Social Kitchen

So, people.  I’ve decided to become a vegan.  No, no, not forever.  But for a month.  It’s the month long vegan challenge!  I’ve done it before, quite successfully, in fact.  But this time, for some reason, I think it will be harder.

For one, I’m going to do this right through the holidays.  So holiday parties are pretty much going to be a nightmare: candy and cookies and chocolate, galore!  Can’t have any of it.  Second, as soon as I decided to do this, all I could think about was cheese.  This was not a good sign.  I immediately looked up recipes for parmesan crisps, and cheese straws.  I even thought about making a cheese ball as my last hurrah!

But I decided on something a little more subtle and a bit more classy, if you will.  A quick bread filled with two full cups of different cheeses.  Delicious, especially toasted with a smear of soft goat cheese on top.  Don’t worry – you won’t have to go through this vegan challenge with me (but I will send good vegan vibes your way, if you do!).  I have some delicious, dairy-filled holiday recipes coming your way.  But me, I will miss my cheese.  Oh and ice cream.  Oooh, I think I’ll go have some now before the month starts.

Non Vegan Cheese Bread (slightly adapted from Cook’s Illustrated)

No, people, I’m not against vegans.  That’s why I want to become one for a month!  Dairy-less holiday treats are just as tasty.  But I’ve already made some with the milk and eggs!  That’s why I’m promising you those posts.  So there.  That’s what I call a disclaimer.

On to the cheese: the recipe calls for cubing the cheese, which is oh-so-lovely when you come upon a chunk and it’s just all of this cheesy gooeyness that consumes the bite.  Yum.  But what about the rest of the bites?!  So I’m gonna be bold and suggest shredding the cheese.  For equal opportunity cheesy bites.

1 cup shredded parmesan cheese

3 cups all purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. salt

4 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded or cubed

1 1/4 cups milk

4 tablespoons butter, melted, divided

1 egg, beaten

3/4 cup Greek yogurt

Preheat oven to 350.  Brush a 5 x 9 loaf pan with 1 tablespoon butter.  Sprinkle half of the parmesan cheese to coat the pan.

Whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and salt.  Fold in cheddar cheese, making sure that the cheese is well coated by the flour mixture.

In another bowl, whisk together milk, 3 tablespoons butter, egg and yogurt.  Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients, and pour in wet ingredients.  Gently fold until everything is well incorporated, making sure that you do not overmix.  The mixture will be very thick.

Pour into prepared pan, and spread evenly.  Sprinkle the remaining parmesan cheese on top.  Bake for 40-45 minutes, until a toothpick tester comes out clean.  Let cool in pan, on wire rack, for 15 minutes, and then invert on to wire rack to cool completely.

My favorite holiday is coming up!  And if you’re like me, you’re still finalizing your menu.  Just to add to the list of last minute Thanksgiving ideas from last year, here are a couple new favorites from 2012 that you may have time to add to the Thanksgiving table this year!

Appetizers and Side Dishes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Butternut Squash Soup 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Asparagus Tarts with Roasted Grape Salad

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ratatouille Tart

Desserts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Date Butter Tart

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Honey Cake

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Banoffee Pie

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apple Pie

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pumpkin Cheesecake Blondies

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pecan Pie Pops

Breakfast for the next day!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apple Cider Doughnuts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hot Chocolate Popovers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Banana Bread

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sticky Buns

Happy cooking!  And, happy Thanksgiving!

Can we all agree that making things small just make them more desirable to eat?  And propping them on a skewer just puts them over the top.  I don’t know what it is about either of these two qualities that make food more appealing.  Is it the hands-free bonus?  Is it the one-bite wonder?  Are they just more festive?!  I’m not going to lie – whatever it is, I’ve bought into it too.

What I also know is that these pie pops are great for a party!  Or a big dinner…say, Thanksgiving!  They’re so easy – just like making any ol’ pie, but people will just love you so much more for making these so darn cute!  And it’s so nice to be loved, isn’t it?

Oh and they feed a crowd.  Did I mention that little gem?  And they don’t even have to be sweet.  Remove the sugar from the crust recipe, and fill with a savory filling: mushrooms and cheese?!  Tomato and basil?!  The list can go on.  I think I just figured out the appeal!  Make these and then come back tomorrow for more last minute Thanksgiving ideas!

Pecan Pie Pops

I used my go-to pie crust recipe, but you can obviously also use store-bought dough.

Make your pie crust as directed, divide it into two discs, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 2 hours.  While chilling, make the pie filling.

Filling (adapted from here)

1/4 cup maple syrup + 1 tbsp. brown sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tablespoon cornstarch
3/4 cup chopped pecans
1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract)

In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, vigorously whisk together the maple syrup, brown sugar, milk, salt, and cornstarch, so that there are no lumps of starch remaining. Cook until the mixture comes up to a lively bubble, whisking constantly.  Once fully boiling and significantly thickened, turn off the heat and fold in the pecan pieces and vanilla. Cool completely and set aside.

For Pie Pops

1 recipe pie dough

1 recipe pecan pie filling

1 egg

2 tbsp. milk

1/4 cup turbinado sugar

Preheat oven to 375.  To make pie pops, roll out one disc of pie dough until it’s about 1/8 inch thick.  With a two inch biscuit cutter, cut out circles, gathering and rerolling scraps as needed.  Spoon about 1 tsp. of filling on half of the circles.  Top with the another circle, pinching the ends to seal.  Using a fork, press the ends shut, making crimp marks.

Place all of the pies onto a parchment lined baking sheet.  Brush each one with an egg wash of 1 egg + 2 tbsp. milk.  Sprinkle with turbinado sugar.  With a knife, make slits on top of each pie to allow the steam to escape.  Bake for about 30 minutes, or until golden brown.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  To make into pie pops, insert a skewer in the middle, while cooling.

So with the late realization of fall almost being over, Thanksgiving being a week away, and Diwali being a month later than usual this year, there are a lot of sweets in my house.  Not that I’m complaining.

I have been talking about making thor (pronounced with a hard t, like in “take” rather than, say, the movie “Thor” with Brad Pitt…you see?), for a very very long time.  It used to be a Diwali staple, but it’s a sweet so simple that it has been overtaken by fancier, trendier desserts that are just as delicious, but not what I was looking for this year.  And because I’m nostalgic and have an aversion to change, this is all I wanted.

But old recipes tend to not be on the internet as much.  And whenever I asked anyone in my family, my mom, my aunts, my grandmother, they would give me the exact recipe by saying “you know you have enough flour when it just feels right in your hands,” which was…helpful.  So after deciphering what my family was saying, going through many recipes that seemed similar, and watching a video of a slightly awkward online Indian cooking show, I finally reached my lovely Diwali nostalgic feeling.  That’s all I was looking for.

Thor

Like in most Indian sweets, cardamom is quite common in thor as well.  But as I’ve said before, I’m not the biggest fan of cardamom, especially in my Indian desserts.  I like my thor extremely simple (remember – nostalgia), but if you want to jazz it up a bit, feel free to add a pinch of cardamom, and maybe even a splash of rose water, and a few threads of saffron to the glaze.

1.5 cups white whole wheat flour

1/3 cup ghee, or clarified butter

1/2 cup milk, divided

1/2 cup ghee, for frying

For glaze:

1 cup sugar

3 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon milk

In a large bowl, rub in the ghee into the whole wheat flour so you can clump it together, but a dough has not yet formed.  Using a tablespoon at a time, incorporate the milk into the dough, as needed, until a stiff but workable dough has been made.  Cover and let it rest for about an hour.

Divide dough into golfball size rounds.  Roll each out until they are about 2 inches in diameter, and about 1/8 inch thick.  Prick each side of each round with a fork several times, to make sure that they do not puff up when frying.

Heat ghee over medium heat in a a vessel you’re comfortable frying in.  Test to see if the ghee is hot enough by throwing in a sprinkle of flour.  If it sizzles, the ghee is ready.  Gently place in several rounds, making sure not to overcrowd the pan.  Fry on one side for about 2 minutes, and then flip and do the same, until the thor have turned a golden brown temperature.

Drain on a paper towel, and continue until all of the thor have been fried.  Place on a wire rack and allow to cool completely.

To make the glaze, place sugar and water into a pot, and heat over high heat, stirring constantly until the sugar is completely dissolved.  You don’t want to caramelize the sugar, so stir continuously.  When you can feel no more grains, add milk, stir and take off the heat.

Drop the thor into the glaze, turning over to make sure that they are completely coated, and return back to wire rack.  Continue until all of the thor have been coated.  Let the glaze set for about an hour.

 

Is it me or did 2012 go by faster than a normal year?  How are we already less than 2 weeks away from Thanksgiving?!  Usually at this time, I have my Thanksgiving menus in place, have tried out the pies I’m planning on making, and am planning my holiday cookie schedule.  Instead, I haven’t even cracked open a can of pumpkin yet!

When I did finally realize that my favorite season was just passing me by, I decided to make these pumpkin bars.  In fact, I was so excited to get my fall baking started more than a month late that when I reached for the spices, instead of the ginger, I used some garlic.  Let’s just say that the situation wasn’t good.  I clearly have lost my fall baking mojo.

This is what happens when the whole year just passes you by, when you realize that it’s already the middle of November and you have so much to catch up on!  I hope you haven’t made the same mistake as me.  In more ways than one.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Blondies

Most pumpkin bars or blondies are cakey, which is delicious, but shouldn’t have a “bar” name.  These, though, are not.  They’re dense and chewy and a bar.  There we go.  And, fine, you’re right.  I have made almost the same thing before.  With almost the same name.  But pumpkin with cheesecake!  Can you blame me?

Blondies (adapted from Brown Eyed Baker)

2½ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
1 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 (15-ounce) can pure pumpkin puree (about 2 cups)

Cheesecake Topping (from Cookie Madness)

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

1 large egg

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9×13-inch baking pan.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, pumpkin pie spice and salt; set aside.

3. In another bowl, make cheesecake topping by mixing all of the ingredients together thoroughly.

4. In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter and both sugars until completely smooth and no lumps remain. Add the egg and vanilla and whisk to incorporate, making sure the egg has been completely mixed in. Add the pumpkin and again whisk to fully incorporate. Add the flour mixture to the batter and fold the mixtur until combined and no pockets of flour remain. Dollop with cheesecake topping and using a butter knife, swirl the cheesecake topping into the pumpkin blondie mixture.

5. Bake until a thin knife inserted into the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes minutes. Set the pan on a wire rack to cool completely.

You know when you just keep putting things off for no reason whatsoever?  They usually are the simplest tasks too, like writing an email, or making a phone call.  But for some reason, you just can’t do it.  That’s what happened to me.  I had made homemade Twix candy bars to post on Halloween!  How perfect!  How fitting!  How tasty!  But I just didn’t upload the photos onto my computer.

Which normally wouldn’t matter, because I could just upload them on the day I wanted to post about them.  That was yesterday.  I really should have thought ahead because sometimes little storms named Sandy turn into superstorms, and leave you having to evacuate your home for days at a time, allowing for no time to do the things you put off for so long.  My place of evacuation happened to lose power as well, because remember, this storm was super, and all I could think of was why I didn’t  just upload my pictures of homemade candy when I had the chance.

But there’s a silver lining in everything.  Power was restored in my place of evacuation!  And you get a back-logged recipe of a delicious and extremely easy pizza dough that I made several weeks ago.  The only bad news is that I made a double recipe of this dough – the other part is sitting in the freezer of my lonely, non-powered, evacuated home.  I will probably have to make this again.

Simple Pizza Dough (recipe from Kelsey’s Essentials)

The pizza I made with this delicious dough was a tad makeshift.  Which is the way to go for hurricane season, but I’ll give you the gist of it anyway.  I took a quarter of the dough, rolled it out as thin as possible, and laid it on a cornmeal dusted baking pan.  I spread some herby goat cheese on the dough, and then layered with blanched kale and sliced crookneck squash (quickly mixed with a little brown sugar and salt).  I then layered a bit of cheese on top (I really don’t remember the name of it.  It was fancy and too expensive, and therefore must have been delicious) and baked in a 375 degree oven (usually pizzas are baked at a higher temperature, around 450, but remember my fiasco from last week?!), for about 25 minutes for a perfectly thin and crunchy crust.  Yum.

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups warm water

1 envelope active dry yeast (or rapid rise yeast)

2 tsp. sugar

3 tablespoons olive oil

4 cups bread flour, plus more for kneading and dusting

2 tsp. salt

non-stick spray

Directions

In a small bowl, combine the warm water, yeast and sugar. Allow the yeast to dissolve bubble up, about 5 minutes, then add olive oil.

Meanwhile, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour and salt. Stream in the water/yeast mixture.  As the dough begins to come together, switch to a dough hook attachment. Allow the dough to knead, on medium speed, adding a bit more flour if needed, so that the dough releases from the sides of the bowl, 1 to 3 minutes. You should be able to touch the dough and not have the dough stick to your fingers. Once the dough has kneaded and has pulled away from the sides of the bowl, remove the dough from bowl to a floured work surface and, with floured hands, continue to knead it by hand for 1 to 2 minutes until smooth. Then form the dough into a round ball and place it into a large bowl sprayed with nonstick spray. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a clean dish towel and let the dough rise in a warm area until it doubles in size, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. After the dough has risen it is ready to be used or frozen!

I’m just gonna put it out there.  I’m awkward with kids.  I mean, I’m probably not as awkward as I think I am, but in my head, no one can be more awkward.  So when I was invited to a 2 year old’s birthday party, I had a slight panic attack.  Do I shake the kid’s hand?! (No, said my sister).  Do I bring a present?! (Of course, said my mom).  Do I just hand the gift to the kid when I get there?! (Do you know how little a 2 year old’s hands are, said my dad).  So I prepped and rehearsed and was semi ready.  But I also knew that I would have to do something that would impress the adults a bit more, because my interaction with the children just wasn’t going to cut it.

So I decided to make homemade goldfish crackers!  What could be better – a nostalgic, kid-friendly treat that’s made at home!  The other guests would be so impressed!  I had it in the bag.  And that’s when there was a fire in my oven.  I can’t tell you how it happened, but all I know was all of a sudden, there was so much smoke in my apartment that I couldn’t even find the oven door.  My little gold fishies ended up looking like this:

Not impressive.  The one batch that did survive was delicious.  Like little fish-shaped cheese pastries.  But I didn’t have enough to take to the party.  When the smoke cleared and the fire department left, I had no choice but to buy a baked good item in shame and take myself over to the party.  Turns out that kids are not that hard to please.  Laugh at them and they laugh back.  Make a funny face and you’re in.  The adults on the other hand, I owe them some homemade goldfish crackers.

Homemade Goldfish Crackers (slightly adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

Want to make other homemade nostalgic treats?  You have so many options!  How about some oreos?  Or graham crackers?  Soft pretzels?  Or my personal favorite – samoas!

1 1/2 cups shredded orange sharp cheddar
4 tablespoons butter, cold is fine, cut into cubes
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 tsp. salt

Combine all ingredients in a food processor, running the machine until the dough forms a ball, about two minutes.  You can also do this by hand, like I did, if your food processor has temporarily decided to shut down, by cutting in the butter with a fork and kneading the dough until it comes together.

Chill the dough in the fridge for 30 to 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350.

On a lightly floured surface, using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough out 1/8-inch thick. Cut out shapes with cookie cutter, dipped in flour.  If you’re making goldfish, take a skewer and poke out an “eye” (this sounds violent – it’s really not), and with a toothpick, carve out a little smile.  Transfer to a parchment paper lined baking sheet.   Hope for no fires, and bake for 12 minutes, or until they are ever-so-slightly browned on the edges.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

There are some foods that are on my baking wish list.  I have been really wanting to make a crepe cake lately.  Without reason, really, as I’ve never made a single crepe before.  Nor do I really love crepes (I know…gasp!).  Or obviously, I have been wanting to get on the French macaron bandwagon.  Which, I’m not going to lie about – I’ve tried to make several different times now, but each time they have melded into 1 single cookie sheet o’ macaron.  Which, as you may imagine, simply does not photograph well.

But the dish that I have been eyeing forever, and I really mean a long long time, has been cinnamon rolls.  I would always think that it would take too long, or it would be wasted effort.  But then I would just sit there, imagining what warm, homemade cinnamon rolls would taste like, and I would start bookmarking recipes all over again.  People, I have over 70 recipes of cinnamon rolls bookmarked.  And I haven’t tried a single one.  Intimidation, maybe?

Well, you will be happy to know that I conquered my fears!  And not even with cinnamon rolls – I did one better with sticky buns.  Caramel sauce!  Pecans!  Flipping the buns over before eating!  These are like the more popular version of their cinnamon roll cousin.  I basically rolled over (ha!  “rolled”) the breakfast of my dreams to make the dreamiest breakfast ever.  I haven’t deleted the 70 recipes yet, though – cinnamon rolls haven’t been crossed off the baking wish list quite yet.  Maybe after the crepe cake.

Sticky Buns (ever so slightly adapted Flour via Food Network)

For Caramel Sauce

• 3/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• scant 1/3 cup honey
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

For Buns

• 1/2 recipe of Basic Brioche Dough, recipe follows
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup pecan halves, toasted and chopped

• 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more if needed
• 2 1/4 cups bread flour
• 1 1/2 packages (3 1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast o
• 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1/2 cup cold water
• 5 eggs
• 1 3/8 cups (2 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into 10 to 12 pieces

Nope.  I wasn’t kidding.  The apple-fest continues.  And this apple butter recipe uses seven and a half pounds of apples, so, really can you blame me for making this?

The good thing is that this recipe isn’t so much about the apples as it is about the vehicle to eat the apples: brioche.  I have explained my woes with yeast in the past, and have even overcome some issues I’ve had with it.  But this had to be a no-fail situation for me.  It had to work.  I mean, brioche!  You know what I’m saying: sweet, eggy, buttery bread that’s light and fluffy and just perfect.  And once you master brioche, think about the possibilities: sticky buns, brioche filled with pastry cream, rolled in cinnamon sugar.  Yum.  I really thought that yeast would give me a break and let me win this one.

It did not.  My brioche did not rise.  It was neither light nor fluffy.  It was dense and crumbly and, dare I say, even slightly dry.

People, it was delicious.  The lesson of the day is, even though yeast may not be your friend, and may even hate you, if you use it in a recipe that also calls for 5 whole eggs and 3 sticks of butter, well, whatever you are making is just gonna be divine.  It was pound-cakey and sweet and just lovely.  Lightly toasted with a slather of apple butter, and you are simply in breakfast heaven.

Brioche

(recipe from Flour via Food Network)

I spent a good majority of a morning and afternoon making this brioche dough.  Spent another half day actually baking it.  And after all of that, still lost my ongoing battle with yeast.  So no, I will not be taking the time to rewrite the recipe here.  Because I’m tired!  And defeated!  (Even though the bread was quite tasty.)  The link will take you exactly where you need to be.  And you follow those directions and have faith that you will overpower the yeast.

The apple butter, on the other hand, did not take too long to make.  I lie, it took 6 hours.  Time consuming, but not labor intensive.  And with only several ingredients, I’m more than happy to type here.

And to continue with this tangential passage, you will be happy to know that even though my brioche did not turn out in the most…traditional of manners, this actually did not matter when turned it into an aforementioned brioche treat!  I speak from experience.  You just stay tuned.

Apple Butter

7-8 pounds of apples, a variety, peeled, cored and diced into 2 inch pieces

2 cups apple cider

scant 1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. all spice

In a large stock pot, cook the apples and apple cider on medium low to low heat for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.  The apples will create a lot of liquid, boil up and then settle.  Add sugar and spices, and continue to cook on low for an additional 3 hours until the apple butter turns a deep brown, caramel color.  Adjust spices and sweetness as necessary.  Blend with immersion blender, or let cool slightly and blend in blender.  Or do neither because you are tired from all the brioche making and apple picking and enjoy the slight chunkiness.

As you may recall, the last time we went apple picking, I went a little overboard.  I get that it’s hard not to.  You drive 2 hours out of the way just to pick apples, you start picking them, and you just..can’t..stop.  This year, I swore that we would control ourselves.  Let’s enjoy the nice day!  Let’s sip on some apple cider!  Let’s just grab a few apples to munch on while we’re at the farm!  This, my friends, is what we came back with:

I mean, you honestly give up on the idea of controlling yourself as soon as you get to the farm.  You look at all the varieties of apples and just get giddy!  As you fill your bags and buckets, you start thinking about the amount of apples you’ll need for apple butter.  Then you think that putting some homemade applesauce in cakes is not a bad idea.  And then you imagine the apple cake that you will use the applesauce in.  …All recipes forthcoming.

For the time being, I went with the classic.  Juicy, sweet, spiced apples in an almondy, buttery crust.  I haven’t had apple pie in a while, and I’m now thinking that I may just use the rest of the apples to just keep making more.  Or maybe I’ll just go back to the farm.

Apple Pie (adapted from Simply Recipes)

For Crust:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
• 1/2 cup almond flour, or finely ground almonds
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes, chilled in freezer for at least 15 minutes
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 heaping teaspoon brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 3 tbsp. ice cold water

For Filling:

• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3 pounds apples, peeled and cored, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For Crust: Place all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl.  Roughly mix to incorporate.  Distribute the butter evenly into the dry ingredients and mix together with two forks, rubbing the butter into the dry ingredients until the butter is the size of peas.  Drizzle the water over the dough and quickly fold together until a dough forms together.  If it still seems too dry, add another tablespoon of water.  Quickly form into a ball, and split in half to form 2 discs.  Wrap each disc in plastic wrap and place in refrigerator for about an hour.

For Filling: Mix together the apples, sugars, spices, flour, lemon juice, and vanilla, until everything is well combined, and every piece of apple is coated.  Set aside.

Arrange an oven rack to the bottom third of oven.  Preheat oven to 375.  Take both discs of dough out of the oven.  Using a floured surface and floured rolling pin, carefully roll out one disc to about an 11 or 12 inch circle.  Carefully lift into pie pan and press down on bottom and sides of pan.

Fill the bottom crust with pie filling, spreading evenly.  Roll out second disc of crust, to the same size as first.  Gently lay on top of filling, crimping the edges of the pan.  Cut slits on top pit crust, allowing the steam to escape.

Bake at 375 for 20 minutes.  Turn the oven down to 350, and bake for another 1 hour to 1 hour, 15 minutes, until the top crust is golden brown.  Let pie cool for 3-4 hours before cutting into it.