Improvised Pies

Improvised Pies

Pies are as varied as the imaginations of their makers. With fillings that include fruit, sweet custards or ice creams, pies make great after-meal desserts and snacks.

Despite their versatility, many cooks shy away from pies because of the daunting challenge posed by the piecrust. Creating a perfectly flaky, tender crust is part science and part art and takes a lot of practice. So if your crust turns out to be the consistency of shoe leather, buy one ready-made. Today’s varieties come packaged in an aluminum pan or folded or rolled so that you can unfurl them into your own pie pan and perhaps fool your diners into believing you made your own crust.

Mary Bishop, of North Platte, Neb., sent us her recipe for Crazy Cappuccino Pie. Proving that pies are ready ground for experimentation, Bishop says, "When a friend introduced me to Pennsylvania Shoofly Pie, I liked it and decided to create some variations. This one has been a hit with all who have tried it."

Another experimental pie maker, Christine Mauch of American Falls, Idaho, submitted her recipe for Apple Dumpling Pie. "My mother loved to bake. She baked love into her delicious apple dumplings, so I created a pie that combines her filling with an easy-to-make, no-roll pie crust from my sister," she explains.

As always, American Profile looks forward to receiving—and publishing—your favorite recipes each week, and sharing them with our millions of readers across the nation.

Crazy Cappuccino Pie - Mary Bishop, North Platte, Neb.

1 9-inch unbaked piecrust

Filling:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons melted butter
• 1 cup very strong hot coffee
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup chocolate syrup
• 1/2 cup corn syrup
• 1 egg, beaten

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine flour, brown sugar and butter. Mix well. Set aside 1/2 cup of this mixture. Mix together 1/4 cup of coffee with baking soda. In a separate bowl, combine chocolate syrup, corn syrup and egg. Add remaining 3/4 cup of coffee and soda mixture and mix well. Add crumb mixture (excluding the 1/2 cup reserved) and mix well. Pour into piecrust. Sprinkle top with reserved crumbs. Cover loosely with foil. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until center is done. Cool. If desired, flavor 2 cups of whipped topping with 1 teaspoon instant coffee crystals dissolved in 1 teaspoon hot water. Serve each slice with plain or flavored whipped topping.

Apple Dumpling Pie - Christine Mauch, American Falls, Idaho

Crust:

• 1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 and 1/2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup cooking oil
• 2 tablespoons milk

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Combine flour, sugar, salt, oil and milk. Press into an 8-inch deep-dish pie pan.

Filling:

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 8 cups thinly sliced, peeled, tart baking
• apples (about 7 apples)
• 3 tablespoons butter or margarine

Toss apples in sugar and flour. Place in piecrust and dot with the butter.

Topping:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup butter

Combine flour and sugar, then cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Spread evenly over apples. Cover pie lightly with aluminum foil and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Remove foil for the last 15 minutes of baking.

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