yesterday the neighbors were playing the star spangled banner on saxophone
which...
inspired the patriot in me to run to the store and mess around with berries and pie all day
pie is lovely, don't you think?
cake is fun/celebratory but pie is lovely
pie is who i want to be when i grow up
unfortunately, i've had some bad experiences with pie crust
i think i end up rushing the process
and naturally get a bad result
but this time, i was just making it for myself
like not an event or party or anything
so i had the opportunity to mess around w/different ingredients, take my time, dance around to my jams
(my favorite day)
i made 2 pie crusts- one w/vodka, one without
i read about cook's illustrated foolproof pie dough recipe which uses vodka + shortening + butter
but i don't use shortening so i doubled up on butter instead
it was fine- obvs. i can't really speak to the actual recipe since i didn't use shortening
but for some reason i liked the one without vodka better
the texture seemed a bit flakier + the butter flavor felt more prevalent + it was less sticky to work with
so that's the one i'm posting
found it on smitten kitchen's site-- i trust her, you should too
i believe pastry might be my new thing
i like the challenge of it and am ready to step up my game
my colleague brought me this french pastry from village baking co the other day
first, i died a little bit, because she thought of me
second, i've never tasted anything like it
// she talked it up quite a bit, so i was basically set up to be disappointed but NO
this pastry is what life is all about
enough to make me drop everything and go to pastry school in france
which, yeah, doesn't take much convincing
but i kind of had this moment of like-- what is this femme waiting for?
kouign-amann
is what they call this brilliance
originated in the brittany region of france
40% dough 30 % butter 30 % sugar
lots of exquisite flaky, buttery, layers to peel and saveur
there is also this caramelized sugar throughout it
subtle but definitely there, just enough
you eat this slowly with great care + thoughtfulness
you don't rush it or you miss the whole point
and possibly make yourself sick
if we're honest, kouign-amann is too good for you
...
how did my 4th of july post turn into me glorifying france again? geez, so predictable
my point
pastry is fascinating
don't rush
happy independence
XX amy
MIXED BERRY PIE
tips
whisk together flour, salt, sugar
dice butter into small pieces // put back in fridge to chill back up // cut butter into flour mixture w/fork + knife or pastry cutter // keep chunks uneven and thick throughout-- you absolutely want to see the butter pockets in the dough
cut dough in half // wrap up with saran wrap // flatten into a disc // chill for at least an hour or longer
pie dough ingredients (smitten kitchen)
flour, 2.5 c. // 315 g.
unsalted butter, cold AF, 1 c.
salt, 1 tsp
sugar, 1 Tbsp
egg, 1 ct, beaten
BERRY PIE FILLING
tips
grab a medium saucepan, bring sugar, corn starch, and a little water (1/4 c.) to a boil // add blueberries + allow them to break down a bit ~ 2 min. or so // then add remaining fruit and remove from heat
ingredients
diced strawberries, 1.5 c.
blueberries, 1 c.
blackberries, 1 c.
raspberries, 1 c.
sugar, 1 c.
cornstarch, 1/4 c.
sprinkle of salt
assembly + such
preheat oven to 400F
once chilled, roll out dough right before using, you want to keep it cold
once you fit the dough into pie dishes, stick back into freezer to firm up
put chilled berry filling into pie dishes // decorate the tops w/ extra pastry however you would like
brush tops w/ egg + sprinkle with sugar
throw back into the freezer right before popping into the oven, you know, for good measure
bake at 400F for 30-40 min.