It has been the summer of pies here at The Smith Homestead. I absolutely can't roll enough, fill enough or eat enough of their goodness.
The last of the strawberries seem to have come and gone through the Bluegrass State but not before I made a couple of these. I imagine something similar could be done with peaches or blueberries...or even blackberries. Oh my. That sounds like a pie to be had in our near future.
The recipe couldn't be simpler. A basic pie crust recipe. A basic custard recipe. Some sliced strawberries on top and voila. Yummy eating all around.
Strawberries and Cream Pie
You can find a video recipe for my favorite pie crust recipe here.
1. Blind bake a basic pie crust. Cool completely~ Sometimes I do this part the night before.
2. While the pie shell bakes, go ahead and make the custard. Again..the night before is great. Then it is just a matter of assembly when everything is cool/chilled.
When both the custard is chilled and the crust is cooled, spread the custard in the bottom of the shell. Top with loads and loads of sliced strawberries. If desired, use a pastry brush to brush the top of the pie with some strawberry glaze or strawberry preserves. Either eat right away or tuck away in the fridge a while longer. The pie is gonna be messy. Its like the best version of strawberries and cream imaginable. In fact, I'd suggest just handing out the forks and digging right into the whole pie. Believe me...it won't last long so save yourself the hassle of washing plates.
Basic Pie Custard
And this is a nice custard recipe I like: I found it here.
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
3 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix sugar, cornstarch, flour, and salt in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in the milk and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and cook until thickened, still stirring constantly. Spoon out about 1/4 cup of your hot mixture and gradually drizzle it into the beaten egg, whisking constantly. This will temper the egg so that when you add it back into the hot mixture, it won’t cook. Add the egg into the hot mixture, continuing to stir constantly. Bring this just to boiling.
Set the saucepan in the ice water bath and stir it periodically as it cools. Once cool enough, chill the mixture in the refrigerator. During this time, whip the cream and vanilla together to stiff peaks. Take the chilled mixture from the fridge and beat it to break it up. Stir in about 1/3 of the cream to lighten it, and then gently fold in the rest of the cream until well combined. Chill until ready to use.
