'How to Build a Better Pie'

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‘How to Build a Better Pie’

It’s been said that simple foods are the most difficult to master. Take, for example, pie. Its familiar, comforting, iconic character comes with countless questions, even for baking hobbyists: How do you make a perfectly flaky crust? What kitchen tools are absolutely essential? How does one thicken a fruit filling? Luckily, just in time for prime summer pie season, comes the chef Millicent Souris’s new cookbook, out today, titled “How to Build a Better Pie.”

While Souris explores the virtues and versatility of the American classic — she favors leaf lard for its transparent, clean finish; believes almost anything can be baked with crust; and loves marrying fruit with fresh herbs — there’s one topic she won’t budge on. “I don’t think you elevate pies by making them look really pretty,” Souris says. “I think you elevate them with the integrity of ingredients.”

Her collection of easy-to-use recipes range from traditional — sweet bourbon pecan and savory chicken pot — to highly original, like her paltry fruit, a pie born from the same notion as its humble beginnings at a time when, Souris says, “few ingredients were stretched to feed more.” During Hurricane Irene last summer, Souris had six nectarines — lush and fragrant, but on the verge of spoiling — sitting on her kitchen counter. Rather than let them go to waste, she created a thrifty, practical recipe to turn the fruit on the fringe into something rich, indulgent — a sum far more enjoyable than its individual parts. “Pie is as humble as you want it to be,” Souris explains. “And the best part is making something out of nothing.”

To celebrate the publication of her cookbook (there will be a party, open to the public, tonight at the Brooklyn Kitchen from 6:30 to 8:30), Souris created a special pie recipe for T: “This is an easy pie that doesn’t require a lot of oven time. The cracker crust tastes like the best shortbread you’ve ever made, and it works wonderfully with any summer fruit. But I’ve got my eye on strawberries at the moment.”

T’s Easy Summer Pie: Strawberry Lemon Curd by Millicent Souris
For a 9? glass pie plate

Saltine Vanilla Wafer Cracker Crust

½ sleeve saltine crackers (16)
16 vanilla wafers
1 stick unsalted butter
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 egg white (save the yolk)
1 tablespoon kosher salt.

Melt butter in a small pan. Pull from heat before it browns and let cool. Toss the crackers and wafers in a food processor and pulse until crumbs begin to form. Gradually add the butter, sugar, salt and egg white. Turn the food processor off, and turn the mixture into the pie plate. With a level, steady hand lightly press the crust into the plate. Evenly tap the crust across the bottom of the plate and up the sides about half an inch. It should be even in thickness. Place crust in refrigerator to rest for at least 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Once the crust has rested, bake it in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Pull and cool. While the crust is baking, make the lemon curd.

Lemon Curd
Yields 2 cups

Juice zest of 3 lemons
½ cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
1 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
pinch of kosher salt.

Fill a medium-size sauce pot about a third way with water and heat. Use a bowl that will fit atop the pot, or nestle down a bit, without touching the water. Cut the butter into small chunks and toss in the bowl with the sugar. Place on the pot so it starts to melt as you zest the lemons, keeping the zest separate to add at the end. Whisk the melting butter and sugar together and add the lemon juice, whisking together well.

Lift your bowl and make sure the water is gently simmering (not boiling). Gently beat the three eggs in a separate bowl. Add the eggs to the bowl over simmering water, whisking everything together. Once the mixture is combined, use a rubber spatula to continuously scrape the bowl around the sides (especially the bottom) so everything cooks evenly. The mixture will thicken in 7 to 10 minutes, and should become more cohesive as it firms up along the edges of the bowl.

Add the lemon zest and salt. Mix. Turn into another bowl and place cling wrap flush across the top of the curd (this prevents a “skin” from developing). Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Strawberry Topping

1 pint strawberries (the smaller the better)
2 tablespoons raw sugar
Zest and juice of one lemon
½ teaspoon salt
3 sprigs of tarragon, or 4 sprigs of mint, or 4 sprigs of chervil
A scraped vanilla pod (optional).

Hull the strawberries, then cut in half lengthwise (if they are bigger than the tip of your fingers). Toss them with the raw sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice and salt. Pick the herb of your choice and chop. Gently bruise the stems and toss the them, the herbs and vanilla pod with the fruit. Let the mixture macerate at room temperature, while everything else cools.

After 30 minutes, fill the crust with the curd. Refrigerate again until the curd settles and tightens.

Cut the pie into 8 slices, soaking the knife into hot water after each slice and wiping it clean. Plate the slices, then take a spoonful of the dressed strawberries to top the pie. Finish with a drizzle of strawberry juice and enjoy.

“How to Build a Better Pie,” $24.99. Go to amazon.com.

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