Old Fashioned Southern Pies

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I grew up in New England, but my family on both sides is Southern (Georgia and South Carolina).

I was consequently familiar with the Southern dessert known as Chess Pie; it's single-crust egg-custard based pie that is traditionally thickened with a little corn meal.

I even knew about Buttermilk Pie, another egg-custard single-crust pie that uses buttermilk and lemon juice (not quite as sweet as Chess pie but just as good). These two pies are sometimes lumped together, but Chess Pie and Buttermilk Pie are not the same.

Today I learned about Vinegar Pie, another egg-custard single crust Southern Pie that uses vinegar.

Vinegar, lemon juice, buttermilk all serve to help the eggs and sugar curdle and become custard, so there's a common chemistry.

I'm going to try making a Vinegar Pie; assuming I can spare the eggs.

Anyone else had or made these?
 

RedRajah

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My 2 usual pies for Thanksgiving were a pumpkin chiffon pie with a gingersnap crust -- and a lemon chess pie. :)
 

frimble3

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I apologise for being a very-northerner, and full of stereotypes and biases, but when I read your thread title, the first thing I thought of was 'Possum?'

Vinegar pie sounds interesting, I imagine it's sweet, with a bit of a bite to it?
 

Maryn

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How did that vinegar pie turn out? I love the name of this one especially; it doesn't sound like it will be edible, much less tasty.
 

Maryn

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Uh-oh. I was dutifully making copies of the linked recipes when I found the Buttermilk Pie linked to a pie crust recipe. Since I have yet to make a pie crust with adequate results, I went to it, but there appears to be a typo.

Can someone who makes pie crust tell me how to correct the line where the amount of shortening says 3= cold shortening, cubed?

Thanks in advance.

Maryn, who might just make a pie
 

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Uh-oh. I was dutifully making copies of the linked recipes when I found the Buttermilk Pie linked to a pie crust recipe. Since I have yet to make a pie crust with adequate results, I went to it, but there appears to be a typo.

Can someone who makes pie crust tell me how to correct the line where the amount of shortening says 3= cold shortening, cubed?

Thanks in advance.

Maryn, who might just make a pie

The video uses what looks like two sticks of butter or margarine.

But the video doesn't seem to match the ingredients list so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
 
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Anne_B

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Maryn, any single-crust pie recipe should work just fine. You could even (and I don't believe I'm saying this but desperate times..) buy a premade one if it's stressing you out. The filling's the thing when you're first starting out.


Here's a very helpful blog post from King Arthur flour that I look at every year when I have to make crusts for the two pumpkin pies that are required to be able to attend Thanksgiving dinner:
https://www.kingarthurflour.com/blog/2014/06/18/flaky-tender-pie-crust

Also, this KAF video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAmbGRqzAKE
 

Maryn

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Okay, I may not read Moby Dick while I'm self-isolating (or at any other time), but perhaps I'll master pie crusts! Yeah, it could happen...

Anne, if it's not too nosy, where in Wisconsin? I'm recently transplanted there and I like it.

Maryn, overlooking a quarry
 

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On pie crust ( I typed pie curst at first)—These are things that are likely to be problematic, given that you measure and follow the recipe:

1. You handle the dough too much before you refrigerate it. You just want the stuff to stick together enough to make a fairly coherent lump. Don't knead it or mess with it more than you must once it gets to the point of being a solid lump (which you may cut in half to produce two). It may have some crumbly bits; that's ok. Just wrap the lump and refrigerate it.

2. Don't try to work with the dough to roll it out if it isn't chilled.

3. You can even after it's a lump and you've chilled it adjust it with a tiny bit more water (COLD water) and/or flour.

You want I should post some other pastry/pie crust recipes?

And Pillsbury premade crusts fit in a freezer really nicely.
 

Ari Meermans

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I don't consider myself a piecrust expert by any stretch of the imagination but I have made a lot of pies over the past 55 or so years.

This is how I was taught to make pie dough—with one small exception*— and I consider it pretty much the piecrust-making bible: The Science of Pie: 7 Pie Crust Myths That Need To Go Away. ymmv

*That "small exception" being I was taught to use ice-cold water and that makes a very nice crust, everything else in the article being equal. BUT—you know Ari, she always has a "but"—replacing the cold water with ice-cold vodka DOES make a difference in tenderness. I keep some vodka in the freezer door for just this purpose.
 
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Maryn

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I'll have you folks know I'm inching toward attempting this, even though I'm not sure I have what I'd need to make a filling.

But the virus's presence here remains fairly low and our grocery stores are pretty well stocked. Next trip, probably.

Maryn, thinking cherry pie a la mode
 

Ol' Fashioned Girl

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Hi, y'all! I come in search of a memory from Ol' Boy's aunt's past: old fashioned Lemon Pie. I've searched the internet over and tried all the ones I could find that even remotely resembled what I'm looking for and none fit the bill. Aunt Ann remembers 'very, very thin slices of lemon; sugar; eggs in homemade crust' that her mama used to make. Anyone have an old family recipe that might make Ann's day?
 

Ari Meermans

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OFG, see if this is what you're looking for: Shaker Lemon Pie.

ETA: Sorry, meant to add that if this recipe doesn't quite cut it for ya, search for Shaker Lemon Pie; there are several variations of Shaker Lemon Pie that use macerated thin lemon slices.
 
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Stytch

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There's a fantastic restaurant in this little town in SC, Webster Manor in Mullins, SC, that is the first and only place I've seen buttermilk pie in the wild. I don't get there often, (especially these days) but that freaking pie is a thing I look forward to the most. It's an odd taste to describe, probably pretty unhealthy, but SO.FREAKING.GOOD.
 

Layla Nahar

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Vinegar pie? (wow). Let us know

Maryn, tips I got for making pie crust

Meta tip - keep everything cold (I've also heard the vodka from the freezer tip. I put ice cubes in my water, and keep it in the fridge while I'm cutting the fat/flour. I've even heard it advised to keep the bowl full of flour in the freezer for a bit before you start)

1) cut up your butter into "pea sized" cubes - then freeze it before cutting it in with the flour
2) "Don't overwork the dough"
 

kikazaru

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Re the pie crust. I used to always make mine from scratch, but I've gotten lazy so I buy it and also because when I make pie crust, I use the whole block of lard (yep lard) and it makes 6 crusts and I just don't like to store the dough for the length of time it takes for me to make all those pies. My hips don't need them and for some reason my family prefers cake so I don't make them a lot. However, a trick to get your lard/butter/shortening incorporated is to freeze the brick of lard or butter, and then grate it on a hand grater.

My mother used to make Flapper Pie, a pie which originated in the Canadian Prairies. It doesn't seem to be well known now which is a shame because it's wonderful. It's basically a soft custard pie in a graham cracker crust with a merengue topping - really delicious.
https://www.thekitchenmagpie.com/flapper-pie-the-lost-prairie-pie/