Peach Pie

Let me first clarify that this is NOT grandma's peach pie recipe. Josh tells me that her crust recipe calls for lard, more on that later.

I made my first attempt at a fruit pie because Josh loves them and, frankly, I'm nothing short of crazy about him so I feel the need to perfect cooking and baking those foods that he adores.   And so, he gifted me (possibly a subtle hint) a couple of quart bags of last season's peaches (fresh frozen and still delicious). 

I think I passed the 'Fruit Pie Test,' but I'm still not so sure. All the same, it was baked with love and I think it was pretty darn tasty for my first attempt.
- Cassie

Ahhh Buttery Pie Crust (double crust):

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, diced and set aside in the freezer &

1/3 cup of Crisco (shortening), set aside in the freezer

 

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon sugar

 

6 to 8 tablespoons (about 1/2 cup) ice water

Cube butter and measure out shortening and place in the freezer while you prepare the flour mixture.  Place the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse a few times. Add the butter and shortening. Pulse 8 to 12 times, until the butter is the size of peas. With the machine running, pour the ice water down the feed tube and pulse the machine until the dough begins to form a ball. Dump out on a floured board and divide in half. Roll each half into a ball, wrap in wax paper and flatten into a disc. Refrigerate for a minimum of 30 minutes (I made mine the night before) while you prepare peach filling.

Filling:

5 cups of peeled Lee's Orchard peaches (I used frozen and drained for the one pictured)
2 tablespoons of brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
3/4-1 cup sugar
1/4-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon almond extract, optional
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons butter
1/8-1/4 cup sparkling sugar

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Stir together flour, sugar & cinnamon and set aside.  Combine peaches, vanilla & almond extract in a separate bowl and add dry ingredients to combine. 

On a well-floured surface, roll each piece into a circle, rolling from the center to the edge, turning and flouring the dough to make sure it doesn't stick to the board. Fold one round of the dough in half, place in a pie pan, and unfold to fit the pan.

Sprinkle bottom crust with brown sugar and top will filling mixture. Dice 2 tablespoons of butter and dot the filling.

Cover with other rolled dough round and seal edges.  Cut slits in the top crust to vent.  Sprinkle with crystalized/sparkling sugar, if desired. 

Cover the edges with foil or crust protector and bake for 35-45 minutes.  Remove foil about 10-15 minutes before the end of bake time.  Bake until golden brown and juice begins to bubble through the vents. 

Allow to cool to warm before cutting and topping with fresh whipped cream or homemade vanilla ice cream.