Friday is Pieday!!

Hello friends, it's Friday again...time for pie! I'm getting ready for Spring and Summer and thinking about fresh seasonal fruits and veggies. Our lovely Farmers Market here in Warrenton will soon be open on Saturdays and I am looking forward to browsing the stalls and enjoying all the wares the locals have to offer. In celebration of the fruits we look forward to, we will be baking a Raspberry pie today. You might want to stop now and go to the store to purchase some vanilla ice cream.... you'll be needing it later.

Ok..for our Raspberry Pie you will need :

1. 6-8 cups of frozen or fresh raspberries (depending on pie pan size)

2. 1 cup granulated sugar

3. 4 Tbl cornstarch or 3 Tbl tapioca either work fine. If using all frozen berries, increase by 1 Tbl

4. 1 Tbl orange juice

5. 2 Tbl raspberry powder gelatin (boost color & flavor) optional

6. 1 egg white slightly beaten( to brush on crust)

I used a mix of fresh and frozen for my pie (all fresh would break the bank..not in season yet)

Prepare your pie crust and divide into two balls, one slightly larger than the other. The larger one goes on the top of the pie. Mix the berries, sugar, cornstarch and juice in a large bowl. Ok ..I have to confess, I was so enthralled with an Eastern Bluebird right outside my kitchen window (starting a nest in my birdbox) that I forgot to take a picture of the fruit mixture.  So close your eyes and imagine a bowl of berries, sugar and juice all mixed together...now open your eyes and read on.

With the leftover pie dough, cut out little shapes..I made stars. After dotting the berries with dabs of butter, roll the top crust over your pie..tuck and crimp. Make a few slits for steam release and using the egg white, brush the top and edges of the pie. Brush some egg white on the back of the stars to adhere them to the crust and sprinkle the top with sugar.

Bake in a 425 degree oven for 15 minutes then reduce temp to 375 and bake about 25 more minutes or until golden and bubbly. Cover edges if needed to prevent over browning.

Here she is all golden and flakey.

I told you that vanilla ice cream would come in handy...go get it...now..I'll wait for you.

You came back just in time..I was just about to dig in and yes ..this is what I had for breakfast. Hey..the piece was cut and I had to do something with it! I hope you give Raspberry Pie a place at your dessert table this summer. As a health note..I have used Splenda in my fruit pies and had excellent results, so those of you with sugar concerns..you can have pie too!

Until next time..be kind and stay creative and eat pie! Next week is a great savory pie, so come back.