl
  13. Whisk in the butter
  14. Pour into the pie shell (the one with the caramel, not a new one)
  15. Cool to room temperature, then chill in the refrigerator until set

At this point, I had some leftover chocolate, though not a lot. I really should have used a deep dish pie plate. C’est la vie.

Serve with whipped cream.

Click through to the original recipe to see a lovely photo. I didn’t get a good photo of my edition of the pie.

Mushroom Pie

This is the recipe I used for the Mushroom Pie at Pie Night yesterday. I’ve made it once before, in about 2006 or 2007. In the original mushroom pie recipe on AllRecipes.com, the mushroom mixture is the stuffing for a puff pastry. The exact same stuff made great filling for a traditional pie.

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 10 ounces sliced crimini mushrooms (I bought pre-sliced)
  • 1 large onion
  • 6 slices fakin’ bacon (or 4 of real bacon if not being fed to vegetarians)
  • ¾ cup heavy cream
  • about 4 ounces Swiss cheese
  • about 1 teaspoon fresh dill
  • 2 crusts for double-crust pie
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°
  2. Shred the cheese
  3. Peel and chop the onion
  4. Chop the fakin’ bacon into about half inch pieces
  5. In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium high heat
  6. Add the mushrooms, onion, and bacon
  7. Cook and stir for about 5 minutes until vegetables are tender
  8. Reduce heat to medium
  9. Add the cream and dill
  10. Cook and stir for about 10 minutes
  11. Remove from heat
  12. Stir in the cheese
  13. Pour mushroom mixture into a pie crust
  14. Cover with top pie crust and flute the edge to seal
  15. Score the crust so steam can vent
  16. Bake for about 40 minutes, or until crust is done

Scandinavian Shrimp Pie

Here’s the recipe for the Shrimp Pie I made for Pie Night last night. It comes from Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2006
. They took a reader submitted recipe and lightened it up. I kinda added some of the fat back. (As always, the recipe below is how I made it, not how it appears in the cookbook.)

Shrimp Pie

Crust

  • 1¼ cups all-purpose flou
  • ¼ cup semolina flour
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable shortening
  • ¼ cup ice water
  • ½ teaspoon cider vinegar
  • cooking spray
  1. Preheat oven to 375°
  2. Chill butter, then cut into small pieces
  3. Combine all-purpose flour, semolina flour, sugar, and salt in food processor
  4. Add butter and vegetable shortening
  5. Process until the mixture is a course meal
  6. Combine ice water and vinegar
  7. Add vinegar-water mixture to flour
  8. Mix with a fork until well combined
  9. Coat a deep dish pie plate with cooking spray
  10. Press mixture into pie plate and up the sides
  11. Bake for about 5 minutes
  12. Cool on a wire rack

Filling and Pie

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 12 ounces uncooked, deveined shrimp
  • ¼ cup cream cheese
  • ½ cup egg substitute
  • 2 teaspoons all purpose flour
  • 1 cup evaporated milk
  • 2 ounces Havarti cheese
  • fresh dill
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  1. Chop shrimp into bite sized pieces
  2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat
  3. Add shrimp and cook until you’re sure it’s cooked
  4. Combine cream cheese and ¼ cup of egg substitute in a mixing bowl
  5. Beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended
  6. Add flour and beat one minute minute
  7. Add remaining egg substitute and milk and beat until mixed
  8. Stir in shrimp, Havarti cheese, dill and salt
  9. Pour mixture into crust
  10. Bake at 375° for 40 minutes (or until set)

French Leek Pie

The French Leek Pie I made for Pie Night was gone in 11 minutes. It was super easy to make. I used the French Leek Pie recipe at allrecipes.com, with some minor adaptations.

  • 1 pie crust
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 3 leeks
  • 1 pinch salt (to taste)
  • 1 pinch pepper (to taste)
  • 1 cup cream
  • 1 1/4 cup shredded Gruyere cheese (more or less)
  1. preheat oven to 375°
  2. grate the Gruyere
  3. chop the leeks
  4. melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat
  5. add leeks
  6. cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, or until soft
  7. reduce heat to low
  8. add salt and pepper
  9. stir in cream and shredded Gruyere cheese
  10. heat on low until mixture is warmed through
  11. pour mixture into the pie shell
  12. bake for 30 minutes, or until the custard is set and golden on top

Apricot Couscous Pie

This was one of the pies I made for last night’s Pie Night. It’s delicious. Recipe adapted from Icebox Pies, which Sharon gave me last year. It’s turned out to be quite the excellent pie book.

Ingredients

  • 3 cups half and half
  • 6 tablespoons sugar
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 2 large egg yolks
  • 3/4 cup couscous
  • 1/2 cup dried apricots
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 crumb crust
  • 1/2 cup apricot preserves
  1. lightly beat egg yolks
  2. chop dried apricots finely
  3. combine half and half, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan
  4. bring pot just to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low
  5. slowly drizzle about 1/2 cup of the half and half mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly
  6. whisk the egg yolks into the saucepan
  7. add the couscous, dried apricots, and nutmeg and stir to combine
  8. simmer, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens and almost all the liquid has been absorbed (about 5 to 7 minutes)
  9. remove the pan from the heat
  10. stir in the vanilla
  11. scrape the mixture into the crumb crust
  12. in a food processor, process the apricot preserves until smooth
  13. spread the preserves over the pie with a spatula
  14. wrap in plastic wrap
  15. refrigerate at least 3 hours

No photos, because I didn’t have space on the memory card for my camera.

May I Pie?

Hello! May I feed you some pie?

Five pies
Photo by Paul David Gibson (CC By-Nc)

Yes, it’s time for Pie Night again. Come to Voxx Coffee on Eastlake Ave on May 7th at 7:30 p.m. for a pie extravaganza!

The concept for Pie Night is simple. I make lots of pie (10 pies for the last pie night, plus another dozen brought by others) and people eat pie. There is no charge for Pie Night.

Pie Night starts at 7:30 p.m. sharp and ends at 10:00 p.m. Please arrive promptly. I will not save pie for you. As noted, Pie Night itself is free. Beverages, including beer and wine, are available from Voxx Coffee for reasonable prices. Pie Night welcomes your pies if you have made them yourself; no store-purchased pies please. Pie accessories such as whipped or iced cream are welcome. Children are welcome so long as you don’t mind them listening to adult conversations.

For those who have dietary restrictions, let me know when you R.S.V.P. so that I may accommodate you. I’m quite happy to make dairy-free and gluten-free pies and can likely deal with other issues as well.

Please invite your friends or forward this invite. I started Pie Night to meet people!

I do request R.S.V.P.s so that I can provide pie for everyone. To R.S.V.P., comment on this post on my blog or LiveJournal, or add yourself to the Pie Night Facebook event.

Pie Night Goes Public

In lieu of regular content on this blog (for the moment), I give you a Pie Night announcement!

Photo of pie and coffee
Photo by Jessie Lynn McMains (CC By-Nc-Nd)

The next Pie Night will be Saturday the 15th of January at 7:30 PM.

What is Pie Night? Pie Night is where I make a lot of pie in a glorious attempt to buy friends. If I can be bribed by pie, I figure a lot of other people can be too. Feel free to bring your own pies (not store bought), though this is by no means required. The only requirement for attendance is that you eat pie!

Please note the start time and the location! There are some changes this time around. Voxx Coffee (Facebook) has graciously agreed to provide the space free of charge. The start time is a little later than previous start times as well. We’ll have 2½ hours to consume pie. Please do not bring beverages. Voxx has beverages (including beer and wine) at reasonable prices.

Please respond here or add yourself to the Pie Night Facebook event if you intend to come! Invite your friends too.

Summer Pie Night

strawberry pie

It’s a bit shorter notice than previous incarnations, but here’s the official announcement/invite to the next Pie Night! It will be Friday, June 18th, running officially from 3 p.m. until whenever. Show up any time before the pie is consumed. Location will be my place; the pool if it’s sunny, inside if not. Take off from work early and enjoy a bit of sun and tasty pastries. Please state if you are planning to come and if you are bringing a pie in comments.

What is Pie Night? Do you need to ask? It’s all about pie! I make pie. Other people make pie. People eat pie. You do not have to bring pie. You have to eat pie if you come.

Really, that’s all there is to it.

My address: 2301 Fairview Ave E, Seattle.

Oh, and to answer the inevitable question: no I do not know what pies I will make. I never decide until a day or two before.

Photo by Heather Katsoulis, used under a Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike license.

Easy as Pie Night!

With all the hullaballoo in my family, I haven’t gotten around to posting this to the blog yet. Most everyone will have seen it on Facebook, though. Next Pie Night will be Sunday, January 17th, nominally from 4 pm until 11 pm.

Picture of A Slice of Lemon Meringue Pie
A Slice of Lemon Meringue Pie

Do you like pie? Then come to pie night! Friends and enemies alike are welcome!

You can bring a pie, but you don’t have to. If you do bring a pie, please make/assemble it yourself; purchasing a pie at Whole Foods is verboten. Feel free to bring beverages, whipped cream, ice cream, or other pie accoutrements.

Where? 2301 Fairview Ave E in Seattle. Ring WEISS on the call board.

Please note in the comments here or add yourself to the Easy as Pie Night Facebook event if you plan to come, and if you plan to bring pie. I need to know approximately how many pies to make.

Any last minute questions or need of directions? Call 206-607-9177.

Image A Slice of Lemon Meringue Pie by Daniel Greene used under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives 2.0 License.