Balcavage - Pies and Tarts with Heart: Expert Pie-Building Techniques for 60 Sweet and Savory Vegan Pies

2013 by Quarry Books

Text 2013 Dynise Balcavage

First published in the United States of America in 2013 by

Quarry Books, a member of

Quayside Publishing Group

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Digital edition published in 2013

Digital Edition: 978-1-61058-773-0
Softcover Edition: 978-1-59253-846-1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available

Design: Rita Sowins / Sowins Design

Photography: Paul Runyon

Expert Pie-Building Techniques for 60+ Sweet and Savory Vegan Pies

DYNISE BALCAVAGE

I was born on pi day: 3.14, also known as March 14. Although math has never been my forte, I am pretty darn good at baking pies.

It seems every time I read about pies, writers impart picture-perfect childhood memories: rolling out dough with an endlessly patient grandmawho of course is wearing a flour-dusted, red gingham apron; candle-shop smells wafting from the oven; perfectly formed pies cooling on country windowsills while a veritable trail of glittery steam vents in curlicues against an impossibly blue sky.

Sadly, I have no such childhood memories. (Anticlimactic, I know.) We were, quite simply, a family of cake and cookie creators, not pie bakers. In fact, the only pies I honestly recall tasting during my childhood were Tastykakes, a Philadelphia brand, and Sara Lees. I liked them, but I preferred my familys homemade cakes and cookies.

Fast-forward to my early twenties, just a few years after the untimely death of my mom. I became increasingly interested in the concept of self-reliance. Around this time, I happened upon the joy of baking pies and of cooking in general. I didnt have an aha pie moment, but after I figured out how easy and modular it was, I do recall turning out all kinds of pies with abandon: apple, pumpkin, blueberry, pecan, and even a pumpkin pie made with silken tofulong before I was vegana variation of which I still make regularly (see page 53). People loved my pies, which, of course, inspired me to make them often and to get more creative with my recipes.

What did I like about making pies? Im a big-picture kind of girl, which is why I usually consider myself a better cook than a baker. I know so many people who are great with details, precise measurements, and records. They have the patience to follow recipe directions and because of this, obtain absolutely consistent results. These are the cake bakers. Im more of the ad-lib kind of cookbetter at doing things by instinct and on the fly.

Which is why pie making agrees with me. Pies are less persnickety to bake than cakes, and theyre much more forgiving. You have a bit of wiggle room to express yourself, whether its by adding an exotic filling flourish or an avant-garde cutout design on your pie top. Plus, you dont have to sift the flour!

Baking pies is part art and part sport. In some ways, its a game of wits because you need to be poised to reactto the ingredients, the weather, and even your cranky old oven. If the peaches are super juicy, for example, you might need to cut back on water-drawing ingredients, such as salt.

If the weather is humid or rainy, you may need to add less water to the dough. If your apples are tart, you may need to add more sweetener.

The culinary nerd in me enjoys this. I like the fact that, despite my best efforts, it is unlikely that any two of my pies will taste exactly the same.

Which brings me back to pi, the number. One thing I do know about math is that pi goes on and on and on, and its decimal representation neither ends nor repeats. In 2006, Akira Haraguchi of Japan recited pi to more than 100,000 decimal places, shattering the old record. The process took him sixteen-plus hours.

By the same token, pies go on and on. I doubt people will ever stop baking piesand that any two homemade pies will ever taste alike.

I hope this book gives you the information and the inspiration to turn out magnificent plant-based pies, done your way.

About the Icons

Throughout this book, youll see a series of icons designed to help you quickly skim the recipes.

GF: Gluten-free*

Fast: Make this pie in less than 30 minutes

Low-Fat: Pies are fattening! But these pies contain less fat than average

Kid-Friendly: Recipes that especially appeal to kids

Raw: Recipes made entirely from raw ingredients

No-Bake: Recipes that do not require baking

* Gluten-Free Note

Many of these recipes can easily be made gluten-free by substituting gluten-free ingredients. But if you are gluten-sensitive or gluten-intolerant, you probably know that its not quite that simple because gluten is insidious. This sneaky ingredient can lurk in even seemingly innocent foods, including some soy sauces and curry powders! So when making something gluten-free, please be sure to scrutinize your food labels and purchase only groceries that are labeled gluten-free.

WHAT DO RUNNING AND PIE BAKING HAVE IN COMMON? Simplicity. I love the minimalism of running: you only need a good pair of shoes and some running clothes. The same is true for pie baking: it does not entail loads of fancy equipment or rely on exotic ingredients. Chances are, you probably have just about everything you need on hand in your kitchen as you venture on your pie-baking journey. On the other hand, if youre a connoisseur or gadget freak, there are plenty of options to satisfy your appetite for variety.