Category Archives: Pics or it Didn’t Happen

Pics or It Didn’t Happen: Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

Zach B., Yale University

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie:

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Pics or it Didn’t Happen: Sour Cream and Raisin Pie

Zach Bell, Yale University

Back in December 2010, I baked a raisin pie and commented on its usage as a “funeral pie.” Upon some further research into a variation, the sour cream and raisin pie, I found that it also originated among Mennonites settling in the Great Plains, quickly spreading to other local communities. Funerals in the mid to late nineteenth century were opportunities for the community to gather and express hospitality. This hospitality often arrived as edibles, and especially as dessert. Guests and relatives would bring food to show their sympathy and condolences. A funeral staple was the raisin pie (and other improvised variations) , a dessert that could be quickly made out of readily available ingredients.

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Pics or it Didn’t Happen: Key Lime Pie… with Gingerbread Crust

Zach Bell, Yale University

Traditionally thought of as a summer dessert, in my opinion key lime pie can be served at any time of the year. In order to make the pie a little more appropriate for the temperature though (despite an unusually warm December in St. Louis), I put the filling in a gingerbread crust.

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Pics or it Didn’t Happen: Lemon Meringue Pie

Zach Bell, Yale University

A staple of American dessert culture is the lemon meringue pie. Although lemon flavored desserts and custards have been in use since medieval times, the lemon meringue pie as we know it did not emerge until the nineteenth century. For my lemon pie, I used a recipe that originated a bit more recently. My recipe came from my great-grandmother’s cookbook, dating from the early to mid- twentieth century. Although I only have vague memories of her, and none of her lemon pie, I hear stories of her baking virtuosity. So I decided to test out her recipe and see if I inherited some of her baking genes.

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Pics or it Didn’t Happen: Chicken Pot Pie

Zach Bell, Yale University

Savory food isn’t really my thing. When it come to meals, I’m pretty much exclusively the dessert chef/procurer. Yet, in my exploration of pie it was inevitable that I would one day have to face the meat pie. Meat pies have a long history, tracing back millenia, with many theories about its various uses. Scholars believe that medieval meat pies were more like casseroles, with a much thicker pastry acting as the cooking container and preserving mechanism. From the Greeks to the Romans to the Middle Ages, the pastry was not meant to be eaten. Over time, the crust grew lighter and flakier until today when the historically “inedible” crust separates a pot pie from a meat stew.

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Pics or it Didn’t Happen: Linzer Torte Fail

Zach Bell, Yale University

Failure is hard to swallow in any context, but for a baker, this translates literally… a failure is actually difficult to choke down. A few days ago, I failed to bake an edible Linzer Torte. What should have been a buttery raspberry pastry ended with a texture best described as bizarre. Although many a mentor has told me, “Do not be afraid to fail!”, I cannot deny my totally rational fear of that monstrous Linzer Torte.

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Pics or it Didn’t Happen: Chocolate Pie

Zach Bell, Yale University

One year ago, my Mom requested a chocolate pie for her birthday. This year, she wanted a repeat performance. I used the same recipe (although with a pastry crust instead of graham cracker), but the process went much more smoothly this time. After a year more of baking experience, I whisked the  custard with ease and confidence, trusting in the process. Check out chocolate pie 2.0:

Also, check out this “how-to” video on whipped cream:

 

In the end, practice is key to a polished pie.

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