Snickerdoodle Pie

Snickerdoodles.  I have posted about them here on latent chestnut and on Family Tree-Eats.  They are one of my favorite cookies, and Emilie's personal favorite.  The other day, Em and I were making fresh pasta, and she kept talking about wanting to make a pie with the pasta dough.  I told her that the dough was completely different and that we would make a pie another time.  Though, I must say that the rolled pasta sheets do look similar to pie crust.

She wouldn't let it go and kept talking about making a pie.  I kept telling her we would do it another day.  Out of the blue, she said, "Can we make a snickerdoodle pie?"  That question perked my ears up in a hurry.  I had never heard of a snickerdoodle pie, and this sounded like to perfect time to dream one up.  We had a few errands to run, so she sat in the backseat with a pen and paper and I started listing off some ingredients for her to write down.  Before we knew it, we had the makings of a snickerdoodle pie.

As soon as we got home, we made a pie crust and put it in the refrigerator to cool before rolling it out.  Then we got to work on making the filling. I must have channeled my grandma's buttermilk pie recipe when Emilie and I were thinking of ingredients, because these pies are very similar.  Perhaps because I thought buttermilk would be the perfect component to a snickerdoodle inspired pie, because of it's tang.  But what gives snickerdoodles that bit of tang, I wondered?

When I think of snickerdoodles, I think of a cookie that is soft and chewy on the inside, delightfully crispy on the edges.  I think of the warm spiciness of the cinnamon and the use of cream of tartar in the recipe.  Dare I add cream of tartar to the pie?  What does it even do?  Does it even have it's own flavor?  I needed answers!

I went straight to the source and popped open my jar of cream of tartar and tasted it all by itself.  It was quite tangy and acidic.  Which makes sense because my snickerdoodles have a bit of tang that is balanced out by the sugar and cinnamon.  Cream of tartar also acts as a stabilizer, so I thought that it couldn't hurt to add some to our new pie creation.  I think it is just as much a part of snickerdoodles as the cinnamon and sugar coating.

The pie filling came together like nothing, especially since Emilie did it all by herself while I was rolling out the pie crust.  I just gave it a final whisking at the end to make sure all the ingredients were thoroughly integrated.  To replicate the cinnamon sugar coating on the traditional cookie, we mixed some cinnamon and sugar together and rubbed it in to the empty pie shell.  Then, with about 20 left in the cooking process, we dusted the top of the pie with more cinnamon and sugar.

The pie had the look of a snickerdoodle, but it was now time for the moment of truth...tasting and judgment!  Upon removing the first slice of pie, I breathed a sigh of relief because the filling had set up beautifully.  It was nice and creamy, and just looked delicious.  After taking the first bite, my eyes lit up and I knew we had something special.

This pie is creamy, tangy, sweet and cinnamon-ny.  The pie crust and the cinnamon and sugar topping add a nice texture, that is ever so reminiscent of a snickerdoodle.  The tang from the buttermilk and cream of tartar are balanced by the sugar to create a truly unique pie.  This one is a keeper!

Just out of curiosity, I did an internet search for snickerdoodle pie and found the options very limited. So, not only is this pie incredibly satisfying and delicious, I think it is pretty unique, too.  To think, it probably wouldn't have happened if Emilie didn't want to make a pie with pasta dough...


Snickerdoodle Pie
Ingredients
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 stick melted butter
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 cup buttermilk

1 9 inch pie crust (preferably homemade)

1 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons sugar

Directions
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, 1 1/4 cups of sugar, melted butter, flour, cream of tartar, and buttermilk until thoroughly combined.

In a small bowl or cup, mix together the cinnamon and 3 tablespoons of sugar.

Take half of the cinnamon sugar mixture and rub onto the top of the empty pie crust.  Then, pour the filling into the pie crust and bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes.   Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees and bake for another 10 minutes. 

Then, pull out the oven rack or take the pie out of the oven and top with the remaining cinnamon and sugar mixture.  Return the pie to the 300 degree oven and continue to bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the filling barely jiggles when moved. Cool completely before serving.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

 

My great-grandmother made pineapple upside-down cake all the time when I was a kid, and I absolutely loved it. I loved it so much, it is one of the first recipes I tried when I was first learning how to bake. It was not an easy one to start out with, though. I remember countless times flipping the cake only to find that some of the cake stuck to the pan, or the brown sugar/butter mixture didn't absorb into the cake and ran all over the counter top. I still ate it, and I'm sure I gained a few pounds in the process.

Thinking back on it now, I'm not sure my great-grandmother turned the whole cake upside-down before serving it. I remember the cake staying in the pan, with her flipping the individual pieces over as they were served. I was always anxious to see how much pineapple I got, or if I was lucky to get a cherry. I did a write-up on my great-grandmother's recipe over on Family Tree-Eats if you'd like to check it out, but this is the Alton Brown version I went to after failing on hers so many times.

The recipes are pretty similar, except this one uses cornmeal and is baked in a cast iron skillet.  Baking a cake in a cast iron skillet!?  That's what I'm talking about! The finished product is perfectly crispy around the edges and moist and fluffy on the inside.  The cake is sweet, but the pineapple helps cut the sweetness considerably.  The original calls for nuts, but I omitted them because my great-grandmother never used nuts in hers.  The cake is very rich, so a little bit goes a long way, but it is absolutely delicious!

Pineapple Upside Down Cake
Printable Recipe

Ingredients
3/4 cup whole milk
1 cup coarse ground cornmeal
4 ounces unsalted butter
8 ounces dark brown sugar, approximately 1 cup
6 slices canned pineapple in heavy syrup
6 maraschino cherries
3 tablespoons juice from canned pineapple
3 whole eggs
4 3/4 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 1 cup
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 3/4 ounces sugar, approximately 3/4 cup
1/2 cup canola oil

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a small saucepan, bring the milk to a boil, turn off the heat, and immediately add the cornmeal. Stir and let stand for 30 minutes. 

Melt the butter in a 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add the brown sugar to the butter and stir until the sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes.

Turn off the heat.  Place one slice of pineapple in the center of the pan and arrange the other 5 slices around it. Put the cherries in the centers of the pineapple.  Pour pineapple juice over top.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt and whisk to combine. In another mixing bowl, add the sugar to the eggs and whisk to combine; then add the canola oil and whisk. Add the cornmeal and milk mixture to the egg mixture and whisk to combine. Add the wet mixture to the flour and gently stir until just combined.

Pour the batter into the skillet and bake for 40 to 45 minutes. After removing it from oven, let the cake cool for 30 minutes before inverting. Set a plate on top of the skillet and carefully flip the cake.

Slice and devour. 

Alton Brown's Fudge Cake

 

Okay, so I am just copying this post over from one of my other blogs, Family Tree-Eats.  I feel it is too good not to share here on latent chestnut.  So, I apologize if you've read this before, but if you haven't, make this cake!!

 

This is the best chocolate cake I have ever made, and it is my 'go to' chocolate cake recipe.  It comes from Alton Brown's I'm Just Here for More Food, and I think it is one of the first recipes I tried from the book.  I don't even need to look up the page number for the recipe anymore because the book is so worn in that section, I can find it just by shuffling through the pages.

 

The steps to make this cake and frosting are a bit unconventional (pulverizing chocolate, mixing the frosting over a bowl of ice), but the end result is well worth it.  The cake is, for lack of a better word, meaty, but not too dense or rich.  The chocolate is the star of the show and there are bits of chocolate speckled throughout that didn't get pulverized as much.  It is not too sweet, and leaves you begging for more.

 

The frosting is light, airy, and full of flavor.  I like to add a pinch of fine sea salt to the mix because I think it really compliments the chocolate.  The frosting is almost the consistency of dense whipped cream only with an intense chocolate flavor, and just melts in your mouth.  I'm not usually a fan of frosting, but this one is just as good as the cake.  Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go bake a cake...

 

Alton Brown's Fudge Cake
Printable recipe

3 oz unsweetened chocolate
10.75 oz (2 1/4 cups) plain flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1.5 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 oz (1 stick) butter
13.5 oz (2 1/4 cups) brown sugar
8 oz (1 cup) full fat sour cream
8 oz (1 cup) boiling water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare a 13 x 9 cake pan.

Pulverize chocolate in a food processor until fine, then add the flour, baking soda, and salt, and pulse to combine.  Combine the eggs and vanilla and lightly beat to combine.

In the bowl of a stand mixer or mixing bowl cream the butter and sugar.  Then add the egg and vanilla mixture.  Alternate adding three doses of the chocolate flour mixture and two doses of the sour cream.  Slowly add the boiling water and mix to combine, the batter will be loose.

Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees, then 15 minutes at 300 degrees. Internal temperature should reach 175-180F. Cool for 15 minutes, then remove to rack and allow the cake to cool completely before frosting.

Chocolate Frosting
6.5 oz (1 cup) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
4 oz (1/2 cup) whipping cream
8 oz (2 sticks) butter
10 oz (2 1/2 cups) powdered sugar
Bowl of ice

Melt butter, chocolate and cream in a saucepan (preferably with curved edges) over medium heat, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat and neat in the powdered sugar with a hand mixer.  Once the sugar is dissolved, place the pan into a bowl of ice.  Continue to beat until the frosting lightens and holds its shape.

Grilled pizza

 

 I've done a few blog posts about pizza over the years here on latent chestnut.  In fact, one of my very first posts was about pizza.  Ah, memories.  I've posted about my deep dish pizza, brick oven pizza, and Nonna's pizza.  I even took to Family Tree-Eats to talk about pizza once or twice.

 

Needless to say, I like pizza, and even though I love the classics, I like to change it up a bit every now and then.  Hence, my foray into the world of grilled pizza.  I got the idea from Alton Brown when he did a Good Eats episode on grilled pizza.  He gives instructions on how to make the dough and what toppings to use, but since I already have a 'go to' pizza crust recipe, I was really just more interested in technique.

 

Here's how I did it, based on AB's cooking instructions.  First, ignite all heating elements and pre-heat your gas grill to high, making sure the grill grates are clean and free of debris. Then, oil the grill grates and decrease all heating elements to medium. Brush one side of the dough with 1 to 2 teaspoons of olive oil and flip onto the hot grill. I can do two crusts at a time on mine.  Close the grill lid and cook until the bottom of the crust is golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes. Brush the raw side of the dough with 1 to 2 teaspoons of olive oil, then flip using a peel. Top with your desired sauce and toppings, then sprinkle with cheese. Close the lid again and cook until the bottom of crust is golden brown and the cheese has melted, another 1 to 2 minutes. Using the peel, remove the pizza to a cooling rack and let it rest a couple minutes before slicing.

Things happen really fast when grilling pizza.  The crust can begin to burn very quickly, so I stage my sauce, toppings, and cheese at the grill prior to putting the dough on the grates.  The oil is really the key because you don't want the crust to stick to the grates; so make sure to brush the crust and grates with enough oil to fully coat each. 

Even though it's a frenetic pace, the results are well worth it.  The grill gives the dough a wonderful crunch and crispiness I have not experienced with any other cooking method, and you can almost taste the fire and smokiness from the grill.  The inside of the dough still has the soft chewiness that we all know and love, too, so there is that element of the pizza that's familiar. 

I've enjoyed experimenting with this new cooking technique for my pizza and I have tried some toppings I may not have reached for if I was just cooking it in the oven.  Not that pizza could ever be boring, but it is nice to shake things up a bit every now and then.

Introducing Family Tree-Eats!

Back in August, Eva and I had the idea to make a family recipe book.  We thought it would be wonderful to have all of Nonna's recipes together in one bound volume as well as the rest of the families tried-and-true recipes.  The recipes could be accompanied by stories and pictures; a true representation of our entire family.  Eva would be coming home for the holidays and we thought it would be a perfect time to put the book together.

The idea was there and excitement was in the air.  Eva put out a 'call for submissions' and we anxiously waited for the recipes to start rolling in.  We got a few recipes here and there, and lots of questions.  Whoever we talked to seemed excited about the book, and loved the idea.  Uncle Steve suggested the name "Schifferli Family Tree-eats" and Eva and I really liked the sound of it.  Everything was falling into place.

When Eva came home, we talked about getting together to make some of the recipes and take pictures.  With the hustle and bustle of the season we really didn't have the time to devote to such an undertaking.  I didn't realize how difficult it would be to put the whole thing together.  With the days ticking away before Eva had to leave, I came up with the idea for a recipe blog. 

With the blog format, we can work on the recipes at our leisure, and our family can submit recipes as they come across them.  Eventually, we can use the blog to create the book we originally intended.  It took us some time to create the blog, but Family Tree-Eats is now online with Eva doing the first post yesterday.  I also want to give a special "thank you" to Aunt Sue for letting me use the magnolia tree picture she took in 1971.  It is exactly what I was looking for!

I am so excited about Family Tree-Eats!  I hope it someday becomes your first stop for traditional, tried-and-true family recipes!

http://familytree-eats.blogspot.com/