Evening star., 1926-02-19
Pies, Cakes, Fancy Pastry
Tested Methods by Which Delicious Products
May Be Achieved in the Home Kitchen
bv the Skilled Worker.

hot oven, and a pie should be per-
feet if made with good materials and
given a generous filing The plain
est pastry will be improved by a
thorough chilling before it is made
up, and a fine pastry will be made
much finer by following this line Of
treatment. \ cool or even moder-
ately hot oven will cause the fat in
he pastry to dissolve and mix with
The starch in a tough mass. The
pastry should really bake before the
Fat has time to dissolve. then it will
be light and flaky. When the pas
Try shell is baked, which should be in
about 10 minutes. slip it from the pan
on to a large plate, and it is then
ready to~fil One-crust pies are al
ways popular. The beginner in pas
try-making usually chooses to make
them hrSt as they are a little easier
of accomplishment than a pie with
an upper and lower crust. Some of
the open pies are made by baking the
filling in the crust. others by first
baking the crust. then adding the
filling and possibly a fluffy, delicate
meringue, which may be Drowned
lightly in moderate oven.
TwO-Crust Pies.
Sift together one and two-thirds-cup
fus of sifted flour one-half a tea
spoonful of salt and one-half a tea
spoonful of baking powder, If desired.
Cut or chop five tableSpoonfulS of
cold shortening into the flour until
the mixture is like meal. Mix with
water as cold as possible until a
rather stiff pastry is formed. Divide
the pastry into two parts, rolling the
first part and fitting It into the
creased or flour busted pie tin. Do
not stretch the dough when placing
it in the pan, as it Shrinks in baking.
Roll the dough for the upper crust
into q long sheet and spread lightly
with a tablespoonful of shortening.
Dust with -four. fold the dough into
thirds, and roll into shape. Fold over
in the middle and slash several times
at the fold. open out the sheet. fold
over crosSwise, and slash again al
the fold Then place on the pie.
Trim closely to the plate and press
top and lower cruStS together. Bake
in a hot oven. Chill the pastry be-
fore rolling and it will be more f1aky,
and handle as little as possible. If
the filling is very moist, 1t will be
better to bake the lower crust in a
hot oven for about five minutes, or
until just beginning to color. before
adding the filling.
1Fy lneSe RES.
Chocolate pie is such a general ia
vorite that every housewife should
know how to make it. Prepare a pas
try shell, and while it is baking, make
the filling. For this place cupful and
a half of milk in a double boiler and
add to it two squares of unsweetened
chocolate broken into small pieces,
and half cupful Of white sugar.
Bring to the boiling point, then heat
the yolkS of two eggs with two table
SpOonfulS of cornStarch and little
cold milk, stir into the boiling milk,
and cook until thick. Flavor with half
4 teaspoonful of vanilla. Cool, then put
in the pastry shell. Make a meringue
OF the whites of the eggs and place
over the pie. Brown lightly and serve
cold with or without whipped cream.
Lemon sponge pie is a fine one-cruSt
pie. 1t is baked in pastry-ined pan.
rather than in a pastry shell. To make
cream one-half cupful of butter with
a cupful of sugar and tablespoon
full of cornstarch, add the grated rind
and juice of one lemon and cupful
of milk. beat well and gradually add
the Well-whipped yolkS of two eggs.
When we'll blended, fold in the stiffly
beaten whites of the eggs, then pour
into the pastry-lined pan and bake
carefully in a moderately hot oven. 1t
may be necessary to cover the top of
the pie with heavy white paper dur
ing the baking, as it usually becomes
brown too soon. When finished, the
pie should have a delicate spongy top
with a rich custard-like foundation.
Sweet potato custard pie allS for
two medium sized boiled sweet pota-
toes, which should not be cooked too
soft. When cold, peel and CRATE the
potatoes, add to them three-fourths of
a cupful of sugar, two tablespoonfuls
of softened butter, and half a tea
spoonful of cinnamon. Beat well, then
whip in the well-beaten yolks of two
eggs, a cupful of milk, and the grated
rind and juice of half an orange and
half a lemon. Pour into the pan and
bake like a lemon sponge pie. Make
a meringue of the whites Of the eggs
and brown delicately.
Apple pie will be more delicate and
richer as well, if the apples are slight
Iy cooked before they are placed in the
pie crust. Peel and slice them rather
thin, then add just enough water to
prevent them from sticking to the
saucepan, add bits of butter and the
sugar, then cover the saucepan and
simmer the apples in the butter and
sugar until they are tender. When the
pie tin is lined with the pastry,
sprinkle 1t with flour, then place the
apples in 1t and finish the pie in the
usual way. So prepared, an apple pie
will not require more than about 20
minutes of baking in a hot oven.
Leftover Pastry.
When making pies, small portion
Of pastry, not enough for another
pie, is frequently left over. This
may be utilized in various ways as
follows:
011J fIa CT
thin. cut it into squares, sprinkle
with sugar and cinnamon and bake
until crisp. These are very nice TO
serve with sauce or other dessert and
are more economical Of time and
money than are most cookies or cake.
Roly-poly.-Roll the pastry until
about one fourth inch in thickness.
cover with dried currants or with
fresh berries we'll sweetened, sprinkle
with flour, then roll like jelly roll.
Bake in a moderately hot oven until
we'll done. Serve with liquid sauce.
Cheese Straws.-Roll the pastry
thin and cover it with grated cheese
or with highly seasoned soft cheese.
Fold into thirds and roll again into
Il thin, long sheet. Cut into narrow
strips and bake in bot oven until
delicately Drowned. These are nice
To serve with salads.
fdStTy SHeIiS.- nv PeeAS
side or on the outside Of muffin
pans, then fill these shells with jam,
preserves or well sweetened stewed
fruit, With or without the addition
of whipped cream these make de-
licious dessert. Such pastry shells
may be filled with creamed chicken. |
Creamed peas or other savory food, |
and In this way will make an at |
tractive and appetizing dish for
another meal.