Fresh Fig Tart on Puff Pastry (You want pies with that?)

For this month's You Want Pies With That? Challenge, Jenn of Piccante Dolce chosen theme is: Summer Vacation.

As a kid, we didn't go away much but I do remember visiting with cousins and grandma on our summer break. One of the relatives had a tree and would bring figs. Oh, the love affair begins. I love figs and I would take a plate of figs over a box of chocolate.

Fresh figs.
Puff Pastry.
Butter and sugar.
Yum Summer Fun.

I used Pepperidge Farms Farms Puff Pastry. This is my first time using it as Trader Joe's doesn't carry their butter puff pastry now (it might be a seasonal item). Um, maybe I'm reading the label wrong, but this PF stuff has NO BUTTER. I didn't know you could make puff pastry without butter. Anyway, I cut this palm oil puff pastry into a few circles and squares, sprinkled on some sugar, and placed the fresh figs atop. I sprinkled the figs with a tiny bit of butter (it needs to come from someplace!) and some brown sugar.

These figs were from a colleague's parent's tree. It's good to have friends in high places, and friends with fig trees.

Be sure to check out all the other delicious summer pies on the You Want Pies with That? website! I hope you are all enjoying the last days of summer!!

Thanks Jenn for picking a fun theme!

Donut Peach Galette for You Want Pies with That?

For this month's You Want Pies with That? challenge, Rebecca of Ezra Pound Cake and Mary of Alpineberry came up with this month's theme: Taste of Summer Pie!

Summer to me is all about stone fruit. I love stone fruit. I grew up eating peaches from my parent's backyard. The house always had apricots, plums and nectarines from the store. I remember when I discovered the goodness that is the white peach and nectarine. And I jump for joy when I first see the mango-flavored nectarine at the Farmer's Market at the beginning of summer. And don't get me started about my special relationship with the pluot...

Have you tried the Donut or Saturn peach? It's a sweet, squat white peach that, well, looks like a donut or the rings of Saturn. (Yes, I bet that one was hard to figure out! :)

By the way, I've used this green platter in a few posts. It is a piece of Mary Law Pottery. She has a great studio in Berkeley, CA. I bought it when I got my bread platter by Gary Holt (see this post), and I forgot to showcase this one! Check out Mary Law's website...and visit her studio if you ever visit Northern California.

For this one, I wanted to keep the donut shape so I just rinsed it off and plopped the lovely fruit (with pit) on my completely misshapen pie crust. I had some frozen ginger spice cookies I made last week so I crumbed some of them underneath. And I dropped some butter and sugar on top. Bake and eat. Yum.

Be sure to check out the other You Want Pies with That? pies and delights!

Recipe:
Pie Crust: 1 1/4 c flour, dash of salt, 1 stick butter, 2 1/2 T ice water (a variation of Martha Stewart's Pie Crust)
Saturn or Donut Peach
Ginger Spice Cookie crumbs

Cherry Cheesecake Tart - You Want Pies with That?

I need to check my birth certificate. I think my middle name is actually "Procrastination."

It's Sunday night...the Lakers just won Game 2 of the NBA Championship (whoo hoo!) and my pie is finally in the oven. And, of course, it is due in a few hours. I also spent the morning at Disney's California Adventure with UCLA friend, Barbara...and got my personal best on Toy Story Mania with 176,100 points...however, I just watched this youtube video of hints and discovered the high point Easter eggs. Next time, I'm going over 200K :)

This month's theme for You Want Pies with That? is "Childhood Favorite Pie" by Ellen at Kittymama. Ellen couldn't join us this month because she has very exciting happenings in her life...in fact, check her blog for details of how she is going to create wonderful childhood memories for a beautiful little sweetheart!

Childhood Memory Pie: Bake a pie or tart that is inspired by a favorite childhood memory. Maybe you spent a summer vacation in Maine so it's a blueberry pie; or your grandmother always baked lemon meringue, or you remember your first taste of apple pie ever. Tell us a little story that will help us walk down memory lane with you and relive some happy childhood memories!

Um. Memories.
Let me describe myself using some Disney terms.

I am Dory from Finding Nemo. I speak whale and can't remember anything.

However, I did reach way way back and found two childhood food-related memories: graham crackers and cherries.

I remember eating graham crackers for snack at "Preschool in the Park" (it was actually held in a park). And I remember seeing a photo of my brother and I holding a big box of fresh picked cherries. Now, I don't remember going out and PICKING the cherries, but I remember my mom showing me the photo and telling me that we went cherry picking someplace in Los Angeles or the surrounding counties. Pretty pathetic memory, but, like I said...I'm Dory.

This pie is a variation of Tyler Florence's Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Bars. I made the original before (very yummmmy!), and switched it up for this challenge.

I used a 9" tart shell, omitted the lemon zest, and used 1 cup pitted and halved fresh cherries on top. Baking time remained the same. It's a great tart for those times when you don't want a 3" tall chunk of cream cheese but all the flavor. Original recipe: Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Bars by Tyler Florence

Please be sure to check out the other creative You Want Pies with That? bakers!! Whew! 11:45 pm and I got it in! Good night!

Libby's Famous Pumpkin Pie (or my mom's not-so-original recipe) - You Want Pie with That?

Libby's Famous (and good enough for my family) Pumpkin Pie

Okay, my brain synapses aren't snapping. For this month's You Want Pie with That? theme, Natalie of Oven Love decided on Family Favorite Pies. Here are the full directions:

Everyone's family has traditions, including favorite desserts. What's your family favorite? Is it your mom's brownies, your grandmother's banana pudding, your brother's famous chocolate chip cookies? Whatever that favorite dessert is, take it and turn it into a pie! If it already is a pie, make the recipe with your own special twist. If you're feeling extra energized and willing to divulge family secrets, include the original recipe!

Dude, I only saw the logo and thought I needed to bake a family recipe, not use one as a base for a creative pie! Okay, so...please play along with the voices in my head and pretend the theme is an actual family pie recipe.

This is where we have some problems. My family doesn't make pie! My mom came from Okinawa, Japan in 1964 and didn't grow up with pie. What she did do was plant rice (as she told me over and over again). She said, "I used to be so good at planting rice. One by one. One stalk at a time. You have to be very patient..." Then she looks at me with the thought, "My impatient daughter could never plant rice. Good thing I came to America."

So, I may not be able to squat for hours in a muddy field, but I still got the rice planting short legs with thunder thighs...Oh, generations of peasant ancestors give me my 5'2" frame! :)

I'm in the red dress and my mom is holding me. We're in the West Adams area of Los Angeles at my paternal grandparent's house (1972).

Back to my mom. I only remember her making one pie. It was pumpkin pie...and it was from the Libby Pumpkin Pie can.

Nothing like a pie made from the freezer (the crust), two cans (pumpkin and evaporated milk), sugar, spices and eggs! (Find the recipe on the back of the can or here.)

There is one memory I have though...one Thanksgiving or Christmas she made the filling and popped it into the frozen crust. I totally remember her saying, "Oh no! I forgot the eggs!" Not one to waste anything (that would be mottainai), she yanked open the oven, poured the filling back into her green Tupperware bowl (yes, that above bowl is an original) and mixed in the eggs.

Just like mom used to make..

Recipe: Libby's Famous Pumpkin Pie
Be sure to check out the other You Want Pie with That? bakers!!

Real Housewives of Orange County Pie for You Want Pies with That?

Real Housewives of Orange County Orange Jello Pie

First, let's all have a moment of silence for my oven. It finally died. Unfortunately, it died with a half baked Hummingbird cake inside it that I needed to bring to work. [You know those meltdowns that happen on reality TV competition shows (a la Project Runway) when the contestants are completely sleep-deprived and just crazy? Well, that happened.] I ended up buying some cakes instead. Sigh.

So, I bought a new range/oven today...it should be delivered on Friday. Very plain Maytag. But it has a window in the door so I'll be sitting in front of it for hours I'm sure.

Okay...to the pie! For this month's You Want Pies with That? challenge, the theme is: Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous Pie. If I had an oven, I was going to go for the Halle raspBerry Pie, but since I had to go with no bake...I went fake bake (with heavy emphasis on the FAKE)!

Presenting the Real Housewives of Orange County Orange Jello Pie. It's fake pie for all those fake boobs! (although the new one with the sick boyfriend 3x her age says hers are real)

The fake bake ingredients:

Keebler graham cracker crust.
Store brand gelatin box of lemon stuff.
"Whipped topping" (store brand Cool Whip stuff) - yes, full of oil and other chemicals.
Artificially flavored Orange gelatin cut into little squares.

I think Michael Pollan would agree that this is totally fake food! And it is perfect for the all the girls with their multiple collagen, botox and silicone injections!

By the way, I may mock but I can't turn away! I promised my friend's daughter that when she goes off to college, we are going to skype about it all the time (if I can figure out how to skype...) So I give you a reality TV salute to the Lifestyles of the Rich and Semi-Famous Housewives of the OC!

*** Edited to Add: OH MY GOSH! I brought this into work and my co-worker asked me about the orange circle on top. I said, "Yeah, It's an Orange for Orange County!" (I'm so clever, I think). But then she said it looked like a nipple!!!! Oh my gosh! That was NOT the intention at all! I'm horrified and feel like Elaine on that Seinfeld episode. So, take your mind out of the gutter, it's an orange piece of jello meant to represent the Orange in Orange County! ***

Check out the other creative pies from the You Want Pies with That? crew! And join in the fun!

It's Pi Day! Thin Mint Strawberry Pi (You Want Pie with That?)

Strawberry Mascarpone "Mint" Pi

It's Pi Day! (3/14 = 3.14)

To celebrate, the baking group You Want Pie with That? is posting their monthly pie selection today. This month's theme, selected by Elizabeth of Cake or Death, is Herbs and Spices.

I'm sure my other bakers are pulling out the mortar and pestle to grind cardamon pods, spent the month growing rosemary on their windowsill, or went to their Indian spice store.

Um, my herb is totally exotic.

It's pretty rare...only found in certain areas.
Like the delicate saffron, it is harvested by hand.
It's as addicting as the stuff they make from poppy seeds in Afghanistan.
The selling season is short and only sold by certain designated individuals.

My herb is the Girl Scout Thin Mint!
(Okay, it's a stretch, but I figure Pi day would appreciate the pun)

I took food processed about 1 1/2 sleeves of Thin Mints to make 1 1/2 cups of crumbs. (I didn't have enough so next time I would go for 2 cups of crumbs). Added 4 T (1/2 stick) of melted butter. Pressed into tart shell and baked 10 minutes at 350.

I blended an 8 ounce container of mascarone cream, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/3 c heavy cream, and 1 t vanilla for the filling.

California strawberries...yum!

Be sure to check out the other creative You Want Pie with That? bakers!

Literary Pie: Funny in Farsi Apple Rose Water Pie (You Want Pies with That?)

Literary Pie: Funny in Farsi Apple Rose Water Pie
Finished off with a sprinkle of pistachios and pomegranate molasses

This month’s theme for You Want Pies with That? was chosen by… ME!! I selected “Literary Pie” (really, what did you expect from The Food Librarian?). I also said you get bonus points from me if you use your library...and I read the most wonderful stories of trips to the library as both a child and adult from some bakers. (By the way, in these tough economic times, public libraries are busy. We offer entertainment to the whole family! DVDs, downloadable audiobooks, storytimes, magazines, book clubs, internet access, cultural programs, and so much more! Please support your library because as our usage sky-rockets, our budgets are taking a big hit. [Mary exiting her soap box now :) ])

For my pie, I selected the memoir, Funny in Farsi: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America by Firoozeh Dumas

This memoir chronicles Firoozeh’s experiences coming from Iran at age seven and settling in Whittier, California (a suburb of Los Angeles) in 1971. Written in short vignettes, she describes her experiences in this new county with her family (including being horrified when she thought we ate dogs in our “hot dogs”). Her father’s optimism and love of the United States (especially Walt Disney) is touching and hilarious. I couldn’t put it down and have loaned it out to everyone I know. All who have immigrant parents or grandparents can relate, regardless of their homeland.

Pomegranates are natives of Persia/Iran and are used in a lot of Persian cooking (I had a roommate and boss who were Iranian American). Oh man, I love Persian food. The rice dishes are sooooo delicious. If you get a chance to go to a restaurant, or better yet, get invited over to someone’s house, please try this delicious cuisine. Luckily, Los Angeles has a large concentration of Iranian Americans (did you know that Jimmy Delshad was the first Iranian American mayor of Beverly Hills?) and lots of Iranian stores and products (I love Mashti Malone’s saffron pistachio ice cream sandwiches).

I wanted to make the Citrus POM Tart with fresh pomegranates, but, wouldn’t you know it, Poms are out of season! (Rain check for next season). So I focused on another Persian flavor: Rose Water. I found this recipe for Apple Pie with Rose Water on the Food Network.

I made it with two granny smiths and one gala apple in a galette shape. I brushed the crush with some cream and sprinkled it with sanding sugar.

A huge thank you to all the people who baked along with me this month! It was such a thrill to choose a theme! I can’t wait to see the round-up of pies. You’ll be able to see them on the You Want Pies with That website soon!