Citrus Pear Pie

I have had my eye on this recipe now for a few months, and a belated spring Easter dinner with Bob seemed the perfect time to try it out, especially with Bob around to help zest the lemons. He is a natural zester. Who knew?

I used my standard pie crust, but include their pie crust recipe just for future reference. This website is really into cold corn oil in their crusts. Maybe some day I'll be tempted to try it out, but for now I'm happy with my pie crust and Bob is happy with it so I don't feel like rocking the boat.

This is from the same place I got the boozy Liz banana pie recipe. They make a convincing argument in favor of pear pies. I have never even had a pear pie before and they list at least five different recipes! Very strange. The website advises using Anjou and Bartlett pears, but not too ripe! If you use Bartlett, you have to use more thickening as they are juicier. I used three Anjou and three red pears, just for effect. Here's the link:

http://everythingpies.com/citrus-pear-pie.html

The red pears were so pretty in the final baked pie. What is funny about this pie is that the Robber loved it more than I did. Since when does that happen for a fruit pie? He raved about it. It was good, light, and yet with an interesting flavor but wasn't my favorite fruit pie. None-the-less, because the Robber loved it so much I will be making it again. If I make it again I think I will increase the zest, add just a little bit of lime zest, macerate the pears first, and then boil down the released juices and add them back in so that the pie retains more of the lemon flavor. I also baked the pie for much longer than the recommended time (for an hour at the lower temperature) and I think I would do this again as the pears, which were firm and crunchy before baking, were the perfect softness with the longer baking time.

Ingredients:

Pie crust (makes one double crust)

3 C. all-purpose flour

4 T. sugar

1/4 C. ice cold water

1/4 C. cold corn oil

1/2 tsp. fine salt

1 C. (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter

1/8 tsp. fresh lemon zest

Pie filling:

3 pounds pears (about 6 pears)

1/2 C. fresh-squeezed lemon juice

1/4 tsp. fresh lemon zest

2/3 C. sugar

2 T. all-purpose flour

2 T. tapioca flour (I just used 2 T. more all-purpose flour)

1/4 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 tsp. ground cardamom

pinch of salt

1 T. cold unsalted butter

Directions:

1. Prepare the pastry: Roll the pastry and line a 9-inch pie plate with the bottom crust. Roll out the remaining dough for the top crust. Chill the pastry.

2. Preheat the oven to 425° F.

3. Pour the fresh-squeezed lemon juice in the bottom of a large bowl. Add your lemon zest to the bowl. Peel, halve and core the pears with a melon baller or corer. Be sure to remove the fiber in the center of the pear. Slice them evenly about a 1/4 inch thick into the bowl, coating them with the lemon juice as you go.

4. In a separate bowl, mix together the sugar, flour, tapioca flour, cardamom, ginger and salt. Add them to the pears just before you want to bake the pie, mix gently and then taste a pear slice. Add more sugar to taste as needed.

5. Scrape the filling into the bottom crust, dot with butter and cover it with the second crust. Trim and crimp the crust; chill the pie for 10 minutes in the freezer. Cut vent slits in the top crust. It is your option to sprinkle it with sugar or brush the top with egg white.

6. Bake the pie on a baking sheet for 10 minutes or until the crust looks dry, blistered, and blonde. Turner the oven down to 375°F, and bake for at least 30 minutes more or until the crust is golden brown, and visible juices are thickened and bubble slowly through the slits in the top crust. Check if the bottom crust has darkened. If not bake a little more and cover the top crust, so it does not burn.

7. Cool the pie completely before cutting at least a few hours. Serve it at room temperature. Store the pie uncovered in a cool place up to three days.