Strawberry Chocolate Chip Pie

The only thing wrong with fruit pies in my opinion is that they lack chocolate. This pie solves my dilemma perfectly by marrying ripe strawberries with their natural chocolatey partner. The end result leaves me with a bigger problem than I started with, a desire to never eat plain fruit pie again. My new mantra is "for best results-always add chocolate."

Fresh, sweet strawberries and chocolate chips baked until gooey inside flaky pie crust.
 
Strawberry Chocolate Chip Pie
makes 1-10" or 4-3" pies
dough:
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tbl organic cane sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup earth balance vegan butter, chilled and cubed
1/2 cup vegetable shortening, chilled and cubed
6-8 tbl ice water

In a food processor, combine the flour, sugar and salt. Add the butter and shortening and pulse into pea sized cubes. Slowly drizzle in the water, a little at a time just until the dough comes together.
Turn out on a counter and lightly knead completely together with your hands. Divide into two discs, wrap and chill for 1 hour.
Remove one of the discs and roll out thinly on a floured surface to fit the size of your pie pan. Trim the edges and chill until the filling is ready.

filling:
1lb fresh strawberries, small dice
1/2 cup organic cane sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 tbl lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp sea salt

Combine the strawberries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon, vanilla and salt in a small pot. Cook over medium heat stirring often and  bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes until the strawberries have started to break down and the mixture is thick.
Remove from the heat and let cool for at least 30 minutes. Add the chocolate chips and stir to combine.
Pour the filling in the chilled pie crust and top with the remaining pie dough. Crimp the edges and brush the top with water. Sprinkle with a little sugar and pierce the top to allow stem to vent.
Bake at 350 for 40 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the filling has bubbled.
For best results-freeze the pie completely then bake directly from the freezer. This way the crust will stay perfectly in tact and will not shrink or warp.

As American as...Cherry pie!

The 4th of July means one thing, barbecues!
Since we got invited to this one this year I decided to make some pie. I'm not a huge fan of just eating cherries on their own but I can get behind any kind of baked good with cherries in them.
These little pies are brimming with fresh cherries and a hint of orange, a hazlenut crumb topping and flaky pie crust.




Pie Filling
4 cups fresh or frozen tart cherries
1 to 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tbl orange zest and the juice of one orange
In a sauce pan combine all filling ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 10 min until cherries have broken down a bit and the sauce has thickened. Remove from heat and cool.

Pie Crust
1/2c earth balance margarine, cold and cubed
1/2c shortening, cold and cubed
1 tbl sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 1/2c ap flour
1/2c ice cold water
In a food processor, combine flour, salt and sugar. Add butter and shortening and pulse until butter is the size of peas. Add water, a tablespoon at a time until dough comes together but do not overmix! Dough should be soft but not sticky. Shape dough into a disc, wrap and freeze for 30 minutes.

Hazlenut crumb topping
1c ap flour
1c hazelnuts, toasted
1/2c brown sugar
1/2c earth balance margarine, cold and cubed
In a food processor pulse flour, brown sugar and hazelnuts. Add butter and pulse until crumbly. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Assembly
Pre heat oven to 350
Roll out pie dough and place in the bottom of a greased pie shell. Add pie weights or dried beans on top of wax paper to weigh down the dough. Par bake for 15 minutes. Remove weights and add filling and top with crumble. Bake until filling is bubbling and topping is browned..45 min. Let cool completely before serving.