Snow is falling. Snow will keep falling. Then we’ll get sleet. We’re housebound and barnbound and restless. What to do? Make pie. Not just any pie. I want pie that takes me out of this deep freeze. I want summer.
I keep homemade pie crusts, rolled out into 12-inch circles, tightly wrapped, in my freezer. I get out two. One breaks. No problem. I’ll use that for the top crust. You’ll see.
I pull out a bag of peaches. Last summer I bought a bushel of seconds – tree-ripened, local peaches that had a blemish here or there so the farmer sold them for very little at the end of the farmer’s market. I peeled and sliced the peaches, froze them individually on a cookie sheet and then bagged them. That’s the trick to having individual peach slices and not one huge block. I vacuum packed them, and into the freezer they went.
I hope you’re not expecting a recipe. This is the sort of pie I throw together. But I’ll tell you what I do.
Preheat the oven to 350º F. Let the pie crust defrost enough so that it can be put into a ceramic pie plate.
Toss the frozen peaches with some brown sugar, instant tapioca (to soak up the juices) and some minced crystallized ginger (optional, but ginger is so good in this pie – it brightens it up.) Put the pie filling in the pie plate. Take the broken crust and cut decorative circles with a cookie cutter and place on top.
Bake for about 50 minutes until bubbly and you’ll have summer in winter.
Oh my, what a beautiful pie! I can almost smell it. We’re under a pile of snow here too, so I’ve been making chicken & noodles, chicken salad, etc. I’m amazed by the hen cam and how buried your place is! We’re praying for an early spring. Stay safe!
The pie looks delicious! I just put banana bread in the oven. I expect power to go out eventually today because of the snow we are getting and living in rural Maine…it does happen. I also made yesterday a corn chowder, boiled eggs for sandwiches and cooked a pot of potatoes to fry them with hotdogs should the power go out.. We can use a Coleman stove out on our porch with the window ajar a crack ….so we can at least eat in power outages.
It looks like you have a good amount of snow. Won’t you be pleased to see spring as much as I will.
~Celia~
Hi Mary and Celia – I should be, like you, cooking for a possible power outage, but I’m in denial.
Excellent idea. I think I’ll be doing that next summer!
Terry,
This really brightened my morning. I am in my office watching the sleet come down feeling mired in Winter. Your goats and blog always cheer my up! I just wish I had some peaches…..
Well, Phil (the groundhog) said it will be an early spring. Let’s see if he is right! The pie looks AMAZING! YUM!!!!!!
Donna, have you ever met a woodchuck? To put it kindly, not the brightest bulb. Even if Phil is right – we’ll have warm weather and there will still be snow on the ground! It’s currently all being frozen solid into place with sleet. Sigh.
Terry..you made me laugh out loud!!!!! No I haven’t…would love to…. but when they haul that big fat rodent guy out I can’t help but chuckle. BTW…I need to do some research..what is the ratio of him being right to being wrong? I am saving you a sunny place on my patio with an adult beverage….
You just made me hungry, a trip to the vending machine…..
NO, not the vending machine. Step back. Get real food.
What a breath of fresh air just to look at that gorgeous pie. ( Just finished shoveling my balcony for the 4th time in two days.) I definitely have to have a word with the Easter Bunny about more freezer space.
Good peach pie tip to remember for next summer, when we are awash in all that yummy fruit. Today I am ready to try a mess of beets, “a la Terry” and, while it is really cold I’ll defrost the freezer in the basement (all of the food will stay firmly frozen in the garage). And yes, pray that the electricity holds.
I love your blog because there is always something interesting. I love pie, and I love beets, and I love animals. I was so pleased to read your method of preparing fresh beets, as my only attempt was sort of a failure. I will try again after seeing your post. You are extremely courageous to appear “publicly” in your chicken/braids chapeau! Michele
Thanks, Michele! BTW, I can’t seem to find that hat…I wonder if one of my sons “accidentally” misplaced it.
That pie looks good and reminds me that there’s a big bag of plums in the freezer I could be using. By the way, wish Candy Kung hei fat choi for tomorrow…it’s her year this year!
Wendy, it does seem to be her year. While everyone is grumping about the weather, she is delighted.
That pie looks delicious. The peaches were sweet this summer too. I think I need to ask for a vacuum sealer for my birthday in spring. It would be nice to have summer fruit and vegetables all winter.