Pie Class Lesson 1: Decorative Pies

Have you ever seen those pictures of beautiful pies in Taste of Home magazines, ones with rows of braided edges, and beautiful lattices? You think to yourself, I am going to make that. Then, when the pie is finally out of the oven, it ends up looking like this:

Well, never fear- the Pie Queen is here! I  love making pies, especially decorative ones for special occasions. Within just a few lessons, you can have your pies looking like this: 

For the filling, use your favorite fruit filling. I tossed five cups of apples in 1/4 c sugar, 1 TBSP  flour, and 1 tsp cinnamon. 

 If you are one of those people that uses the refrigerator pie crusts, I beg you to try something new.  Those pie crusts are tough, not flaky, and overall disgusting. Only real homemade pie crust will be made in Pie Class. You will need a double-double pie crust recipe. I'll put the quantities below.

Put the flour in a bowl. Using a pastry cutter, cut in half the Crisco or vegetable shortening until there are marble-sized lumps. Cut in the other half, until there are pea-sized lumps. Add ice water, two tablespoons at a time, until the crust is the right consistency. It should hold together and not crumble when it is flattened, but it should not be too sticky.  Now split it up in the following amounts:

In half.

Wrap one half in plastic wrap and put it in the fridge. 

Divide the other half into two, and put one in the fridge. 

Now, you are ready to roll out your bottom crust. Between two pieces of waxed paper, roll it out to 1/8" thick and 1" wider than your pie plate. Place in pie plate, and trim. Fill with your fruit filling. 

Now get the larger amount of crust still in the fridge, and roll it out. 

Cut eight 1" strips out of this crust, making sure they are long enough to reach across the pie plate. 

Weave your strips by laying four strips one way, then alternating over-under in the opposite direction with the other four strips. 

To calculate the needed size of the braid, take the diameter of the pie plate (in my case, 9-inch) and multiply it by 3.14. I needed about 29-inches of braid. Cut 1/2 inch strips, and braid. When you need to join new strips onto old ones, leave about 2 inches of length on the old ones. Pinch together, then flatten out. Continue braiding. Lay around the crimp on your pie plate. 

Bake according to the directions on the filling recipe. 

Here is the finished pie!

Pie crust recipe:

4 C. flour

1 3/4 C. Crisco or Vegetable Shortening

2 tsp. salt

8-10 TBSP ice water