Arlington cook and faithful Forum helper-outer Jean Kroeze rushes to the rescue again, telling us, “I checked my trusty 1963 copy of ‘Favorite Recipes of Home Economics Teachers’ and found what must be the recipe Martha Stewart in Silver City, N.M. is looking for. It’s from a teacher in Arkansas.”
Martha, you will remember, is the one who told us her daughter-in-law at Lake Stevens forwarded Forum columns to her, and added, “For years, I have been searching for the name of a pie recipe my mother used to make.
“She baked a pie shell, then filled it with dried apricots she had simmered in water, then mashed and added sugar to, then covered the fruit with a homemade vanilla custard mixture, and finally topped it with meringue and baked it until just golden brown.”
Martha said she would not only love to know the name of the pie, but would also like to have such a recipe. And, by golly, I believe Jean has really hit the nail on the head with the following how-to.
But wait a sec. Did you “put up” some apples last fall? While she was at it, Jean thoughtfully included a new and different apple pie recipe for us to try, too. She says this one is from Mississippi.
Apricot cream pie
1package dried apricots
1cup water
1cup sugar
Cream filling:
1/3cup cornstarch
2/3cup sugar
1/4teaspoon salt
2cups milk, scalded
3egg yolks, slightly beaten
2tablespoons margarine
1/2teaspoon vanilla
19-inch pie shell, baked and cooled
1cup heavy cream, whipped, OR meringue made with the 3 egg whites
In saucepan, cook dried apricots in the water until tender. Mash, then stir in sugar and set aside to cool. (Mixture should be the consistency of preserves.)
For the cream filling, in saucepan, mix together the cornstarch, sugar and salt; gradually add milk and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils; cook 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat and add a small amount of hot mixture to egg yolks, then stir yolk mixture back into hot mixture. Return to stove and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add margarine and vanilla and let cool slightly.
Pour half of the filling into the pie shell; spread with apricot mixture, then cover with remaining cream filling. Cool, refrigerate and serve topped with whipped cream. OR, prepare meringue according to a favorite recipe, using the leftover egg whites; spread on filling and bake. Cool and refrigerate.
Makes one 9-inch pie.
Southern apple cream pie
1whole egg
2egg yolks
11/4cups sugar
4tablespoons flour
1/4teaspoon salt
1cup canned apple slices
1/4cup milk
2tablespoons butter
1teaspoon vanilla
18-inch pie shell, baked
2egg whites, beaten until stiff
4tablespoons sugar
1/4teaspoon baking powder
In saucepan, beat whole egg and egg yolks until light and fluffy; add the 11/4 cups sugar, flour and salt. Mix in apples, milk and butter. Cook over low heat, stirring, until thick; remove from heat, add vanilla and pour into baked pie shell. Let cool.
Top cooled filling with meringue made by using the egg whites, to which have been added the remaining 4 tablespoons sugar and baking powder; brown meringue in slow (300 to 325 degrees) oven. Cool pie, then refrigerate.
Makes one 8-inch pie.
The Forum is always happy to receive your contributions and requests, so send them along to Judyrae Kruse at the Forum, c/o The Herald, P.O. Box 930, Everett, WA 98206.
Please remember that all letters and all e-mail must include a name, complete address with ZIP code and telephone number with area code. No exceptions and sorry, but no response to e-mail by return e-mail; send to kruse@heraldnet.com.
The next Forum will appear in Wednesday’s Food section.
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