Sunday, September 30, 2012

Savory Peach Pie

I got a hankering for a savory pie, so a few weeks back I found a savory pie dough recipe, stuffed it full of pears and cheddar cheese, and baked it. It was INCREDIBLE. So now we eat a savory pie once a week. Here is the latest, greatest iteration:

                                                                               Before:

                                                                       After Baking:




This is technically a "galette," as we do not own a pie tin, so it's made free-form on a pan. I think that ends up more delicious, however; the crust goes further up the sides of the pie so the crust isn't as thick at the edges. It also looks way cooler. This pie was stuffed first with very ripe peaches (which we drizzled with a little honey), spinach, and monterey jack cheese. Our inspiration was a panini recipe; we just stuffed those ingredients into this galette. It was delicious; so delicious we ate the entire thing for dinner. Recipe (my modified version) is below:

(Day Before you want to eat)
Mix 2 cups flour, pinch of salt, and a good amount of pepper in a medium bowl. Cut 1 stick frozen butter into small cubes. Add these cubes to the flour mixture, and rub together with your hands until the pieces are smaller than peas and the consistency is chunky. Add just enough cold water (usually around 1/3 cup) and mix with your hands to make the dough stay together when you squeeze it into a ball. Cover and refrigerate overnight (allows the flour to absorb the moisture)

Next Day:
Remove from fridge and allow to come close to room temperature. Preheat oven go 425 degrees. Roll dough out into a roughly circular shape. Scatter desired fillings interspersed with cheese in middle, and fold up edges of dough around to make a nice volcano shape. Make sure there's some cheese on the exposed top part...the cheesy layer is delicious and keeps the insides from burning. Bake until crust is firm and slightly golden, and cheese is sufficiently melted. Enjoy!

Hobbit Second Breakfast

In honor of the 75th Anniversary of the best children's book ever, I decided to make second breakfast on a Saturday morning. Here's the Menu:

Cinnamon Scones
Crusty Bread
Eggs and Bacon
Pork Pie
Fresh Peaches

I won't post recipes for everything on this one, pretty straightforward but here's a pictorial guide:


                                                                              
                                                     Cinnamon Scones (great with jam):



Pork and onions sauteed in cinnamon and ginger for the pie

The Pie before baking
The Completed Pie!


Bacon and eggs on the stove
Delicious Bread, with a little whole wheat flour, in a "bloomer loaf" shape

Here's a view of the table

From above...Strong Black Tea was an important component. I had Keemun.