Shoofly Pie

  • Shoofly Pie

    I have been wanting to make Shoofly Pie for years and years, mostly because of the name.  I can admit that.  (You have to say the name with a southern accent, too- the same one you use when you say Key Lime Pie.)

    I stumbled upon a Shoofly Pie recipe in a book that my friend Lee gave me approximately a thousand years ago, and logged it away in my head as a “must bake one day recipe”- but not as a “must bake this weekend recipe”.   I admit, the more obvious and glamorous desserts often take center stage, like the Chocolate Banana Cupcakes with Chocolate Banana Truffle Frosting… or the Ganache-Stuffed Fudge Brownies.  The more unique recipes take a backseat, like Shoofly Pie.  Let’s be honest, dessert eaters: a pie made with molasses as the starring role isn’t going to win over a crowd.  And we like to make desserts that lots of people love, not just the few that happen to be off kilter and like weird ingredients.  But sometimes we have to make weird shit, because sometimes molasses is good in a starring role, and sometimes pies with names like Shoofly just beg to be made.

    So here’s what I’ll say.  If you know you don’t like molasses, then click here to immediately leave this page and find another recipe that will make you and your loved ones happy.  If you don’t mind molasses, or if you love it (for real?  you love molasses?), then give this pie a try.  The molasses layer gets kind of custardy and the topping sinks into the pie to create a cakey texture throughout.  Kind of cool.

    Adapted from Martha Stewart’s recipe…

    CRUST

    1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling

    1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

    1 teaspoon granulated sugar

    1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, very cold and cut into small pieces

    3 to 5 tablespoons ice water

    TOPPING

    1 cup all-purpose flour

    3 tablespoons salted butter, very cold and cut into small pieces

    3/4 cup light brown sugar

    FILLING

    1 teaspoon baking soda

    2/3 cup boiling water

    3/4 cup unsulfured molasses

    1/3 cup sugar

    1 egg, lightly beaten

    1. CRUST:
      1. In a food processor, pulse flour, salt, and sugar until combined.  Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, with a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining.
      2. Sprinkle with 3 tablespoons ice water and pulse until dough is crumbly but holds together when squeezed (if necessary, add up to 2 tablespoons water, 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing to incorporate).  Be careful not to over mix.
      3. Form dough into a disk, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm (at least 1 hour or up to overnight).
    2. Preheat oven to 375°.  On a floured work surface, roll out dough to a 12″ circle and place in a 9″ pie plate.  Trim excess dough*, and crimp edges.  Place in fridge until ready to pour filling in.
    3. TOPPING:  In clean bowl of food processor, pulse flour, butter, and brown sugar until combined.  Set aside.
    4. FILLING:  In a medium bowl, combine baking soda with boiling water and whisk to dissolve.  Whisk in molasses, sugar, and egg until combined.  
    5. Fill crust with molasses mixture, then sprinkle crumb mixture evenly over top (quite a bit will sink into filling).  Place pie on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until set in middle, 45 – 50 minutes.  Allow to cool/set for 1 hour.

    Tips:

    • What’s with the name?  Back in the day in the Amish community of Pennsylvania they made this and apparently had to shoo flies away from it.  (So says the world wide web.)
    • *You might end up with extra pie filling, so just make a baby pie (if you have a small pie plate that’s about 4″ or so), or make an impromptu treat by brushing the rolled-out scraps with butter, then sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and bake until golden brown.  Or you could just freeze the scraps for later.  But never throw out perfectly good pie dough, okay?
    • Pour filling into pie shell PDQ.  I let the filling sit as I made the topping, and any of the bubbles/thickness created from the baking soda fizzled into nothingness.  All you need to do is have the tart shell ready, make the topping before the filling (as instructed), and use the filling right away.  Unlike I did here.
    • Some of the filling will ooze up as you sprinkle the topping over top.  It is normal and will actually look amusing to see a bubbling filling seep out of the crevasses between the flour-sugar-butter sprinkles.  (By the way- the filling will be totally dry and you’ll wonder why you’re basically sprinkling what looks like flour over the top of the pie.  Just do it.)
    • Serve warmed or at room temperature.  I strongly recommend eating this pie with a huge scoop of vanilla ice cream, or whipped cream on top.
    • Yes, this pie freezes well!  Wrap tightly and thaw in the fridge.  Reheat in microwave or oven on a low heat for a few minutes…

     

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    March 1st, 2014 | More Sweets Please | No Comments | Tags:

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