INGREDIENTS

2 prepared 8 inch pastry shells
6 tart apples - peeled, cored and sliced
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons butter

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Place sliced apples in a large bowl. In a small bowl combine sugar, cinnamon, and flour. Stir well and pour mixture over apples. Cut half of butter or margarine into small pieces and add to apples. Toss apples until thoroughly coated.
3. Pour apples into pastry-lined pie pan. Dot apples with the rest of butter or margarine. Place second pastry on top. Seal edges and cut steam vents in top crust.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 45 to 55 minutes, until crust is golden brown.

Chef Coat

INGREDIENTS

8 eggs
3/4 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup milk
1 cup cream
2 (16 ounce) containers ricotta cheese
1 cup finely chopped red and green candied cherries
2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts
2 whole candied cherries
confectioners’ sugar for dusting

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Beat the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, and vanilla together in a mixing bowl until light colored and fluffy, about 10 minutes. Pour in the milk and cream; continue beating to make a smooth mixture. Stir in the ricotta cheese and cherries until evenly blended. Pour into the pie shells.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C), and bake until set, about 50 minutes more. Cool on racks. When pies are completely cool, dust with confectioners’ sugar, and decorate by placing 1 whole cherry in the center of each pie.

INGREDIENTS:

There are four basic ingredients in a pie crust: flour, fat, water and salt. You can come up with numerous variations just by changing your basic ingredients, as long as you stick to the ratio of three parts flour, two parts fat, and one part liquid.

Flour: For a tender crust, choose a low-protein flour. Pastry flour, with a protein content of about 8-10%, ranks between all-purpose flour and cake flour. All-purpose flour works just fine for pie crusts, while cake flour may lack enough protein to form a workable, elastic dough. Depending upon your tastes and the recipe, you may substitute nut flours (almond flour or hazelnut flour) or whole wheat pastry flour for part of the mixture. If you’re a novice crust-maker, start with a plain all-purpose or pastry flour dough.

Fat: Flaky crusts can be made from a variety of fats. Crusts made with all butter are very flavorful, though they are generally not quite as flaky as crusts made with shortening or lard. Vegetable shortening produces a flaky pie crust that is slightly easier to work with than one made with butter, but the flavor won’t be as rich. Lard produces the flakiest crust, but processed lard can have a chemical aftertaste. If you wish to replicate your grandmother’s famous pie crust, ask your butcher to order fresh lard.

You can also make a pie crust with vegetable oil. Fans of crispier crusts use melted butter or oil for the fat, resulting in a mealier dough that bakes up in a fine-textured, crisp crust that melts in your mouth. Some of the best pie crusts are made with a combination of fats: half butter, for flavor, and half shortening, for flakiness.

If you’re using solid fats (butter, shortening, or lard), they should be kept very cold. When you “cut in” the fat, you want discrete pieces (pea-sized) that don’t blend in to the dough as you work it. These flakes of butter will expand and the liquid evaporate during baking, separating the layers of dough into a flaky crust.

Liquid: When adding liquid to the flour and fat mixture, it should be ice-cold in order to keep the pieces of fat cool and separate. Ice water is fine, but fruit juices, egg yolks, sour cream, and milk or cream add different flavors and textures to your pie crust. Always add liquid a tablespoon at a time, tossing with the flour mixture. Humidity can affect dough performance, so you may need less liquid than the recipe calls for. If your dough becomes too wet, you’ll need to add more flour to roll out the crust, throwing off your ratio and resulting in a tough crust.

Other additions: Wheat germ, a pinch of spice, a dash of flavorful liqueur or cold brewed coffee are all good additions to pie crusts. Don’t forget to add a pinch of salt: the crust will taste flat without it. No matter how good the filling, the crust is the showcase: a good homemade crust takes a pie to new heights. For a sweeter crust, add a tablespoon or two of confectioners’ sugar. Granulated sugar can make the dough sticky and harder to work with.

DIRECTIONS:

Pastry Techniques

Technique is the most important aspect to making a good pie crust. As long as you follow a few simple tips, your pie crusts should turn out perfectly almost every time.

* All ingredients should be ice-cold before mixing. This is especially important for the fat you are using. Shortening can be kept in the freezer without becoming solid.
* Do not overwork the dough. Mix quickly and handle the dough as little as possible. Overworking the dough will cause it to be tough.
* Chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before rolling it out. This lets the flour absorb the liquid and helps to prevent stickiness when rolling out the dough. It also allows the gluten (the protein structure) to relax, making it more elastic and less likely to shrink back as you roll it.
* Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface, a pastry cloth, or between two sheets of waxed paper. Roll the dough from the center outward using even, firm strokes. Turning the dough as you work, about an eighth of turn per roll, will help to keep it round.
* Use a dry pastry brush or a clean dishtowel to brush off excess flour from the dough.
* Once the dough is rolled to the proper thickness, fold it in half or roll it around your rolling pin to lift it into the pie pan. Gently press the dough down into the bottom edges of the pan. You can use kitchen shears or a paring knife to trim the crust to about a ¾ inch overhang.
* After the rolled-out dough has been transferred to the pie pan, let it relax in the refrigerator for another 20-30 minutes before filling. This will prevent the dough from shrinking during baking.
* Before pouring the filling into the unbaked pie crust, you can brush the bottom and sides of the unbaked pie crust with lightly beaten egg white or melted jelly. This will help create a seal to keep the crust crisp. To ensure that the crust stays even crisper, partially bake the pie crust before adding the filling. (This is, of course, only an option for crumb-topped pies, not latticed or double-crust pies.)

Source:
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INGREDIENTS:

1/2 c. butter, softened
2 c. sifted 10X sugar
2 eggs
5 bananas
2 graham cracker pie crusts (purchased)
1 (20 oz.) can crushed pineapple, well drained
1 (10 oz.) container Cool Whip, thawed
1 pkg. mini chocolate chips (or shredded semi-sweet chocolate)
1/3 c. chopped nuts (optional)
Maraschino cherries (with stems) for garnish

DIRECTIONS:

In small mixing bowl, beat the butter. Add the 10X sugar and continue to beat until fluffy. Beat in eggs. Spread mixture over crumb crusts. Slice bananas and arrange over mixture in crust. Spoon pineapple over bananas.

INGREDIENTS:

3 bananas
1 sm. box Jello vanilla instant pudding and pie filling
1 3/4 c. milk
8 oz. Cool Whip
1 box Nilla wafers

DIRECTIONS:

In a large bowl, layer the bottom of the bowl with Nilla wafers. Set aside. In another bowl, mix dry pudding with milk, slice bananas and fold in Cool Whip. In bowl with Nilla wafers, add the pudding mixture, then add Nilla wafers to cover the top. Refrigerate to cool. HINT: The longer you cool, the better.

Try more similar recipes at : Vegetarian Meals

INGREDIENTS:

1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
2 1/4 c. cold milk
1 (3 1/2 oz.) pkg. vanilla instant pudding & pie filling
24 or more vanilla wafers
2 c. or more banana slices (3 lg. bananas)

DIRECTIONS:

Combine cream cheese and 1/2 cup milk and mix at medium speed with mixer until well blended. Add remaining milk and pudding mix; beat at low speed 1 minute. Layer 1/3 of pudding mixture, half of wafers and half of banana slices in a 2 quart serving bowl; repeat layers. Top with remaining pudding. Cover surface with wax paper or plastic wrap. Refrigerate.

INGREDIENTS:

(5 1/4 oz.) pkg. Jello vanilla instant pudding & pie mix
2 c. milk
1 (8 oz.) carton Cool Whip
5 or 6 bananas
1 box vanilla wafers
1 (8 oz.) carton sour cream

DIRECTIONS:

Put milk in mixing bowl then add pudding mix and beat slowly until it thickens. Add sour cream and beat slowly. Fold in. Add Cool Whip. The filling will be thick. Use oblong glass casserole, put filling, wafers, bananas in. Alternate layers, ending with filling on top. Refrigerate. I make mine the day before I serve it.

INGREDIENTS:

1 (21 oz.) can strawberry pie filling
1 pt. vanilla ice cream, softened
1 tbsp. lemon juice
3 med. bananas, chopped
1/4 c. coarsely chopped toasted almonds
Lettuce

DIRECTIONS:

Stir together pie filling, softened ice cream and lemon juice. Stir in bananas and nuts. Turn mixture into 8 individual molds. Cover and freeze until firm. To serve, let stand at room temperature 10 minutes. Unmold into lettuce lined plates. Makes 8 servings.