I have a terrible sweet tooth (as you may have divined if you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time), but my sweet tooth is not typical. Not for me the sweetness overload, the gooey cakes, the sugary cookies and candies. I prefer a more subtle sweetness, balanced by savory, or tart, or [...]
It’s far too cold in Los Angeles this week to even think of having a picnic, or eating a salad. We’ve had rain and fog and nighttime temperatures in the 40′s. I’ve been digging out my thick sweaters and my boots and thinking of building a fire in the fireplace. It’s MAY, people! I live [...]
Tags: Kid Friendly·lunchbox·potluck·vegan
I used to be afraid of pie. The rules about cold hands and precise handling, the rolling and the cracking and the patching and the shrinking – it all gave me hives. But now? I’m over it. I can honestly say that I make a pretty darn good pie crust. What changed?
1. My tools. I swear by my French Tapered Rolling Pin
2. My techniques. I roll out between sheets of parchment or plastic wrap. I use this method for making pie crusts in the food processor, but it’s even better if I keep back about a third of the butter and mix it in by hand before I add the water, rubbing it in with my fingertips, flattening globs of butter into flakes. Then I add the water by hand, too.
3. My ingredients. I get better results if I use European butter — my favorite is Kerrygold Irish butter. It has a higher fat content than most American butter, and a better butter flavor. Shortening and oil may yield a more tender crust, but what you’re giving up in the butter flavor is, IMO, not worth it.
4. My attitude. This is the most important piece. Pie crust doesn’t intimidate me any more. I just make it, chill it, roll it. If it cracks, I patch it. If it shrinks, I shrug it off. Pies don’t have to be perfect. In fact, they’re better if they’re not. And nobody refuses homemade pie.
This rice pie is a creamy pie that’s part of the traditional Easter meal in parts of Italy. And it could be an Easter dessert for you. The ingredients are easy to find and relatively inexpensive. It slices beautifully, and travels well, and tastes best after chilling and then about an hour out of the refrigerator. Best of all, it’s glorious homemade pie with homemade pie crust, and you really can’t go wrong with that.
