Happy Pi Day!

I couldn’t let Pi Day simply breeze by without making a pie! Andy would never forgive me if I missed this hallowed day of observation. We love pie, and one of the things that I love best about it is that the variations of pie are infinitesimal- much like the many digits of the number of the day 3.14 (and on and on and on it goes!).

Today’s pie began with my favorite pie crust, Judy’s Flaky Pie Crust. I simply cannot sing the praises of this pie crust enough. It’s easy to mix together, it tastes fantastic, and it’s really easy to work with. With many pastry crusts you need to be careful when mixing it together, or the resulting crust becomes tough and chewy. Not so with this one. The addition of an egg and a splash of vinegar is what keeps this crust tender and flakey, no matter how hard you work it. Sara Foster did the home baker a huge favor by putting this crust recipe in her cookbook, Fresh Every Day. This crust also freezes great as well. I tend to double the ingredients when mixing them up, and then I have pie crust at the ready in the freezer at all times.

The second part of my pie features a filling that is an amalgamation of spring and winter. I still have some wintery things in my pantry and freezer, and I’m trying to put them to good use before they get forgotten about. Today it was a package of frozen pumpkin puree. I thought about pumpkin pie, which everyone in my family loves, and I wondered if there was a way to “spring it up” a bit, so it wasn’t so homey and wintery. Looking through my pantry, I found a can of coconut milk and my decision was made. I used the famous Libby’s Pumpkin Pie as my inspiration and mixed up some Coco-nutty Pumpkin Pie filling. I swapped out the evaporated milk for the coconut milk, and then I left out the ginger, and instead used some freshly grated nutmeg.

The small bit I sampled is delicious. It’s full of pumpkin flavor, but it also has a vibrancy and a nuttiness to it from the coconut milk, yet you can’t quite identify the coconut milk.  It’s one of those “what IS that flavor?” slices of pie.  The nutmeg also adds an incredible note of flavor.  Later tonight as I serve it for dinner, we’ll be having it with a dollop of whipped cream with just a hint of orange zest added to it- the orange will pair up beautifully with the nutmeg and nutty tones of the pie.

The best part about Pi Day is seeing all the luscious sounding pies popping up in the blogosphere! Alanna at A Veggie Venture has been tracking the goodness of pie all week long with her Pi Day Event. Be sure you head on over to see all the wonderful pies listed there, as well as the many tips and tricks for making the perfect pie crust.

Judy’s Flaky Pie Crust
from Fresh Every Day by Sara Foster
makes 2 9-inch pie crusts

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup plus 3 TBS vegetable shortening

1 large egg

1/3 cup ice water, plus 2 to 3 TBS as needed

1 TBS white vinegar

1. Stir the flour and salt together in a large bowl. Add the shortening and cut in into the flour with a pastry cutter until the mixture resembles coarse meal.

2. In a separate small bowl, beat the egg with the 1/3 cup ice water and vinegar. Pour this into the bowl with the flour mixture, stirring with a fork just until it comes together. Do not mix any more than necessary. If the dough is dry and crumbly, add more water, 1 TBS at a time, until it comes together, but don’t add so much water that the dough becomes wet and sticky.

3. Lightly dust your hands and work surface with flour. Turn the dough out onto your work surface and form it into a ball with your hands. Divide the dough ball into two pieces, and flatten each piece into a disk about 1 1/2 inches thick. Wrap each disk in plastic and refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes, or up to 3 days.

Coco-nutty Pumpkin Pie

1 disk pie dough

2 cups pumpkin puree

1 (14 oz) can coconut milk

2 eggs

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon cloves

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Preheat oven to 425ºF.

Roll out your pie dough and line a 9 inch pie plate with it. Crimp the edges as desired.

Beat together the pumpkin puree, coconut milk and eggs. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour into your pie crust carefully and place into the hot oven. Bake for 15 minutes.

Reduce oven temp to 350ºF. Bake pie for an additional 50-60 minutes, or until the filling seems set when jiggled, and a knife inserted near the middle comes out clean.

Allow to cool for 2 hours before cutting into the pie. Serve at room temperature or chilled with lightly sweetened whipped cream.