Excerpted from THE BOOK ON PIE © 2020 by Erin Jeanne McDowell. Photography © 2020 by Mark Weinberg. Reproduced by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Cranberry-Orange Pie
MAKES: ONE 9-INCH/23-CM PIE
DIFFICULTY: MEDIUM
I love sour flavors, so cranberries have a special place in my heart. Because they are high in pectin, they make a naturally thick filling on the stovetop. A thin layer of silky cream cheese filling, spiked with orange zest, helps temper the tartness and round the whole thing out with a little creaminess (the perfect pairing in my book).
CRANBERRY FILLING
- 906 g / 2 pounds cranberries (fresh or frozen, no need to thaw)
- 113 g / 1/2 cup fresh orange juice
- 99 g / 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 106 g / 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 3 g / 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 g / 3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- Scant 1 g / 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 g / 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 g / 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
ORANGE CREAM CHEESE FILLING
- 226 g / 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- Grated zest of 2 medium oranges
- 56 g / 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 56 g / 1 large egg, lightly whisked
- 2 g / 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract or Fiori di Sicilia (see Resources, page 345)
- 1 g / 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
One 9-inch / 23-cm pie crust (see below), parbaked, brushed with egg wash, and cooled completely (see page 43)
- Make the cranberry filling: In a medium pot, mix the cranberries (and any juices from thawing), orange juice, granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and salt to combine. Cook over medium heat until the cranberries begin to soften or break down, 12 to 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture has thickened, 6 to 8 minutes; some of the berries will break down and become jammy, some will be whole or in chunky pieces. Stir in the vanilla. Cool completely.
- Prepare the cream cheese filling: In a medium bowl, using a silicone spatula, stir the cream cheese until smooth. Add the orange zest and mix well, then add the powdered sugar and mix until fully incorporated. Add the egg, extract, and salt and mix to combine.
- Place the cooled pie crust on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Pour in the cream cheese filling and spread into an even layer. Freeze the pie for 15 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F / 190°C with a rack in the lower third (preferably with a Baking Steel or stone on it).
- Spoon the cooled cranberry filling on top of the chilled cream cheese filling and spread into an even layer. Transfer the pie to the oven and bake until the crust is deeply golden brown (the filling will have sort of a matte appearance), 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely before slicing and serving.
VARIATIONS
GOOSEBERRY VANILLA CREAM PIE: Replace the cranberries with an equal amount of cleaned gooseberries. Add the brown sugar to the berries in the pot in step 1 and cook as directed. Stir 21 g / 3 tablespoons cornstarch into the granulated sugar and stir into the pot before adding the vanilla at the end of step 1. Stir constantly while cooking over medium heat until the mixture thickens, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the vanilla. For the cream cheese filling, omit the orange zest and substitute the seeds of 1 vanilla bean (halved lengthwise and seeds scraped out). This pie is particularly good with streusel topping (page 120) or pie-scrap streusel (page 38).
MAKE AHEAD AND STORAGE
The pie is best eaten the same day it’s made. Store leftovers at room temperature, wrapped in plastic wrap.
RECOMMENDED CRUSTS
- Gingerbread Pie Dough (page 52)
- Whole Wheat Pie Dough (page 54)
RECOMMENDED FINISHES
Dress this pie up with a half batch of Mascarpone Whipped Cream (page 111) and garnish with grated orange zest and sugared cranberries (see the sidebar).
PIE-DEAS
SUGARDED CRANBERRIES
Sugared cranberries are a super-simple, completely beautiful—not to mention festive!—garnish. Many folks make sugared cranberries simply by tossing thawed frozen cranberries in sugar. That works and looks good, but the cranberries are really too tart to actually eat. I briefly cook the cranberries in a sugar syrup, candying them inside before applying sugar to the outside, for a garnish as delicious as it is lovely!
In a medium pot, bring 99 g / 1/2 cup granulated sugar and 113 g / 1/2 cup water to a boil over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add 226 g / 8 ounces (about 13/4 cups) cranberries and cook at a very gentle simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 6 to 8 minutes. The cranberries should remain whole, not burst. Drain the cranberries (save the syrup to add to cocktails or other drinks) and toss in 198 g / 1 cup granulated sugar until they’re well coated—most of the sugar will adhere to them, but some will be left behind. Store the candied cranberries in an airtight container with the excess sugar until ready to use (they will keep up to 3 days).
All-Buttah Pie Dough
MAKES: ONE 9-INCH / 23-CM CRUST
DIFFICULTY: MEDIUM
This is my go-to pie dough: all buttah, all the time. Butter can be harder for beginners to work with, because it has a lower melting point than fats such as shortening, but the flavor can’t be beat. And once you know how to handle the dough, it’s easy. The key? Colder is always better when pie dough is involved. When in doubt, toss everything (the ingredients, the bowl, and maybe even the half-mixed dough) into the fridge before proceeding. The recipe can easily be increased to make up to a quadruple batch of dough (see Making Big Batches using a Stand Mixer, page 30).
- 150 g / 11/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 g / 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 113 g / 4 ounces / 8 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch / 13-mm cubes
- 60 g / 1/4 cup ice water, plus more as needed
- Prepare the dough using your desired mixing method (see page 27).
- Form the dough into a disk and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before using. This dough is best baked at 425°F / 220°C. Parbake (see page 43), blind-bake (see page 46), or fill and bake as directed in the recipe of your choice.
VARIATION
CHOCOLATE ALL-BUTTAH PIE DOUGH: Replace 30 g / 1/4 cup of the all-purpose flour with 28 g / 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (any kind, but dark or black cocoa powder makes a particularly intense crust; see Resources, page 345). Take care not to overbake the crust—look for a dry, matte appearance all over.
MAKE AHEAD AND STORAGE
The tightly wrapped disk of dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. Wrapped in plastic wrap and then in aluminum foil, the dough can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before using.
Excerpted from THE BOOK ON PIE © 2020 by Erin Jeanne McDowell. Photography © 2020 by Mark Weinberg. Reproduced by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.