Farmer's Market Peach Pie

As summer swelters and the heat fogs our good judgment, delirium giving way to thoughts of snow banks and ice angels, we must remember the produce! That's right the produce. Because summer is nothing if not ripe with the sweet nectar of farmers market peaches, plump cherries, and brilliant berries. For which we crank up our air conditioning in order to bear the fact that we must bake. And bake we will because all the heat and sweat and delirium will be worth every drop of fresh farmers market pie!

You don't believe me?


Well when winter comes around and all you have are syrupy sweet canned peaches you'll dream of summer breezes and fresh peach pie...so stick out the sticky weather and run through the sprinkler before you bake up this little piece of pie heaven.


Farmer's Market Peach Pie
(Makes One Pie)

Ingredients:
8 to 10 fresh farmer's market peaches (Pitted and sliced. Feel free to leave the skins on. I did.)
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1/4 cup butter
2 tbsp of peach or apricot jelly
1 recipe of pate brisee (pie dough)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix flour, sugar, and butter in a bowl to the crumb stage.
3. Roll out and place one disc of pie dough into the bottom of a 9-inch pie plate.
4. Line bottom of pie plate with peaches. Then sprinkle the butter crumb mixture onto the peaches. Line with more peaches, then crumb mixture, and continue in this fashion till all have been added.
5. Roll out second disk of pie dough and cover the top of the pie. Be sure to cut slits into the dough to provide steam ventilation. Or you could do a lattice crust. Whatever floats your boat.
6. Bake pie at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.
7. Allow pie to cool and glaze with some peach or apricot jelly and a sprinkle of raw sugar.
8. Eat!


Note: You can also add other fruit to this pie as well. I also made a second pie with peaches and fresh farmers market strawberries. Mmmmmm good. Have fun!!


A special peachy thanks to Russell Gearhart Photography for the mouth watering photographs!

4th of July Cake!

Happy Birthday America!!

I hope you all celebrated freedom with grilled meat, parade candy, and explosions in the sky! I spent the day elbow deep in frosting making my first 4-tier cake! It was a battle between man and gravity as I attempted to make sure everything was bigger and taller - as it should be - this is America!


And to my stacking glee, gravity did not get the best of me, and I successfully surmounted these four tiers of butter cream bliss. This was actually a test run, as I will be making a 4-tier cake for a family member's wedding in August. So never fear, bride-to-be, your cake will be tall and tasty! Though I may need to do a few more butter cream smoothing exercises before the big day.


I also want to thank my friends, students, and office workers of friends - who all kindly ate these four-tiers of cake-y goodness. Because cake should not be wasted! And thanks (as always) to Russell Gearhart Photography for the fantastic images!

Bring on the cake America!!!