SMS: North Fork Peach Raspberry Pie

Happy 4th!  Aren't long holiday weekends the best? :)

This week's SMS was chosen by Rebecca of Beurrista: North Fork peach raspberry pie!  Last fall I'd purchased a mini (6") pie plate at Crate & Barrel and at the time I was so excited to finally be able to make mini pies.  When I wanted to use the dish for the first time, though, I couldn't find it anywhere in my house.  I've been searching for it ever since...over 6 months now.  I started to think maybe I'd gone crazy and hadn't actually purchased the plate.  I store most of my baking pans in our basement on a rack and when I went down to grab one a few days ago, I found the mini pie plate hiding inside that pan!  I can't even begin to tell you how excited I was - not only to find the plate but also to confirm that I hadn't imagined buying it!  I'd checked that rack at least 3 times in my search for the pie plate, but somehow had missed it.  You can bet I'll be taking steps to make sure I don't misplace this dish again.




I (correction, Shane) did some quick math and decided that 1/3 of the filling recipe would probably work well in my 6" pie plate.  I had no idea how to scale the crust recipe and didn't feel like researching it, so I made just one 9-inch crust recipe, divided it in half and hoped for the best.  It worked perfectly - just enough to make my mini double crust pie.  Though the peaches looked great in the store this week, I used frozen ones from my freezer instead (I didn't defrost them before baking).  I did use fresh raspberries though.  This was the first pie I'd used tapioca for and I thought it was interesting the recipe called for both tapioca and cornstarch as thickeners.  (Side note - I tried grinding the tapioca pearls in my food processor but they didn't seem to break down much, so I wouldn't bother next time.)  My mini baked for about an hour and a half, at which point the juices were bubbling and thick.  Having cut into far too many fruit pies before they'd completely cooled, I've learned my lesson and waited on this one.



When I finally cut the first slice, it was gorgeous!  Many of the fruit pies I've made have been soupy, but not this one.  The filling was thick and the fruit perfectly baked.  Not only did it look great, but it was delicious!  The raspberries added just the right note of tartness to complement the buttery crust and the sweet peaches.  I exercised extreme restraint and only ate a tiny slice so I could share the rest with our friends at tonight's cookout.  Lots of thanks to Rebecca for a great pick this week!  You can find the recipe on her blog or on pages 150-151 of The Sweet Melissa Baking Book.