Baking My First Pie

My grandmother was a pro at baking. She made all of her pie crusts from scratch, and she hardly ever followed a recipe when baking, and her things always came out delicious. I am definitely not a baker. The only baking utensils I possess are a scone baking pan (used once), a muffin pan (used once for cupcakes and a few times for muffins), cookie sheets (that have never been used to make cookies) and mixing bowls (that I use to marinate meats). Another reason I don't bake is that I live by myself and I usually just want a bite or slice of something and NOT to eat the entire thing. Therefore, I have developed a habit of a grabbing a cupcake from a bakery (best one is Yellow Leaf in Seattle) and the sugar craving dissipates.

However, my niece absolutely loves to bake, and of course I make baking educational (since I am the fun aunt). She works on her reading and math through the recipes....I view it as edible chemistry experiments. And that is exactly what they are...experiments. Most of the times when we make something it is the first time for me as well. Thanksgiving was no exception; we made our first pie. Unlike my grandmother, we diligently followed a recipe.

Below is our edible experiment and I gotta say it was all kinds of yumminess! We made a Mixed Berry Pie

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of unbleached, all-purpose flour
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into cubes
• pinch of salt
• 3 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup cold water
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 4 cups frozen mixed berries (we used raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, and cranberries)
• 3 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
• In a medium bowl, combine the flour, 1 cup butter, salt, cinnamon and lemon juice with a fork. Mix until they are pea-sized. Quickly stir in the cold water and combine until a dough forms.
• Form the dough into two round disks. Chill at least 30 minutes.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll each disk into a large circle. Place one in the bottom of a 9-inch pie plate.
• In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar and cornstarch. Add the berries and toss to combine. Sprinkle in some lemon juice and combine well.
• Spoon the berry mixture into the pie crust and sprinkle any remaining sugar mixture over the top. 
• Slice strips in the other dough and place across the top of the pie, weaving them one over the other.
• Brush the top crust with melter butter.
• Bake for 45-60 minutes.

Well it sure does look like a pie.

Evidence that we made a pie

Flour Aftermath!

No fire and it tastes like a pie= SUCCESS