#17: Lime Pie with Gingersnap Crust

I decided to go citrus-themed this week.  I did consider doing a Key Lime Pie but I also know that people get very weird if you don't use key limes from FL.  So, instead of going down that road, I decided to do a plain ol' Lime Pie, which lead me to this interesting recipe from the Magnolia Bakery -- Lime Pie with Gingersnap Crust.

The hardest part of this pie has nothing to do with the recipe.  Really?!  A cup of lime juice.  Man!  Prepare to work your arms because it's hard to get juice out of a lime.  I guess it's something to consider then picking out the limes -- look for fruit with a little give when you squeeze it.  If you estimate a tablespoon of juice from each lime...that would be at least 8 limes...round it up to a dozen just to be safe.

On the bright side, your arms are probably thankful that you're also not rolling out a pastry for this pie.

Unfortunately, the oddest thing about this pie is the filling/crust combo.  While ginger seems like a great fit for lime, the cookie's heavy molasses flavor is an odd third wheel that can't be easily ignored.

If I make this pie again, a graham cracker crust would be a safer pairing.  But don't feel bad for that gingersnap crust because I do think it would go great with last week's custard pie.

#16: Custard Pie

So this week I wanted to tackle something simple, which lead me to my Betty Crocker Cookbook where I found this Custard Pie recipe.

What I thought was most wonderful about this recipe was the part that said "place pastry-lined pie plate on oven rack; pour in filling."  It seemed like an odd request but as soon as I did it became so obvious.  While it wasn't specifically called out, this small action was a grief saver.  The filling went to the very edge of the crust and didn't leave a lot of wiggle room to transport the pie from counter to oven.  However, by filling the pie on the oven rack, the pie only had to be moved inches rather than feet.  BRILLIANT!

The pie itself was also a great pie...super easy and good.  But the biggest treat was that small piece of advice.

#15: Strawberry Double Crust Pie

I still have strawberries on the brain.  This time, though, I wanted a cooked pie.  So I found this recipe from Magnolia Bakery.

The odd thing about any pie that features red fruit...when it comes out of the oven, it looks like it's been stabbed -- which I guess would make this a great pie for a Halloween party.

My sweet tooth thought this pie could be sweeter.  But everyone else I spoke to (including my very honest husband) said it was perfect.

So I decided to top the pie with whipped cream.  This added sweetness to the pie to meet my liking.  Plus, it hid what looked like bleeding stab wounds leaking from the top of the pie.  BONUS!

#14: Fresh Strawberry Pie

So strawberries are finally in season and...more importantly...on sale!

I figured the best was to celebrate strawberries was to make a fresh strawberry pie and to do that I went with a recipe from America's Test Kitchen.

However, I opted to use a graham cracker crust for two reasons -- 1) I wanted to add a little sweetness to the pie and 2) I wanted to add a little crunch with each bite.  The graham cracker crust seemed like the best way to make this happen.

As for execution, this was a pretty fail-proof recipe.  I even let me 4 year-old help...which is a HUGE sign.  :o)

The results were awesome.  Yes, this pie is hard to plate but the flavor is over the top and a dollop of whipped cream hides all flaws.

#13: Mango Chili Pie

The initial inspiration for this pie were the really nice mangoes that were on sale at the market.  Had I realized that this would be ''lucky'' pie number thirteen...I might have gone with a pie that was less of a gamble.  :o)

When I got home with my mangoes, I googled ''mango pie'' and discovered that mango pie tastes a lot like peach pie, which I love but I wanted a pie that would be distinct from the one that I would later make when peaches are in season.

With this in mind, I knew I had to stay away from cinnamon.  But would removing the spice be enough?

That's when I started to look for just plain mango recipes, which reminded of a simple mango street food – fresh mango spears sprinkled with lime juice, salt, and chili powder – which lead me to the Mango Chili Pie.

So I took an apple pie recipe and reduced the sugar since mangoes didn't seem to need as much.  Then I replace the lemon juice with lime and swapped the spices for a combination of chili powder, cayenne pepper, and salt (to enhance flavor, not to add saltiness).

The end result still reminded me of peach but it had a nice heat that finished each bite but didn't burn your mouth.

Next time, I'll see if this can go a bit more sour – less or no sugar?  I'm also wondering if I use a sweeter crust and then sprinkle salt on top rather rather than sugar just to give each bite a bit of pop.

#12: Spinach and Ham Pie

Believe it or not, after about 3 months of pies...I'm starting to crave something different. So yes, this week, I have a savory pie for you -- Spinach and Ham Pie.

I began my search by googling "ham pie".  (How could anyone go wrong with a search like that?)  This lead me to a recipe from Martha Stewart and figured it would solve two problems -- satiate my savory pie craving and work as my contribution to our family Easter dinner.

The first time I did this recipe, I followed it exactly (sort of), which included using the food processor to make the crust.  <GASP!>  I know.  However, I was very careful to not over-process the dough.  So even though they said to process until a dough ball formed, I stopped short of that and brought it all together in a separate bowl.

The dough came out fine, I could still see chunks of butter/cheese it the dough disks that I wrapped to chill.  But I think, if you're not paying attention, it's probably really easy to let this go too far.  So the second time I made this pie (for Easter), I did it by hand...no problemo.


Another thing I liked about this recipe is that it uses spinach, which is in season right now.  However, with all the washing and de-stemming and cooking and chopping and squeezing...it soon became quick clear.  I should have used frozen, chopped spinach to cut the process in half.  Comparing my first (fresh spinach) and second pies (frozen), you can't taste the difference.

No matter what kind of spinach you use, though, you have to squeeze out as much liquid as possible.  Yes, you end up with something that looks like a road apple.  But if you skip on this step..even in the slightest, you will have a soggy bottom crust.  Period.  (Worried about squeezing out all the nutrients?  Save it and put it in a smoothie or something.  Just don't leave it in your pie.)

The end result?  Wonderful.  The original recipe says it makes 8 servings but when I served it for Easter, I doubled it so for those who (like me) were happy to combine a bit of pie and ham to make the perfect bite.  Plus, where were extra slices for those who (like my husband) could easily just eat the pie all on its own.