Cottage Cheese Pie - Week 43

Family traditions are shared with others by sharing recipes.

After my family and friends found out about my pie challenge, I received phone calls, mail, and messages encouraging me or giving me new ideas.  Interestingly within a matter of a couple of weeks, I had two separate ladies tell me about their family's favorite pies. It was the cottage cheese pie. I honestly don't recall ever having a slice of this pie even though I knew  these families well growing up.

As a child, I spent a lot of time at my neighbor's home. In fact my neighbor Hap had nicknamed me "Breezy" because I breezed in and out. I would visit them several times during a typical summer day. I knew Esther's kitchen well. Actually, I knew where she kept the cake pan and would help myself. Once I slipped up, and helped myself while my mom was visiting at the same time. My mom was surprised that my manners were so poor that I commonly helped myself to a slice of cake or an oatmeal raisin cookie. Hap and Esther were more than just neighbors, they were like family; so Esther told my mom that it was alright that I helped myself, and I did it all the time. To this day, Esther reminds my mom of how comfortable I was at her house, and gives a hearty laugh when she recalls how embarrassed my mom was.

So, I was surprised to hear that this was one of Esther's pies, and I never remembered having a slice (I must have been too busy eating cake and cookies).

Another family friend told me about this recipe that her grandma made. Her grandma had commonly brought pies to the monthly church potluck, but I can't recall this pie.

When I began seeking the recipe, I found it in the Stuttgart cookbook submitted by another grandma of another friend. This pie definitely slipped by in my youth, but now I have made it. It must be a regional pie of sorts because while I enjoyed it, it was different than what I can ever recall having.

Now, to the recipe. The recipe didn't list a quantity of raisins or cinnamon; so add what you are comfortable with. I knew my son would prefer less raisins; so I only used a small box; I think a larger quantity would be better.

  

Ingredients:
1 bottom pastry shell
2 eggs, beaten
2 T. flour
¾ cups sugar
1 (5oz) small can evaporated milk
1-1/2 cups cottage cheese
Raisins
Cinnamon



Directions:
Mix together eggs, flour, sugar, evaporated milk, and cottage cheese. Sprinkle raisins and a little cinnamon on top. Bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes or until knife placed in center comes out clean. 

Can you think of a recipe that you commonly fix 

that many of your family and friends don't know about?

It may be the time to share and make new memories.

Chocolate Cream Pie - Week 42

The most basic of pies sometimes exposes the cook.

It's been a long year of cooking, baking, documenting, and eating pie.  Week 42 was a point where I found myself in over my head. I did fix the pie, but I took it to a potluck and didn't get a finished picture of it. Honestly, it didn't turn out very well. I had found myself trying to do too many things all at once and it had lumps in the filling. It had a good taste, but it was kind of embarrassing that after all of that pie practice that it didn't turn out.  

Crazy thing is, earlier in the year; I had made a perfect chocolate meringue pie that turned out beautiful. I hadn't taken pictures of it at that time because it wasn't on my schedule yet. 

Anyways, there is proof I made it. I have pictures to document the beginning stages, but it didn't get a final picture.

Most recipes are similar, except that some use flour, and others use corn starch. I've had both, and I can taste the difference, but I can't choose a favorite.  This recipe includes both options.

Ingredients:

1 baked pastry shell

1-1/2 cup sugar

¼ cup cornstarch or ½ cup flour

¼ cup cocoa powder

½ t. salt

3 cups milk

4 egg yolks

1 T. butter

1-1/2 t. vanilla

(4 egg white meringue)

Directions:

In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch(or flour), cocoa, and salt. Gradually stir in milk. Cook and stir constantly over medium-high heat till mixture is thickened and bubbly.  Reduce heat; cook and stir for 2 more minutes. Pour part of hot mixture slowly onto egg yolks, stirring constantly. Pour back into hot mixture. Cook and stir almost constantly for 2 more minutes.

Remove from heat. Stir in butter and vanilla. Pour the hot filling into baked shell. Spread meringue over hot filling. Seal to edge. Bake in a 350 oven for 12 to 15 minutes.

Cool.

If you prefer, skip the meringue and top with whipped cream. 

A good friend of mine did take a picture of her chocolate cream pie. And it turned out beautiful; so I'm going to share her picture instead. She posted the picture on Facebook, and her family responded that the pie looked like the ones her grandma had made.  And another responded that she had her grandma and mom's talent.

My friend Annette's pie... she is a great cook!

Many of us learned lessons from our grandma's kitchen and will potentially train our own grandchildren. Do you have a favorite from your grandma's kitchen that you want to share with your family? 

Rhubarb Pie - Week 19

Rhubarb Pie... the sign that summer is close.

 Rhubarb is a prized crop in Kansas as families have passed the root from family garden to family garden. And because of our wild temperatures, the crop is not always a guarantee. It has to be cool enough to keep it from burning up, but warm enough to keep it from freezing. 

There are usually favorite family recipes that are cherished by families. However, that doesn't mean there is success in recreating the rhubarb treat. My husband's Grandma was well-known for her rhubarb rolls (like a cinnamon roll). I remember using her recipe and spending hours kneading the dough, cutting the rhubarb, raising the dough, baking, and glazing only to hear "It's just not like Grandma's". 

Many times, the combination of strawberries and rhubarb are a popular blend in a pie. However, I chose to fix the rhubarb straight up. Many recipes also call for red food coloring to change the color of the rhubarb that is commonly grown in Kansas gardens because you use the whole stalk, not just the red part. The leaves are known to be poisonous.

I was fortunate to be able to fix my pie this week with my son that was visiting on his summer break. I knew that this would be a pie that he would appreciate with the tart filling.

Michael and I getting ready to make rhubarb goodness!

Ingredients:

1 Double Crust Pastry

4 cups chopped rhubarb

1 cup sugar + 1 T.

6 T. flour

Direction:

Place rhubarb in bottom pastry. Sprinkle sugar and flour over rhubarb.

Cover with top crust and place vent holes and sprinkle 1 T. sugar over top. 

Bake 15 minutes at 450 degrees.

Reduce oven to 350 degrees and bake for 40-45 minutes.

But can he survive making pie with his mom?

Our pie before it went into the oven...
Unfortunately we had a crust crisis,
but we just pieced it together as nice as we could.
It happens!

But it still tasted great!

I know how difficult it might be to find the fresh rhubarb, 

so I scoped out the frozen rhubarb from Dillons:

During piesearch, I had found a recipe for Rhubarb Pie Martini that required "rhubarb syrup". So I made up a batch of the sticky syrup.

The drink was okay, I think I'll use the rest of my syrup for ice cream instead...

What is your favorite rhubarb memory?

I will have to say my favorite rhubarb memory will have to be 

helping my son make his first pie (hopefully not his last).

Grandma's Hershey Chocolate Pie - Week 16

Grandmas always makes the best food!

This recipe came from my husband's family recipes. Unfortunately, I never had a chance to eat this particular dish from his Grandma. However, I will never forget her barbecue chicken, homemade ice cream and her endless supply of treats. 

Believe it or not, years before I met my husband, I actually visited her home as a child with my family and remember that she had treats ready to welcome her guests.  She made hot cocoa that was so thick and rich that you could imagine that the spoon could stand up on its own.

Ingredients:

1 graham cracker crust

4.5 oz Hershey chocolate bar

1/3 cup milk

20 large marshmallows

1 cup whipping cream

3 T. powdered sugar

1 t. vanilla

Chocolate!!

Directions:

Melt chocolate, milk, and marshmallows over medium heat. Spread over crust, and cool. Whip whipping cream until soft peaks. Whip powdered sugar and vanilla in the whipped cream. Spread over chocolate filling. Refrigerate until serving.

Whipping Cream!

I hope you enjoy this rich chocolatey dessert that only could come out of a grandma's recipe box.

Impossible Pie - Week 14

Grandma says,

"This is quick and easy. Thought you 2 might like this. I use vanilla & nutmeg to my taste."

This pie is originally from the 70s when Bisquick popularized the mysterious way that you could mix all ingredients together and pour into a pie plate, bake and then it would impossibly form its own crust. The company printed the recipe on boxes of their mix with various modifications to simplify baking, and brand loyalty. Bisquick still promotes these pie recipes, but changed the titles to "Impossibly Easy..."; you can find their recipes on their website. 

In all actuality though, baking mix is not actually needed and you can create the same effect with flour. I have yet to try it with their other impossible recipes, but this one works fine with just flour. This recipe was another one of my Grandma's favorites, so I actually fixed this on her 94th birthday this past week. I wish I lived closer, and I would haven taken her a piece of birthday pie! 

Here is her recipe exactly like she wrote it for me 20+ years ago when I was a newlywed. By the way, scant means barely or almost.


Ingredients:
4 Eggs
1 cup Sugar (scant)
1/2 cup Flour
1/2 stick Oleo
2 cups Milk
1 cup Coconut (scant)
1 tsp Vanilla
Nutmeg, to taste
Cinnamon, to taste






Directions:
Melt Oleo. Put all ingredients together and mix well. Pour into large greased pie pan and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

This is a super-easy quick treat. However, my family missed the crust.  I actually know people that don't care for "all that crust"; so this would be great for them.

I am excited to try some of the variations of the Impossible Pies.  Do you have a favorite?