pies Archives • Deep Fried Kudzu

November 14, 2019November 16, 2019

Tatte, And Pies Forever

Oh yeah. I’m starting to get in full pie mode.

I saw a post at Food and Wine a few days ago about the Boston-based bakery, Tatte — that happens to be one of the first places that Suzanne (my Cambridge bestie — she works at Harvard) and I went when I visited her.

From F&W: The first time I walked into Tatte Bakery’s Harvard Square location, I’m pretty sure I gasped. The space was striking: stark black chalkboards adorning white-tiled walls, shelves stacked high with packs of candied nuts, pastries as pretty as the custom mosaic floor. Every aspect of the place felt deeply curated, homey, and warm. Stylized just enough to be beautiful but not intimidating, the bakery was unlike any I’d ever experienced.

Here are some pics I took of our visit to the Harvard Square Tatte:

Tatte in DC will open spring 2020.

I’m starting to figure out how many pies to make this year, and leading up to that is figuring out what flavors to make. Email me your flavors and let’s collab on ideas!

I also thought this piece about pies in bar form at F&W was interesting — it would be somewhat easier to get a bunch of servings done at one time, but considering that all but a handful that I make for family and friends goes to various places in Birmingham that feeds the homeless or the food insecure, my heart wants them to be traditional, not just cranked out for the sake of efficiency. Still, though, bars are fun.

I might try that for some kind of low-key Friendsgiving one evening with people just coming in and out over the course of a few hours rather than having a set “please arrive at 7p” kind of thing. Lots of fall-inspired cocktails and savory bites set on platters everywhere. And dessert…I mean, chocolate-espresso pie bars? Yasssss.

Since I love pie, thank so many of you for sending me fun pie things all the time (and I’m a little behind on answering DFK emails since I started posting again, but I’m getting there! Thank you!). Really nice is this one of a bakery in Toronto called Lamanna’s that does a dessert pizza that *has little pieces of pie on it*. And ohmystars THIS isn’t even pie but gets my full endorsement. COOKIE.

Really considering adding this to the repertoire: creme brulee pie from the NYT

More pie talk as we get closer to Thanksgiving. Loving hearing from all of you! xoxo!

November 23, 2017November 23, 2017

Thanksgiving Pies

Last year, the number was 42 and this year, it’s 49!

We made pecan, chocolate pecan, pumpkin, sweet potato, sweet potato – praline, buttermilk coconut, chess, chocolate meringue (and just one that’s chocolate pecan bourbon that we save for the fam). Av and the boys delivered them to Jimmie Hale Mission, Jessie’s Place, Firehouse Shelter, and Community Kitchens at Grace Episcopal.

Hope you all are having a *wonderful* Thanksgiving! xoxo!

November 24, 2005August 17, 2017

Thanksgiving Pies

Well, I *just* got done making all my pies for this Thanksgiving! Here’s my inventory that I started with:

…and ten hours later here are most of the pies (I always make 25+ pies for a church that serves lunch on T’giving for a big crowd of hungry people in their neighborhood, plus another couple for Av’s family’s Thanksgiving). Below are pumpkin, pecan, apple, hot fudge, and buttermilk coconut pies.

If you like coconut pies, here’s the recipe I use – it’s soooo simple, and the pie always turns out *wonderfully*:

Buttermilk Coconut Pie
1-1/2 c. sugar
2 Tbsp. flour
1 stick butter
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 c. buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla
grated coconut – use as much or as little as you like – I use about 1/3 the bag per pie
pie crust

Preheat the oven to 350*. Meanwhile, mix everything together. Once the oven gets to 350*, pour the mixture into your pie crust, and bake for 45 -60 minutes. When the top gets golden and doesn’t jiggle in the middle, it’s done!

March 29, 2005August 9, 2017

New Hot Fudge Pie Recipe

Each year, we make around 25 pies each Thanksgiving and Easter (as long as it doesn’t fall during Passover) for a local church that feeds the hungry in its neighborhood. This year, I made buttermilk coconut pies, key lime pies, pumpkin pies (okay, I just like pumpkin, even when it’s not Thanksgiving~!), and hot fudge pies.

Hot Fudge Pie:
1 stick butter
1 cup self-rising flour (I always use White Lily)
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1-1/4 cup sugar
dash of vanilla
1 egg
sweet milk as needed
1 pie crust

Preheat the oven to 350*. Melt the butter in the microwave but let it sit out so that it cools to almost room temperature. Mix the dry ingredients together. Mix the butter and the egg into the dry ingredients. Add a dash of vanilla. Add whole milk as needed to make a mixture that is easily able to be stirred – meaning that it’s not thin, but it doesn’t easily ‘glop’ together. Pour into pie shell and bake for 45-50 minutes. I wouldn’t advise baking it until it’s incredibly firm, just cooked through until it maintains a good consistency, which you ought to get at 45-50 minutes. It is wonderful hot, and really good at room temperature.