Thankful for Pie
Courtesy of Lisa Post
Lisa Post of Carmichaels baked this dairy-free pumpkin pie.
Trista Thurston/Observer-Reporter
Kentucky buttermilk bourbon pie, baked by Kay Longdon
Photo courtesy of Caterina Levato
The family of Eileen Trovato, of Houston, believes that she makes “the best apple pie in the world.”
Photo courtesy of Margie Ross
Margie Ross uses her late grandmother Margaret Gregorakis’ recipe to make her family’s favorite cream pie.
By Katie Anderson/Staff writer/kanderson@observer-reporter.com
Eileen Trovato, 78, of Houston, has been perfecting this apple pie recipe for 45 years.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include the complete recipe for Eileen Trovato’s Apple Pie.
There are many ways to spread love over the holiday season. At the Observer-Reporter, we’ve chosen one of the sweetest ways to do that – by sharing the mouthwatering pie recipes featured in our front page story, “For the Love of Pie.”
Let us know if you make them, how they turned out and if they were enjoyed by your loved ones as much as our story suggested they might be.
Eileen Travato’s Apple Pie
Crust:
2 cups Gold Medal flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup Crisco
1/4 cup cold water
Mix into a large ball. Cut in half. Place one sheet of wax paper and spread 1/8 cup flour on paper. Then place the half ball of dough, flatten with hands. Place more flour on before placing the top wax paper. Roll the dough between wax paper from center to outside in all directions and be sure then to lift carefully and insert the dough into pie plate. Again put a little flour on the bottom of pie plate, enough so that the apple juice of the apples will thicken when baked. Use the second half ball for the top crust and prepare just as the first.
Filling:
5-7 golden delicious apples sliced
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cinnamon
4-5 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup flour
Place apples in large bowl. In small bowl, mix sugar, flour, cinnamon. Toss apples to mix well. Evenly distribute apple mixture in lined pie pan. Dot with butter. Place the top crust on the pie plate. With a knife, make small insert on the top layer. Start near center and span out. You can flute the edge of the pie as desired. Bake in hot oven 400 degrees for 50 minutes.
Margie Ross’s Cream Pie
Ingredients:
3 eggs, separated
1/2 cup sugar
3 cups milk, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 heaping tablespoons cornstarch
Prepared graham cracker crust
In a medium saucepan, mix egg yolks, sugar, vanilla and 2 1/2 cups milk. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. In a separate bowl or cup, dissolve cornstarch into remaining 1/2 cup milk. Add slowly to mixture in saucepan. Cook until thick, then pour into crust. To make meringue, beat egg whites with 3 heaping tablespoons sugar until soft peaks form. Top pie with meringue. sprinkle with cinnamon. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes until light golden brown. Cool, and refrigerate overnight.
Kay Longdon’s Buttermilk Bourbon Pie
1 1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons self-rising flour
1 stick melted butter
3 eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons Kentucky bourbon
1 deep dish pie shell
Mix together butter and sugar. Add flour, eggs, and buttermilk and mix well. Add vanilla and bourbon. Place the pie shell on a cookie sheet and pour the mixture into shell. Place on the center rack of the oven set at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Decrease the temperature to 300 degrees and bake for 45 minutes. Remove and cool before slicing.
Dairy-free Pumpkin Pie
Pie crust:
3 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup lard
1 egg
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
5 tablespoons ice water
Sift flour, salt, and baking powder. Cut in lard and process in food processor until a sandy consistency. In a separate bowl, mix egg, vinegar and ice water. Slowly add the liquid to the flour mixture. Don’t over process. Once the dough comes together, remove from bowl, cut in half, shape into a ball and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Note: It’s also nice for texture to add some pecans to your crust.
Filling:
1 1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
2 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
4 large eggs, beat
29-ounce can of pumpkin
24-ounces of vanilla almond milk creamer
Note: May substitute 4 tablespoons of pumpkin pie spice.
Mix dry items. Stir in pumpkin and eggs. Gradually add creamer. Pour into 2 pie shells. Bake in 430 degree oven 20 minutes. Reduce heat and bake another 60-70 minutes.
By Lisa Post, of Carmichaels
Chocolate Cream and Coconut Cream Pies
Pie dough:
3 cups flour
1 1/4 cups butter-flavored Crisco
1 tablespoon vinegar
5 tablespoons water
1 egg
Cut Crisco into flour and blend together with vinegar, egg and water. Add together and lightly mix.
Chocolate pudding pie:
2 cups milk
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
Heat 1 1/2 cups of milk. Mix together sugar, cocoa powder, and cornstarch. Beat eggs and 1/2 cup milk then blend to dry mixture. Add to warm milk while stirring. Cook until smooth. Pour into baked shell. Top with meringue or whipped cream.
Coconut cream pie:
1/2 cup flour
1/3 cup sugar
3 cups milk
3 egg yolks
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 tablespoon butter
3/4 cup shredded coconut
Heat 2 cups of milk. Mix together sugar and flour. Beat eggs and 1 cup milk then blend to dry mixture. Add to warm milk while stirring. Cook until smooth. Add butter, vanilla and 1/2 cup coconut. Pour into baked shell and cool. Top with meringue and 1/4 cup coconut. Bake at 425 degrees for 4 to 5 minutes until meringue is golden.
Meringue:
3 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/3 cup sugar
Beat egg whites and cream of tartar until foamy. Add sugar gradually. Continue to beat until soft peaks are formed. Spread on top of cooled pie making sure to get it to the edge of the crust. Bake on 425 degrees for 4 to 5 minutes until meringue is golden.
By Michelle Statler, of Spraggs