2 Pie Crust Recipes from JP

2 Pie Crust Recipes from JP

Here are two fairly easy pie crust recipes. They're not the traditional flaky crust, but they are pretty good anyway. I am not a pie crust connoisseur. The pie crust aficionados in my life find these acceptable.

Neither of these recipes require you to do anything finicky about cutting the shortening into the flour or to be excessively careful about how you handle them.

Stirred Pie Crust

For a 2-crust 8" pie or a 9" with a lattice top. You can make it a 9" 2-crust pie, but it will be a bit thin with unlovely edges, if you care.

Cut the recipe in half for a 1-crust pie.

2 cups flour
1-1/2 tsp salt (a generous pinch)
1-1/2 tsp sugar (a generous pinch)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup milk

Mix the dry ingredients. Dump in the milk and oil (I sometimes put them in a measuring cup and briefly stir them together before dumping them in, and sometimes dump them in sequentially). Then, stir in the wet ingredients until you have a dough.

Roll it out and use it like any other pie crust. The recipe recommends you roll it out to 1/8" thick, but I just roll it to the diameter I need whatever the thickness turns out to be.

The main drawback of this recipe is that it makes a small crust. The dough gets a bit thin if you're using a larger pie tin.

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Tart Dough

This is for tarts rather than for a traditional pie. But it's dead easy and very good.

Cut a stick of butter into chunks. (One stick is 1/2 cup, 8 tablespoons, 1/4 pound). Put it into a food processor along with 1 cup of flour and a pinch of salt. Turn on food processor and whir until the ingredients are combined. Take out the dough, cover it or wrap it in plastic wrap, and put it in the refrigerator for a while.

When you're ready, take out the dough and pat it into a tart pan.

Pre-bake it if it's that kind of tart. Then fill with the tart ingredients and continue your recipe.

jp
(4/22/11)

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Onion Tart

Onion Tart

Mary had written: I took an onion tart to Cummington last year, and it quickly disappeared. This got the reply of: Please share this recipe. I love anything with onions and this sounds intriguing.

Winging it a bit, which is how I tend to cook. Can't remember if this what I did exactly, but if I were going to bake it right now:

Make a single crust pie crust; or even a larger one, if you want to use a pizza pan. I think I made a single crust. I probably made it with olive oil, or olive and canola. I think I baked it half way. A cream cheese crust would work well too.

For the topping, and you should probably make the topping while the pie-crust is chilling in the fridge, thinly slice a lot of onions. Maybe 3 or 4 good sized onions. Sauté in olive oil (don't need extra virgin, just a decent 100% olive oil), and cook them down until they're nice an mushy. Add some thyme, salt and pepper if you like, and sliced calamata olives. Let it mellow awhile, even with the lid on the pot.

Spread the topping on the pie crust and bake until done.

Mary
(4/14/04)

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Chocolate Caramel Shortbread, Slice, and Tartlets Recipes

Chocolate Caramel Shortbread, Slice, and Tartlets Recipes

Chocolate Caramel Shortbread

Base
Cream together 125g butter and 1/4 cup castor sugar until light and fluffy. Sift 1 cup plain flour and gradually add to creamed mixture, making a firm dough. Press into a greased 11" x 7" lamington tin. Baked in a moderate oven (325°F-350°F) 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool in tin.

Caramel
Combine 125g butter 1/2 cup castor sugar, 3 tablespoons (1 tabs = 4 teaspoons) golden syrup and 400g can sweetened condensed milk in a medium saucepan with a heavy base, stir over low heat until butter is melted and sugar dissolved, continue stirring, increasing heat, bring to boil, reduce heat, simmer, stirring constantly, for about 5 minutes, or until golden brown. Pour hot caramel mixture over cold shortbread base.

Chocolate
Melt 90 g dark chocolate with 30 g butter in double saucepan, stir well. Spread chocolate over cooled caramel, cut into squares when set.

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Chocolate Caramel Slice

1-1/2 cups self-raising flour
3 tsp cocoa
1/3 cup castor sugar
1/3 cup coconut
185g (6 oz) butter, melted

Topping
1 cup castor sugar
125 g butter
2 tbsp golden syrup
1/3 cup liquid glucose
1/3 cup water
400g can sweetened condensed milk
3/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
300g dark chocolate, chopped.

Grease a 25cm x 30cm swiss roll pan.

Combine sifted flour and cocoa, sugar, coconut and butter in bowl; mix well. Press evenly over base of prepared pan. Bake in a moderate oven (325°F-350°F) for 20 minutes. Cool 5 minutes before spreading with topping. Sprinkle evenly with walnuts; cool to room temperature; spread with chocolate, refrigerate until set, and cut into squares.

Topping:
Combine sugar, butter, golden syrup, glucose, water and milk in saucepan. Stir constantly over low heat without boiling until sugar is dissolved; increase heat, boil steadily, stirring constantly for about 10 minutes or until caramel in colour. Melt chocolate over hot water; cool slightly before using.

And for something along the same lines, but a little bit different:

Caramel Cream Tartlets

Tartlet Pastry
3/4 cup plain flour
1/2 cup self-raising flour
2 tbsp custard powder
2 tbsp icing (powdered?) sugar
125 g butter
1 tbsp iced water, approximately

Sift dry ingredients, rub in butter, add enough water to make ingredients cling together.

Knead lightly on floured surface until smooth. Wrap in plastic food wrap, refrigerate 30 minutes. Roll pastry between two pieces of plastic food wrap to about 2mm thick. Cut pastry into 8cm rounds with sharp fluted cutter, place into patty pans.

Bake in a moderately hot oven (400°F-425°F) for 10 minutes or until light golden brown, cool in pans.

Makes approx 24 tartlet cases.

Filling
400g can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup Cream
250g chocolate, melted

Combine condensed milk and brown sugar in pan, bring to boil, stirring. Stir constantly over heat for about 10 minutes or until mixture is thick and golden brown. Quickly stir in combined egg and cream, cool to room temperature.

Spoon filling into tartlet cases, top with whipped cream (if desired) and drizzle with melted chocolate.

Enjoy
Leigh
(10/22/03)

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How to make Brownie Cups for Small Tart-like Desserts

How to make Brownie Cups for Small Tart-like Desserts

This was related to the forum after going to a "Pampered Chef" party:

The dessert of the day was "brownie cups" filled with some kind of pastry cream. You could use whatever you wanted - mousse, lemon curd, etc., and top with one very nice berry. Bite size.

The crucial part was how they made the cups. Use one of those mini muffin pans - (non stick recommended). Must be mini, though.

Make up a brownie mix (no nuts) according to the box and put about one tablespoon of batter into each cup. (They used the smallest size of ice cream scoop.)

Bake until the toothpick-doneness test. Remove from oven. Immediately, use the thick, round handle of some kitchen implement (rolling pin?) etc. (or the bottom of a shot glass would work-grease lightly!) to make an impression in the still-warm, still-soft dough. Voila! Instant "Cup." They had an implement which was made especially for this part of the operation, of course, looked like a very small wooden barbell. Just experiment with finding what would fit in the cups before you bake.

When cool these were the consistency of a firm, soft cookie. Sturdy enough to pick up and eat with the filling and berry topper. They had a surprisingly good, fluffy cream cheese concoction to squeeze out of a "gun" (I'd use a pastry bag instead) and they passed out a copy of the recipe for this, but I don't have it at hand. Good enough to share, also, and I'll post it when I find it.

Susanna in So. Cal.
(7/17/01)

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Pecan Tartlets (a theoretical, dreamed dessert idea)

Pecan Tartlets (a theoretical, dreamed dessert idea)

An exchange and approximate recipe from Steph (in response to Sylvia), 6/21/01 and 7/2/01:
"I want to make little tartlets as one of the desserts for the party Saturday. Is there something yummy with pecans that is not 'pecan pie'? Maybe a pecan/fruit thing? Cherries? What d'yall think?"

Pecans, caramel and chocolate in pre-baked filo dough shells.
And maybe a shot of brandy just before serving.
yum!
Steph

I was concocting in my head, sort of swirling flavors and textures around.

I'd bake the filo dough shells in muffin pans until golden brown. And make up an egg/ custard with dark chocolate. Usual ratio of 1 egg to 1 cup of milk. Maybe a half cup of semi sweet chocolate bits. Again done in a greased custard cup the same size as the muffin pan. And filled just a scant 1 inch deep.

After filo dough was cool and custard was cool, slide cooled custard into cups. Do this just before dinner is served so the dough doesn't get sodden.

I'd take a non-stick pan and put like 3 tbsp butter and 1/2 cup brown sugar in it and heat over low heat until just thickened, add 1 cup of pecans and chase the pecans through the brown sugar caramel. Spoon on top of custard. Just before serving splash with l tsp brandy.

As you have probably deduced, I haven't made this dessert. Only dreamed it. But I think it would work. Maybe I should serve it to Sylvia when she comes and we can see if it works out. (Did Mikey like it?) No as I recall Syl is sensitive to pecans. Oh shoot, I'll have to eat them all!

Steph
(6/21/01)

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Apricot Pecan Tartlets and Basic Tartlet Pastry

Tartlets

Basic Tartlet Pastry
Sift 3/4 cup plain flour, 1/2 cup self-raising flour, 2 tabs custard powder, 2 tabs icing sugar (I think you call this powdered sugar, but this may not be right) tog, rub in 125 g (4 oz) butter or margarine, add enough iced water (approx 1 tabs) to make ingredients cling together. Knead lightly on floured surface until smooth. Wrap in plastic food wrap, refrigerate 30 mins. Roll pastry between two pieces of plastic food wrap to about 2mm thick. Cut into 8cm rounds with sharp fluted cutter, place into patty pans.

Bake cases in moderately hot over for 10 mins, or until light golden brown; cool in pans.

If unfilled, baked tartlet cases are required, place rounds of pastry into patty pans, pierce will with fork or skewer.
Makes 25.

Apricot Pecan Tartlets

25 Unbaked tartlet cases

Filling
1/4 cup finely chopped dried apricots
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 egg
2 tab self-raising flour
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1 teas grated orange rind
1/4 cup apricot jam

Cook apricots in pan with a little boiling water for about 5 minutes (I do it in the microwave, but not for that long) until soft; drain and cool. Beat sugar and egg in small bowl with electric mixer until thick and creamy. Stir in flour, apricots, pecans and orange rind. Spoon half teaspoon of jam into each tartlet case, top with apricot filling.

Bake in moderate over 15 mins or until golder brown. Stand for a few minutes, remove from pans, cool. Can be served with a little whipped cream, pecans and a small piece of fresh apricot (or use good tinned ones) Remember that Australia tablespoons are 4 teaspoons, not 3 ie 20ml not 15ml.

Enjoy
Leigh
in Canberra, Australia, enjoying her day off.
(6/21/01)

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Butter Tarts

Butter Tarts

*THESE* are butter tarts circa 1890's (family recipe)

First off I'm not giving you the pastry recipe. I think I already posted that awhile ago. Personally it's too piddly to fool around making pastry for *tarts*...go buy some tart shells *gg*.

Now for the good part...
For 12 tarts...increase ingredients accordingly for more.

1 Egg, whisked
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp Butter
1 tsp Vanilla
1 tsp bourbon or rum
     (can also use 2 tsp. and skip the vanilla...originally it was if you didn't have vanilla!)
1/3 to 1/2 cup Raisins (less raisins if you like more goo)
Optional: 2 Tbsp chopped pecans or walnuts

Mix 'er up and spoon into tart shells. Bake at 375ºF for 10-15 minutes until the filling rises.

Roberta
(3/24/00)

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Best Butter Tarts

I've only ever visited Ontario, none of the other provinces, but when I think of a Canadian food it's butter tarts. They don't exist in the US. Here's my treasured recipe from Canadian Living in case anyone is interested. I used to look forward to our annual Canadian camping trip sooooo much because I knew I'd again be in butter tart land.

Best Butter Tarts
(Canadian Living, 11/1998)

Crust:
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup cold butter, cubed
1/4 cup shortening, cubed
1 egg yolk
1 tsp vinegar
ice water

Filling:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 egg
2 tbsp butter, softened
1 tsp each vanilla and vinegar
pinch salt
1/4 cup currants, raisins, chopped pecans or shredded coconut (optional)

In large bowl, combine flour with salt. With pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in butter and shortening until in fine crumbs. In 1 cup liquid measure, whisk egg yolk with vinegar; add enough ice water to make 1/3 cup.

Gradually sprinkle egg mixture over flour mixture, stirring briskly with fork until pastry holds together. Press into disk; wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or until chilled or for up to 3 days.

Filling: in bowl, vigorously whisk together brown sugar, corn syrup, egg, butter, vanilla, vinegar, and salt. Set aside.

On lightly floured surface, roll out pastry to 1/8" thickness. Using 4" round cookie cutter or an empty 28 oz. can, cut out 12 circles, re-rolling scraps if necessary.

Fit circles into muffin cups. Divide currants among pastry shells. Spoon in filling until three-quarters full.

Bake in bottom third of 450°F oven for about 12 minutes or until filling is puffed and bubbly and pastry is golden. Let stand on rack for 1 minute. Run metal spatula around tarts to loosen; carefully slide spatula under tarts and transfer to rack to let cool.

Because sugar filling hardens quickly and sticks to the muffin pan, be sure to remove tarts from pan as directed.

For less gooey tarts, increase brown sugar to 3/4 cup and decrease corn syrup to 1/4 cup.

Cate
(3/24/00)

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