The Greeks invented pie crust, the Romans filled them with cheese, the Brits filled them with pigeons, and America made them sweet.
Buongiorno amici:
Pie in American cuisine has roots in English cuisine and has evolved over centuries to adapt to American cultural tastes and ingredients. The creation of flaky pie crust shortened with lard is credited to American innovation. {1}
Here a recipe kindly offered by Louise Gruel, Algonquin, IL. She uses a store-bough pie shell, but you can make one yourself. Check the one by Martha Stewart. It’s effortless and trouble-free.
Ingredients:
One cup of sour cream
One cup of sugar
One tablespoon of cornstarch
Two egg yolk 1/2 teaspoon of cloves
1 cup of dark raisins
One unbaked 8-inch pie shell
Two egg whites
1/4 cup of sugar
Procedure
Combine sour cream, 1 cup of sugar, cornstarch, egg yolks, cloves, and raisins in a medium-size mixing bowl. Mix well and pour into the pie shell—Bake at 350F for 40 to 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool.
Beat egg whites until foamy in a cold metal bowl. Gradually beat in 1/4 cup of sugar, and continue to mix until you achieve stiff peaks. Spread the meringue over the top of the pie, filling the edges well—Bake for additional 15 minutes, or until golden brown on top.
Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote in her 1869 novel Oldtown Folks, based on recollections of her childhood, that the variety of pies created by American housewives “attested the boundless fertility of the feminine mind.”
Thanks for reading. Eat safe and wear a mask! Ciao Chef W
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