 |
 |
| |
|
Cherry Pies... a simple delicacy!
The founding fathers of this country were very fond of
apples and cherries, so it is not too surprising that
they
came up with a variety of uses. Some folks credit Martha
Washington with the cherry pie, but I suspect it goes
much farther back as the Cherries that General Washington was most fond of
were not the indigenous variety
of the Americas, but those of England. Our domestic
variety was thought to be fairly sour.
Cherries are a fairly delicate fruit
and the recipes for cherry pies are all very similar:
cherries, sauce and pie crust.
However, that isn't to say that one can't make it a bit more fun by adding
a touch of brandy, some whipped cream
and -- I think -- sautéing the cherries in the beginning
makes all the difference! I love just the taste of real
butter in my fruit pies.
|
| |
|
What's in a name?
One of the things folks do to make
their recipes sound so much more elegant is to give
ingredients or the recipe
a name. During the time of the culinary awakening in
France (thanks to chef Carême) almost every recipe and
combination of ingredients were named after someone. I recall the story of
one nobleman who was incensed
that a sauce he had been making for decades was named after someone
else... he was speaking
of
Béchamel sauce.
So surprise your friends and tell
them you will be putting some Chantilly Cream ( not to
be confused with
Chantilly sauce which is quite different) on their cherry pie!
|
| |
|
 |
| |
|
Basic Ingredients
1/2 cup butter
4 cups cherries ( 20 ounces or so)
3 scrapped vanilla beans
1 cup confectioner's sugar
Spices:
1 1/4 teaspoons cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon cardamom
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg3
tablespoons cornstarch
4 tablespoons cherry brandy (Kirshwasser)
Topping:
whipped cream ( Chantilly cream)
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
bake 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes
|
| |
|
 |
| |
|
easy step-by-step
process
|
| |
|
 |
 |
| |
|
Straining the juice from the canned cherries
|
sautéing the cherries lightly |
| |
|
 |
 |
| |
|
the strained juice from the canned cherries
|
heating 1/2 cup juice, butter from sautéing the
cherries,
vanilla, sugar and spices
|
| |
|
 |
 |
| |
|
anyone making meringue will find this cornstarch mixture
familiar, except with 4 tablespoons of cherry brandy |
bringing the sauce to a boil |
| |
|
 |
 |
| |
|
combining the cornstarch mixture with the sauce
|
pouring the final blended & thickened sauce
over the cherries
|
| |
|
 |
 |
| |
|
carefully transferring the cherries to the pie shell
|
adding the traditional lattice top ( rolled out on a
board
covered with coarse sugar |
| |
|
|
|
 |
| |
|
350 degrees for about 20 minutes and raise to
375 for 10 minutes or so
|
add the 'Chantilly Cream' and you are ready! |