We have had a very mild fall, as everyone in Wisconsin knows by now. Warmer than usual temperatures, and little rain has many of us thinking about a prolonged summer. Outdoor recreation is still in the biking and running mode, with few thinking of skis and snow shoes. As I walk the streets of Milwaukee I see people wearing shorts and sandals and T-shirts, as though it were mid-summer.
As a long time Milwaukeean who grew up in San Diego, I can relate to this. Nevertheless, I find myself wishing fall would hurry up and get here. That’s because I am a big fan of the pies of fall–pumpkin, apple, cranberry, pecan, sweet potato. Seasonal produce lends itself well to pie baking. After the long cold Wisconsin winter, nothing tastes better than fresh rhubarb pie or a bright and cheery berry pie. In the midst of a hot summer, a peach pie is just what the baker ordered. And in the fall, as we head toward short days, long nights and cold, snowy streets, fall pies, perhaps combined with a fireplace and a warm drink, spell comfort and security.
With this in mind I recently baked two pies combining some popular favorites–Pumpkin Apple Pie and Pear Cranberry Pie. Now, some may ask why mess with a good thing by mixing Pumpkin with Apple. One friend, when asked about the idea, said she though it was fine–as long as I left out the pumpkin. Others look at pumpkin pie as part of Thanksgiving tradition, not to be tinkered with. I can sympathize with these points of view, but by nature I like to tinker with recipes. My wife and kids will testify that no two Thanksgiving Turkeys, let alone the dressing, are ever the same in our house. To me the kitchen is a place for experimentation, and pie baking is a great opportunity to try new things.
Making a Pumpkin Apple Pie is pretty straight forward since it’s essentially two pies in one. The apple filling goes in first, on top of a pastry crust. Then the pumpkin mix goes on top. You bake it as you would any pumpkin pie, at 375 for about 50-60 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. I actually baked two of these pies. The first had more pumpkin than apple filling, and the pumpkin mix concealed the apples. This led one colleague, who served as a taste tester to remark that you bite into the pumpkin and find an “apple surprise” underneath. The second pie had more apple than pumpkin resulting in the apples peaking through the pumpkin. Both were quite tasty with the cinnamon sweetness of the apples complementing the earthiness of the pumpkin.
Pears and cranberries make another delightful blend for a pie. I worked with red Bartlett pears and fresh Wisconsin cranberries. This pie is a little more time consuming to make, but results in a pie so beautiful you almost feel guilty cutting into it. Begin by slicing your pears into 1/8 to 1/4 inch pieces. After lining a pie plate with pastry crust you arrange a layer of pear slices in an overlapping pattern around the bottom of the dish. Then put about a cup of berries around the top of the pears. Follow this with another layer of pears and then pour a mix of sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, corn starch, and water over this mixture. The pie is then baked at 375 for 30 minutes covered with foil, and 30 more minutes uncovered. After taking the pie out of the oven to cool, you cook another cup of berries in a pan with 1/4 cup of caramel sauce. You can make your own or use some caramel ice cream topping. Once the cranberry caramel mixture becomes bubbly drizzle it over the top of the pie. This pie is best served warm, right out of the oven. If there is any left over, I suggest reheating it to release the caramel goodness of the cranberry topping.
You can find out more about these and other pies at www.thepiedude.com or by searching for The Pie Dude on Facebook.
