Make Ahead

I discovered this pie while in Maine on summer vacation and could hardly wait to get back to my own kitchen to re-create it. It offers all of the comfort of Chicken Pot Pie (page 153), but with a rich, elegant lobster twist. It’s hard to go wrong with chunks of lobster immersed in a creamy sauce and flaky pastry.

This pie combines all the gooey goodness of s’mores—chocolate, marshmallow vanilla cream, and toasted marshmallows—wrapped up in a graham cracker shell. The only part of the camping experience you’ll miss is the smell of the fire (and maybe a few mosquito bites!).

For as long as I can remember, tiramisù has been my favorite non-pie dessert. This pie has all the rich elegance and sophistication of the beloved Italian treat, plus a flaky pastry piecrust to add yet another element to this layered dessert.

This is a unique pie because it’s not baked, thus allowing the strawberries to hold their shape and maintain their delicious fresh taste. With its combination of fresh strawberries, cream filling, and a strawberry glacé on top, this pie is perfect for a picnic or potluck gathering. Please note that the glacé part of this recipe should be made at least 4 hours (and up to 4 days) before the rest of the pie so that it has time to set.

Think of this pie as Pumpkin Pie’s cousin. The creamy potato puree (best when made from locally grown sweet potatoes) makes for a dense, sweet pie. Like pumpkin pie, this southern staple has a deep, rich orange color that, topped with a dollop of Whipped Cream (page 193) or cinnamon ice cream, makes for a beautiful centerpiece to your holiday dessert table.

This pie allows for indulgence in a sweet treat. Blueberries pack enough flavor that you’ll never even know that traditional sugar is missing.

Around here, National Pie Day (January 23) is like Christmas, Hanukkah, and Thanksgiving rolled up into one! Every year on this holy pie day, I like to do something special. In 2009 I decided National Pie Day would be the perfect opportunity to roll out a line of sugar-free pies. Incorporating Splenda into the sugarfree pies allows you to undulge in a sweet treat while limiting your sugar intake. Sugarfree apple pies have been flying off the shelves ever since—a great way to savor apple pie minus the guilt.

In my family my grandmother set the bar very high for the perfect, flaky piecrust. Throughout my childhood, I watched her deftly form balls of dough and then flatten them out into what would ultimately be a flawless, golden crust. This recipe is based on my grandma’s time-tested recipe, with a few minor alterations I’ve made over the years. The two biggest tricks to making a great crust are to not overhandle the dough and to carefully monitor the dough mixture as you add ice-cold water, to ensure you achieve the desired consistency. I prefer to make crust by hand, rather than using a food processor because a processor can overblend the shortening which can prevent the water from being evenly absorbed. The result is a tougher crust. Throughout this book, recipes will call for unbaked, prebaked, and partially baked piecrusts, but all will follow the recipe below, with varying specific cooking instructions.

Using only cake flour produces a cupcake that has a pure-white crumb.

This dough yields enough to make any of the recipes in this chapter that call for it. The shape of your tart—round, square, or rectangular—should determine how you form the dough in the final step.

This dough gets its texture from a combination of butter and shortening.

This tart can be made a day ahead and kept at room temperature, loosely covered with plastic wrap. Reheat in a 300°F oven until warmed through.

These shapes are used to top the Petits Fours (page 192). Use the same set of cutters for the cakes and the cutouts.

You can assemble this showstopping dessert up to eight hours ahead of serving; leave off the last layer of cream and fruit, and refrigerate along with the partially assembled cake. Just before serving, top the cake with the remaining cream and berries, and garnish with the mint leaves. If you can’t find beautiful small strawberries, halve or quarter larger ones.

The combination of cake flour and all-purpose flour produces a very tender crumb. You will need a paper cornet to pipe the dots and lines of lemon curd that top the buttercream frosting. Fully decorated, the cake looks fresh and whimsical-a perfect choice for a birthday party, baby shower, or other celebration.

This is the kind of classic, all-American layer cake that birthday memories are made of. It’s guaranteed to please a crowd.

These elegant cookies, found in nearly every pastry shop in Paris, have a crisp exterior and a slightly chewy center.

Nonstick baking mats will help these crunchy cookies bake evenly and hold their shape. Once the batter is made, it can be kept in the refrigerator, covered with plastic, for up to five days. Bring it to room temperature before using.

It’s best to bake these cookies on cool, dry days so they can form and retain a curved shape. Because they are fragile, first line airtight containers with several layers of paper towels, then lay tuiles on top, in one layer, without crowding.