1470. Fresh Peach Pie

While 2019 boasted an array of pies (see compilation here), there is always room for one more pie. But this here is no ordinary peach pie. It truly is the best peach pie I've ever made and ever tasted. It is just a bonus that it is no-bake (only the crust is baked). It is made of two slightly merging but completely independent and essential layers of peach: a sliced peach layer topped with a second cooked peach layer. The pie is not the same without those two layers.

The cooked layer is slightly thickened with cornstarch, but the set is a soft-set. I wish this pie was my brain-child, but this is a remake from here, with absolutely no changes except that I used my own crust recipe and added one more peach. If there is one perfect recipe to use up ripe fresh peaches, this is the one.

Ingredients:

For the crust:

1 1/4 cups flour

1 tsp powder sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup chilled butter, cut into cubes

3 Tbsp (about) ice water

For the filling:

 6 medium fresh peaches, divided

 1 cup sugar

 1/4 cup cornstarch

 1/4 cup cold water

 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract (can sub with almond extract)

 2 Tbsp butter

 Sweetened whipped cream, for serving

Method:

To make the crust: Blend flour, powder sugar, and salt in large bowl. Cut butter into flour mixture using pastry blender or fork. Stir in just enough water with fork until dough holds together.

Roll out the crust and line the bottom and sides of a 9-inch pie dish. Crimp the sides. With the tines of a fork, prick all over the bottom of the crust. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for an hour (or up to several days).

Preheat the oven to 350F. Gently press a piece of parchment paper or regular aluminum foil into the chilled pie shell and fill with dry beans or pie weights. Bake for 45-50 minutes, rotating halfway, until the crust is lightly golden and no longer doughy.

Remove the pie crust from the oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes. Carefully remove the parchment/foil and weights. Let the pie crust cool completely.

For the sliced peaches: peel three peaches and slice them thinly. Place the sliced peaches evenly over the bottom of the pie; it's ok to end up with a double layer. Set aside.

For the filling: peel the remaining three peaches, cut the peaches into chunks and put them in a medium saucepan. OFF HEAT, using a potato masher mash the peaches until juicy and the consistency of chunky applesauce (don't puree until smooth). You should end up with about 2 cups of mashed peaches.

Add the sugar, cornstarch, water, and lemon juice to the saucepan with the peaches. Stir to combine. Cook the mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom of the pan, for 5-6 minutes until large bubbles pop at the surface. Continue cooking until the mixture has thickened considerably. Scraping a spoon or spatula across the bottom of the saucepan should leave a defined path that doesn't fill in very quickly.

Off the heat, add the vanilla and butter stirring until the butter is melted and well-incorporated.

Pour the warm filling over the sliced peaches and spread evenly.

Refrigerate for at least 4 hours (or up to 24 hours) until the filling has cooled and is soft set. This pie can be made a day ahead of time.

Serve the pie with lightly sweetened whipped cream (spread the whipped cream over the pie before serving or serve slices of pie with a dollop of whipped cream on top).

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