Ah, damn. I meant to scan the recipe I used. For the filling, anyway. I don't think I'm allowed to post the recipe for the crust. Ancient family secret. You probably don't really want to know anyway. Making pie crust with lard is not for the faint of heart. But, boyhowdy, it ends up tender and flaky.
On to the experiment. Went something like this: I cursed my mother. No, not like cursed the ground she walks on. I brought bad juju to her piemaking. I have never, in all the years I've watched her make pie crust, seen her have a crust that was difficult to roll out, difficult to move from the rolling area to the pan, or difficult to maneuver once there. Never. Until yesterday. The first try had to be scrapped completely. The second try was somewhat better but still had holes that couldn't be repaired once it was moved to the pan. Usually the dough will sort of stick to itself so you can repair cracks and holes by pressing more dough onto it (kind of like Play-Doh, but...better). This didn't work that way. It was crumbly. Not smooth and satiny and easy to work with, like it's supposed to be. Witness:
(Again, sorry for cell phone pix, next time I'll remember to bring my camera.)
HOWEVER, once the crust was cooked (Mom, remind me what temp and time, please), filled with a combination of whole strawberries and a sort of quick homemade strawberry jam (smooshed strawberries, sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, and-my own idea-lemon zest--all cooked and cooled), and topped with freshly whipped cream, it was delicious. Fresh and perfect. The crust tasted right and had the right texture in spite of our difficulties. The filling was also perfect--don't ever, ever think that red gooey stuff they sell at the store as "strawberry glaze" is actually anything meant to be eaten.
Yum. And not that difficult.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
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