Mary at the Farm and Book of Recipes Compiled during Her Visit Part 60

"PEBBLE DASH" OR SHOO-FLY PIE

Aunt Sarah made these to perfection and called them "Pebble Dash" pie.

They are not really pies, they resemble cakes, but having a crust we will cla.s.s them with pies. She lined three small sized pie-tins with rich pie crust. For the crumbs she placed in a bowl 3 cups of flour, 1 cup brown sugar and 3/4 cup of b.u.t.ter and lard, mixed and rubbed all together with the hands, not smooth, but in small rivels. For the liquid part she used 1 cup baking mola.s.ses, 1 cup hot water, 1 teaspoonful baking soda dissolved in a few drops of vinegar and stirred this into the mola.s.ses and water. She divided the liquid among the three pans, putting one-third in each crust, over which she sprinkled the crumbs. Bake one-half hour in a moderate oven. These have the appearance of mola.s.ses cakes when baked.

VANILLA CRUMB "CRUSTS"

Cook together a short time 1/2 cup mola.s.ses, 1 egg, 1 tablespoonful flour, 1 cup sugar, 2 cups cold water. Moisten the flour with a little cold water before adding to the other ingredients. When cooled add 1 teaspoonful of vanilla. Pour this mixture in the bottom of each of four common sized pie-tins, lined with pastry, and sprinkle over the following crumbs:

THE CRUMBS (FOR VANILLA CRUMB CRUSTS).

Two cups flour, 1/2 cup b.u.t.ter and lard, mixed, 1/2 teaspoonful soda and 1 cup sugar, rubbed together with the hands to form crumbs.

Scatter these crumbs over the four pies.

These are not thick pies, but simply what the recipe calls them--vanilla "crusts."

"KASHA KUCHEN" OR CHERRY CAKE

Aunt Sarah sometimes filled the bottom crusts of two small pies (either cheese pie or plain custard) with a layer of fresh cherries and poured the custard over the top of the cherries and baked same as a plain custard pie.

Aunt Sarah might be called extravagant by some, but she always made egg desserts when eggs were cheap and plentiful, in the Spring. In Winter she baked pies and puddings in which a fewer number of eggs were used and subst.i.tuted canned and dried fruits for fresh ones. In summer she used fresh fruit when in season, ice cream and sherbets.

She never indulged in high-priced, unseasonable fruits--thought it an extravagance for one to do so, and taught Mary "a wise expenditure in time means wealth."

For banana custard pie she subst.i.tuted sliced banana for cherries on top of pie.

"RIVEL KUCHEN"

Place in a bowl 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup sugar (good measure), 1/2 cup b.u.t.ter and lard, or all b.u.t.ter is better (scant measure). Some like a little grating of nutmeg, especially if part lard is used. Mix or crumb the ingredients well together with the hands to form small lumps, or rivels. Line pie-tins with a rich pastry crust and strew the rivels thickly over and bake in a quick oven. A couple tablespoons of mola.s.ses spread over the crumbs is liked by some. This is a favorite pie or cake of many Pennsylvania Germans.

AUNT SARAH'S LEMON MERINGUE

Two cups of water, 1-1/2 cups of sugar, 2 rounding tablespoonfuls of corn starch, 4 eggs, 1 tablespoonful of b.u.t.ter, 2 small lemons. Mix the water, sugar and corn starch dissolved in a little cold water, pour in sauce-pan, place on range and stir mixture until thickened.

Beat separately the yolks of 4 eggs and the whites of 2, then add both to the above mixture. Remove from the fire, add the juice of two small lemons and grated rind of one; add b.u.t.ter. Fill two previously baked pastry sh.e.l.ls with the cooled mixture. Beat the remaining whites of egg (another white of an egg added improves the appearance of the pie.) Add one tablespoonful of pulverized sugar to each egg used; place the stiffly beaten whites of egg rockily over tops of pies stand in oven until a delicate shade of brown. This is a delicious pie.

A COUNTRY BATTER PIE

Line two medium-sized pie-tins with pastry crust in which pour the following mixture, composed of 1/2 cup of granulated sugar and one egg, creamed together; then add 1/2 cup of cold water and the grated yellow rind and juice of one lemon.

For the top of pies: Cream together 1 cup of sugar, 1/4 cup of lard and 1 egg, then add 1/2 cup of sour milk alternately with 1-1/2 cups of flour, sifted with 1/2 teaspoonful of baking soda and 1/2 teaspoonful of cream of tartar. Place 1/2 of this mixture on top of each pie. Bake in oven.

PUMPKIN PIE (AUNT SARAH'S RECIPE)

The best pumpkin for pie is of a deep orange yellow with a rough, warty surface. Remove the soft, spongy pulp and seeds of the pumpkin, pare and cut into small pieces. Steam until tender. Put in a colander to drain, then mash through colander with wooden potato masher. For one deep pie allow one pint of the stewed pumpkin, beat in 2 eggs, one at a time, 1/2 teaspoonful salt, 1 teaspoonful ginger, 1/2 teaspoonful grated nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoonful cinnamon, 2/3 cup sugar, 1 scant pint milk. Beat all together. This mixture should barely fill a quart measure. Pour in a deep pie-tin lined with rich crust, grate nutmeg over the top of pie and bake from 45 to 50 minutes in a moderate oven.

Have the oven rather hot when the pie is first put in to bake and then reduce the heat, else the filling in the pie will boil and become watery. If liked, two tablespoonfuls of brandy may be added to the mixture before filling the crust. In that case, use two tablespoonfuls less of milk.

WHITE POTATO CUSTARD (AUNT SARAH'S RECIPE)

Boil one medium-sized potato, mash fine, add 1 large tablespoonful of b.u.t.ter and a generous 1/2 cup sugar. Beat to a cream. When the mixture has cooled add yolks of 2 eggs, 1/2 cup sweet milk and grated rind and juice of half a lemon. Lastly, stir in the stiffly beaten whites of the two eggs. Bake in a medium-sized pie-tin with one crust in a moderately hot oven about 25 minutes, until a rich brown on top. This is a delicious pie and would puzzle a "Bucks County lawyer" to tell of what it is composed.

"RHUBARB CUSTARD" PIE

Two cups of rhubarb, uncooked, do not skin it, cut in half-inch pieces. Cream together 1 cup of sugar, 1 tablespoonful of cornstarch, 2 eggs (reserve white of one egg). Add the 2 cups of rhubarb to this mixture and place all in a pie-tin lined with pastry. Place in oven and bake until rhubarb is tender. Remove from oven and when pie has cooled spread over it the stiffly beaten white of the egg, to which had been added one tablespoonful of sugar. Place pie in oven and brown a light fawn color.

"LEMON APPLE" PIE

Grate the yellow rind from a lemon (discard the white part of rind), grate the remainder of the lemon, also pare and grate 1 apple. Add 1-1/2 cups of sugar, then add 2 well-beaten eggs. Pour this mixture into 1 large pie-tin lined with rich pastry; place on a top crust, pinch edges, moistened with water, together; bake in an oven with a steady heat. When pie has baked sift pulverized sugar thickly over top and serve cold. From these materials was baked a fair sized pie.

GREEN CURRANT PIE

Line a pie-tin with rich pastry; place oil this crust 2 tablespoonfuls of flour and 2 tablespoonfuls of sugar; then add 2 cups of well-washed and stemmed green currants, previously mixed with 1 tablespoonful of cornstarch, moistened with a small quant.i.ty of cold water. Add 1 cup of sugar (from which had been taken the 2 tablespoonfuls placed on crust;) add 2 tablespoonfuls of water; cover with a top crust, cut small vents in crust, bake in a moderate oven.

When crust loosens from side of pan the pie should be sufficiently baked.

A COUNTRY "MOLa.s.sES" PIE

Place in a mixing bowl 3/4 cup flour (generous measure), 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1 generous tablespoonful of b.u.t.ter.

Crumble all together with the hands until quite fine. Then to 1/4 cup of New Orleans (baking) mola.s.ses add 1/4 cup of boiling water and 1/4 teaspoonful of soda (saleratus). Beat together the mola.s.ses, water and soda until the mixture is foamy and rises to top of cup. Then pour into a medium-sized pie-tin, lined with pie crust (the pie-tin should not be small or the mixture, when baking, will rise over top of pan).

Sprinkle the prepared crumbs thickly over the mola.s.ses mixture and with a spoon distribute the crumbs well through the mixture. Bake in a moderate oven from 25 to 30 minutes and you will have the old-fas.h.i.+oned pie your Grandmother used to bake.

When her baking finished, she had dough remaining for an extra crust.

Children always called this "mola.s.ses candy pie," as 'twas quite different from the "mola.s.ses cake batter" usually baked in crusts.

A MOCK CHERRY PIE

This pie was composed of 3/4 cup of chopped cranberries, 3/4 cup of seeded and chopped raisins, 3/4 cup of sugar, 3/4 cup of cold water, 1 tablespoonful of flour, 1 teaspoonful of vanilla all together and bake with two crusts.

AUNT SARAH'S CUSTARD PIE

Line an agate pie-pan (one used especially for custards two inches in depth, holding exactly one quart) with a rich pastry. Break five large eggs in a bowl, heat lightly with an egg-beater and add 1/2 cup of sugar. Boil 3 cups of sweet milk, pour over the eggs and sugar, add 1 teaspoonful of b.u.t.ter and a pinch of salt, 1/2 teaspoonful of vanilla.

The mixture should fill a one-quart measure. When the custard has cooled, pour either into the deep pie-pan, lined with pastry, holding one quart, or into two ordinary pie-tins holding one pint each. Place the custard pie in a quick oven, that the crust may bake before the custard soaks into the crust; then allow oven to cool and when the custard is "set" (which should be in about 35 minutes) remove from the oven and serve cold. The custard should be the consistency of thick jelly. Scalding the milk produces a richer custard.

PLAIN RHUBARB PIE

Line a pie-tin with rich crust, skin rhubarb and cut into half-inch pieces a sufficient quant.i.ty to fill 3 cups. Mix together 1 cup of sugar and 1/4 cup of flour. Place a couple tablespoonfuls of this on the bottom crust of pie. Mix sugar and flour remaining with 3 cups of rhubarb and fill the crust. Moisten the edge of crust with water, place on top crust, press two edges of crust together (having cut small vents in top crust to allow steam to escape). Bake in a moderate oven about 30 minutes, when top crust has browned pie should be baked.