Gardens - Better Homes and Gardens 365 Pies and Tarts: Inspiring Slices for Every Day of the Year

Copyright 2012 by Meredith Corporation, Des Moines, IA. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Better homes and gardens 365 pies and tarts.

p. cm.

Includes index.

ISBN 978-1-118-21755-9 (cloth); 978-1-118-28097-3 (ebk); 978-1-118-28098-0 (ebk); 978-1-118-28099-7 (ebk)

1. Pies. I. Better Homes and Gardens Books (Firm) II. Title: Better homes and gardens three hundred sixty-five pies and tarts.

TX773.B4896 2012

641.86'52dc23
2011051686

Printed in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Meredith Corporation

Editor: Jan Miller

Contributing Editor: Amy Palanjian

Recipe Development and Testing: Better Homes and Gardens Test Kitchen

John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Publisher: Natalie Chapman

Associate Publisher: Jessica Goodman

Executive Editor: Anne Ficklen

Editor: Meaghan McDonnell

Production Editor: Maggie Vernon

Production Manager: Diana Cisek

Art Director: Tai Blanche

Interior Design and Layout: Holly Wittenberg

Manufacturing Manager: Tom Hyland

Our seal assures you that every recipe in 365 Pies & Tarts has been tested in the Better Homes and Gardens Test Kitchen. This means that each recipe is practical and reliable and meets our high standards of taste appeal. We guarantee your satisfaction with this book for as long as you own it.

Pastry Primer

Once youve mastered a few basics, baking one of these yearned-for desserts is as easy aswellpie!

The Art of the Pastry

Use Exact Measures

Too much flour or water will make a crust tough, and too much shortening will make it crumbly. Also the water must be ice cold, to keep the shortening and butter from melting. Those bits of fat help separate the pastry into layers as it bakesthats how your pastry gets flaky.

Go Easy on the Flour

Rolling the dough on top of a pastry cloth helps you avoid using excess flour, which can make a pastry tough. If desired, you can also cover your rolling pin with a cotton stockinette designed for pastry making; lightly flour both the cloth and the stockinette. When rolling the dough, work it as little as possible, because too much rolling also can make the pastry tough.

The Cover-Up

To protect the crimped edge from overbrowning, fold a 12-inch square of foil into quarters. Cut off 312 inches from the folded corners; unfold. There will be a 7-inch hole in the center. Loosely mold foil over edge of the pie before baking. Or use purchased pie shields to protect the crust.

Mastering Meringues

Follow these tips for airy, sweet meringues.

Allow egg whites to stand at room temperature 30 minutes to bring more volume to the meringue.

Use a large bowl made of copper, stainless steel, or glass, and make sure the bowls, beaters, and any other utensils are very clean and dry before using them. Oil or grease residue prevents whites from beating poorly. Also be sure no yolk gets into the whites when separating the eggs.

Prevent shrinkage of baked meringue by beating egg whites until stiff peaks form (tips stand straight) and sealing the meringue to the crusts edge when spreading it over the filling.

Prevent beadingsmall beads of moisture that can form on the surface of the bakedd meringueby not overbaking the meringue.

Prevent weepingthe water layer that can form between the meringue and fillingby spooning the meringue over the filling while its still hot.

Plates and Pans

Always use the size of pie plate or tart pan called for in a recipe. Here is the equipment youll need.

Pie Plates

These can be made of glass, ceramic, stoneware, aluminum, or tin.

Tart Pans

The fluted sides of these pans make your tarts pretty; the removable bottoms make it easy to transfer tarts to serving plates.

Pastry Primer

Pastry for a Single-Crust Pie

START TO FINISH 10 minutes MAKES 1 piecrust (8 servings)

112 cups all-purpose flour

12 teaspoon salt

14 cup shortening

14 cup butter, cut up, or shortening

14 to 13 cup ice water

In a medium bowl stir together flour and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in shortening and butter until pieces are pea size.

Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the ice water over part of the flour mixture; gently toss with a fork. Push moistened pastry to the side of the bowl. Repeat moistening flour mixture, using 1 tablespoon of the water at a time, until all of the flour mixture is moistened. Gather flour mixture into a ball, kneading gently until it holds together.

Continue as directed in specific recipe.

NUTRITION FACTS PER SERVING: 191 cal., 12 g total fat (5 g sat. fat), 15 mg chol., 187 mg sodium, 18 g carb., 1 g dietary fiber, 0 g sugar, 2 g protein.

Pastry Primer

Pastry for a Double-Crust Pie

START TO FINISH 10 minutes MAKES 2 piecrusts (8 servings)

212 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

12 cup shortening

14 cup butter, cut up, or shortening

12 to 23 cup ice water

In a large bowl stir together flour and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in shortening and butter until pieces are pea size.

Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the ice water over part of the flour mixture; gently toss with a fork. Push moistened pastry to the side of the bowl. Repeat moistening flour mixture, using 1 tablespoon of the water at a time, until all of the flour mixture is moistened. Gather flour mixture into a ball, kneading gently until it holds together. Divide pastry in half; form halves into balls.