Sometimes spending hours in the kitchen is a wonderful thing. Measuring, chopping, kneading, creating, tasting - it can be a day of satisfaction and enrichment.
Fact is, though, such days are few and far between for most of us. The holiday season is upon us, and there's barely time to plan a menu - much less spend hours making the culinary magic.Holiday Caramel-Pecan Pie and Orange-Pumpkin Pie are magic in reasonable time. Stirred up quickly and with little mess, these beautiful, rich desserts will simplify what many hold as the most important part of the holiday feast.
The Orange-Pumpkin Pie is just tinged with the citrus, actually. Two teaspoons of grated orange peel are just enough to bring new flavor and style to the classic Thanksgiving Day finale.
The recipe, passed from a friend, is stirred up in one bowl with a whisk or fork and then poured into a pie crust to bake.
Holiday Caramel-Pecan Pie has a dense, sinful filling of rich caramel holding together 2 cups of pecans. Everything from the eggs and corn syrup to the pecans is mixed in the food processor - which means that here, too, you have only one dish to clean. It comes from "Dessert in Half the Time" (Crown 1993), by Linda West Eckhardt and Diana Collingwood Butts, experts in shaving time and not results.
The quick and easy pie crust recipe is one I've used for several years. Four ingredients are whipped up in a food processor and then dumped into a pie pan and pressed into place. Notice what's missing: the rolling pin.
You can save even that little time and trouble by buying a prepared pie crust. I like the refrigerated ones that you take from the cellophane, unfold and place in a pan.
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(Recipes)
HOLIDAY CARAMEL-PECAN PIE
1 Easy Pie Crust (recipe follows)
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup dark corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 cup broken or coarsely chopped pecans
1 cup pecan halves
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Fit a 9-inch glass pie pan with the Easy Pie Crust, or use a prepared crust.
In a food processor fitted with a steel blade, add the eggs, sugar, corn syrup, flour, salt, vanilla and melted butter. Process for 15 seconds, until smooth. Add the pecans and, with a rubber spatula, stir to blend. Pour the filling into the prepared crust. Place pecan halves on top of pie.
Bake the pie on the middle rack of the preheated oven for 1 hour, until the edges of the pie are lightly browned and the top is puffed. Remove the pie to a rack and allow to cool to room temperature completely. Serve immediately, or the pie may be stored at room temperature for 2 to 3 days. Serves 8.
ORANGE-PUMPKIN PIE
1 Easy Pie Crust (recipe follows)
2 eggs, beaten
1 16-ounce can pumpkin puree
1 can sweetened uncondensed milk
2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ginger
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Fit a 9-inch pie pan with the Easy Pie Crust, or use a prepared crust.
In a bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well. Pour the filling into the crust.
Bake the pie on the middle rack of the preheated oven for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake another 40 to 50 minutes, until a knife inserted halfway into the middle of the pie comes out clean. Remove the pie to a rack and cool at least 20 minutes or to room temperature. The completely cooled pie may be covered with plastic wrap and stored in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days. Serves 8.
EASY PIE CRUST
11/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
2 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons sugar (optional)
Combine all ingredients in a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process until a dough begins to form and ingredients hold together when pinched between your fingers. Empty dough into a 9- or 10-inch pie pan that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Use your fingers to press the dough onto the bottom and sides of pan. Prick with a fork.