Pie and Pastry Bible (36 page)

When cool, garnish the pie with the baked pastry cutouts and pastry balls.

STORE

Uncovered, room temperature, up to 2 days.

OPEN-FACED APRICOT PIE

W
hen ripe, fresh apricots have a velvety-soft deep golden skin with a faint blush and the most delicate flavor. When picked before maturity, the flavor is less than exciting, but baking surprisingly intensifies the flavor even of the pallid ones, bringing them more toward the piquancy of dried apricots. Since baked apricots are so vivid, I always bake them entirely open-faced in a pie. Glazing them with strained apricot preserves adds extra flavor and makes them glisten.

OVEN TEMPERATURE: 425°F. • BAKING TIME: 50 TO 60 MINUTES SERVES: 6
INGREDIENTS	MEASURE	WEIGHT
VOLUME	OUNCES	GRAMS
Basic Flaky Pie Crust for a 9-inch pie (page 22)		12 ounces	340 grams
½ egg white, lightly beaten	1 tablespoon	0.5 ounce	15 grams
1½ pounds fresh apricots, rinsed	4 cups (halved and pitted)	22 ounces 624 grams (halved and pitted)
sugar	6 tablespoons	2.6 ounces	75 grams
cornstarch	2 tablespoons	0.66 ounce	19 grams
raspberries	½ cup	2 ounces	57 grams
apricot preserves	cup	4 ounces	113 grams

EQUIPMENT

A 9-inch pie pan

Make the dough (page 22).

Remove the dough from the refrigerator. If necessary, allow it to sit for about 10 minutes or until it is soft enough to roll.

Using a pastry cloth and sleeve rubbed with flour or two sheets of plastic wrap lightly sprinkled with flour, roll the dough
inch thick or less and large enough to cut a 13-inch circle. Use an expandable flan ring or a cardboard template and a sharp knife as a guide to cut out the circle. Transfer the dough to the pie pan, fold under the excess, and crimp the border using a fork or your fingers (see page 13). Cover it loosely and refrigerate it for at least 1 hour and up to 24 hours.

Preheat the oven to 425°F. at least 20 minutes before baking. Set an oven rack at the lowest level and place a baking stone or baking sheet on it before preheating.

Line the pastry with parchment, pleating it as necessary so it fits into the pan, and fill it with rice or dried beans. Bake for 20 minutes. Carefully remove the parchment with the rice or beans. With a fork, prick the bottom and sides and bake 5 to 10 minutes or until the crust is pale golden. Check after 3 minutes and prick again if the upper layer of dough bubbles up.

Cool the crust on a rack for 3 minutes, so it is no longer piping hot, then brush the bottom and sides with the egg white. Leave the oven on.

Cut the apricots in half and remove their pits.

In a medium bowl, stir together the sugar and cornstarch. Add the apricots and toss to coat them. Allow them to macerate for about 15 minutes or until the dry mixture is fully moistened.

Arrange the apricots decoratively in the baked pastry shell, cut side up. Place a foil collar around the border to protect the edge from overbrowning (see page 19) and bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until the liquid bubbles and the apricots are tender when pierced with a skewer. Cool the pie on a rack until warm or room temperature.

When the pie is cool, arrange the raspberries in the spaces between the apricots.

In a small saucepan or microwave oven, heat the apricot preserves until melted and bubbling. Strain them into a small cup. Use a pastry brush or the back of a spoon to paint the apricots and raspberries with the preserves.

STORE

Room temperature, up to 3 days.

UNDERSTANDING

I do not use my usual technique of sugaring the fruit first and reducing the liquid because the condensing process caramelizes the juices slightly and the combination of the caramel and natural acidity of this particular fruit produces an undesirable bitterness.

NECTARINE-RASPBERRY PIE

T
his pie rivals peach pie for flavor and texture. The double-crust pie is piled high with lush, tart nectarines interspersed with raspberries. The flesh of a nectarine is slightly firmer than that of a peach, producing a pie with an excellent texture.

EQUIPMENT

A 9-inch pie pan

Make the dough (page 30).

Remove the dough for the bottom crust from the refrigerator. If necessary, allow it to sit for about 10 minutes or until it is soft enough to roll.

On a floured pastry cloth or between two sheets of lightly floured plastic wrap, roll the bottom crust
inch thick or less and large enough to cut a 12-inch circle. Transfer it to the pie pan. Trim the edge almost even with the edge of the pan. Cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for a minimum of 30 minutes and a maximum of 3 hours.

Place the sliced nectarines in a large bowl and sprinkle them with the lemon juice. Sprinkle on the sugar and salt and toss them gently to mix evenly. Allow to macerate for a minimum of 30 minutes and a maximum of 1 hour.

Transfer the nectarines and their juices to a colander suspended over a bowl to capture the liquid. The mixture will exude a full cup of juice.

In a small saucepan (preferably lined with a nonstick surface), over medium-high heat, boil down this liquid to ½ cup, or until syrupy and lightly caramelized.

Swirl the liquid but do not stir it. (Alternatively, spray a 4-cup heatproof measure with nonstick vegetable spray, add the liquid, and boil it in the microwave, about 12 minutes on high). Allow it to cool for about 10 minutes or until warm.

Meanwhile, transfer the nectarines to a bowl and toss them with the lemon zest and cornstarch until all traces of the cornstarch have disappeared. Stir the Kirsch into the cooled syrup and pour it over the nectarines, tossing gently. Transfer the nectarine mixture to the pie shell and top with the raspberries.

Roll out the top crust large enough to cut a 12-inch circle. Use an expandable flan ring or a cardboard template and a sharp knife as a guide to cut out the circle.

Moisten the edges of the bottom crust with water and place the top crust over the fruit. Tuck the overhang under the bottom crust border and press down all around the top to seal it. Crimp the border using a fork or your fingers (see page 13) and make about 5 evenly spaced 2-inch slashes starting about 1 inch from the center and radiating toward the edge (see page 14). Cover the pie loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 1 hour before baking to chill and relax the pastry. This will maintain flakiness and help to prevent distortion.

Preheat the oven to 425°F. at least 20 minutes before baking. Set an oven rack at the lowest level and place a baking stone or baking sheet on it before preheating. Place a large piece of greased foil on top to catch bubbling juices.

Set the pie directly on the foil-topped baking stone and bake for 45 to 55 minutes or until the juices bubble
thickly
through the slashes and the nectarines feel tender but not mushy when a cake tester or small sharp knife is inserted through a slash. After 30 minutes, protect the edges from overbrowning with a foil ring (see page 19). Cool the pie on a rack for at least 3 hours before cutting.

STORE