Queezle_Sister's Reviews
12 recipe(s) reviewed. Showing 1 to 12Sort by: Title 
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The Pie and Pastry Bible
By Rose Levy Beranbaum
Scribner - 1998
Buttermilk Chess Pie : page 197
Despite my errors, this pie was very delicious.
In honor of Pi day, I wanted a mathematical pie, and was pleased to think of Chess Pie. This is an old American recipe - prepared with buttermilk, an acid (here lemon juice but other chess pie recipes use vinegar), butter, sugar, and flavoring (lemon zest and nutmeg).
I am embarrassed to admit that I used a store-bought crust (I'm very busy with work). I blind-baked it, and then brushed egg white over it. This worked beautifully and should have protected the crust from getting soggy.
In preparing the custard I forgot to add the cornstarch. This resulted in a custard that tended to separate and weep liquid. The pie crust ended up soggy, but my DH and kids still loved it.
useful (0)
Classic Lemon Curd : page 568
I have prepared this twice, and both times, it transported me to lemon heaven.
I considered trying the lemon curd recipe in Dorrie Greenspan's "around my french table", but instead stayed with this recipe. Why? I'm sure Dorrie Greenspan's is delicious, but it did not call for lemon zest. Dorrie's is probably easier - it uses whole eggs rather than just yolks, and it adds a bit of corn syrup. It also uses a bit less butter. Some day I will try it, but the recipe from the Pie and Pastry Bible is absolutely dependable, and just about the best thing ever.
useful (2)
Light crispy meringue - this well written recipe was easy to follow. I followed Rose's advice and used a pastry bag to pipe a spiral of meringue in a pie shell. I had a bit of trouble with air pockets, but largely smoothed them out with a spatula. Two hours of baking at 200˚, and its done.
I like this option for a fat-free crust. However, I had a lot of trouble serving the pie, as the crust didn't release easily from the pie pan. I did grease the pan with a bit of canola oil, but clearly that was not sufficient. I guess make sure you apply plenty of oil - or is there a secret I do not know about??
useful (1)
Escargot Puffs : page 547
My 17 yr old son needed a French Cultural project for school, and lucky us - he wanted to cook! When he decided to try this recipe, I was a bit worried. However he did an excellent job with NO HELP from me at all.
This produced lovely light puffs. We did not do the variation with truffle oil, instead used the garlic butter. These seemed light as a feather, with a bold garlic flavor. Crunchy outside, and sorta weird inside.
I'd be delighted to have my son prepare these again!
useful (0)
Flaky Cream Cheese Pie Crust : page 29
Pie crust intimidates me, but the steady guidance from Rose Beranbaum allowed me to prepare a beautiful crust. Preparation was a bit of a drawn out affair - with frozen butter and flour, etc. I used the food processor method, and the instructions were flawless. I use a plastic sheet to roll out my dough - it has circles printed on it for a size guide. The crust rolled out beautifully, and easily came free from the sheet - no tears (and no tears).
useful (2)
Gingersnap Nut Crumb Crust : page 67
I have been thinking about gingersnaps as a crust for pumpkin pie for years - and was delighted to find this recipe. I used walnuts with it - and found that they, along with the cookies, were easily ground up in my aged food processor. I loved Rose's suggestion to use saran wrap to push the crumbs into place - less messy - but less finger-licking afterwards, too. I always have some trouble getting the right balance between the amount of the bottom of the pie pan and the amount up the sides. This time was no exception, but I just kept pushing it around until it seemed OK.
This crust holds together - through slicing and serving - better than any graham cracker crust I've ever made. And the taste? Delicious! I cannot distinguish the walnuts flavor among the gingersnaps, but the flavor is excellent. I think that means that the two flavors become a new beast, and that beast is great.
useful (3)
Lemon Angel Chiffon Pie : page 157
A lovely light lemon flavor - a great dessert. This was my first time making lemon curd. The instructions warn against allowing it to boil, and so one stirs-stirs-stirs. I didn't quite get the temperature up to the recommended, but came close - at my altitude things boil at a lower temperature.
The lemon curd is strained - I found very little was strained out, and would be tempted to skip the straining next time. The cooled curd is folded into whipped cream.
Then a soft italian meringue is prepared (syrup prepared, egg whites beaten with sugar, syrup added), and the three were folded together.
The flavor of this is very nice. I might like it to be a bit more intensely lemon, but there is nothing wrong with this at all. I forgot to make the raspberry sauce, but I imagine it would be a fine complement.
useful (2)
Light Custard Rhubarb Pie : page 99
This recipe is an excellent alternative to the standard rhubarb pie. Traditionally a rhubarb pie is thickened with flour, corn starch, or tapioca (we usually use tapioca). This recipe differs in that the thickening comes from a couple eggs that are beaten and then poured over the rhubarb. The recipe called for large eggs, but my chickens were not cooperative, and all I had was one small and one medium egg. That was enough, though.
I found seeing the bit of egg in the final product a tad unappealing (did I do something wrong?), but the egg didn't detract from the rhubarb flavor, and there was no running juice. The pie also was not overly sweet - so just the way I like it.
I prepared this for father's day, and everyone enjoyed it. I used the cream cheese flaky crust, also in this book.
I should also say that I love the way Rose described rhubarb as having a wild flavor - she is spot on.
useful (2)
Panna Cotta Fillo Flowers : page 377
Vanilla panna cotta (cream, sw. condensed milk, vanilla bean, and gelatin) provides a great smooth creamy dessert. It is placed inside a "flower" of fillo (phyllo).
When I decided to prepare this (to become familiar with fillo, which previously defeated me), I thought the phyllo was largely decorative. But I hadn't counted on the amazing experience of biting through super crunchy phyllo, and into the creaminess of the panna cotta. Its a marvelous combination.
I will say that the amount of gelatin called for seems a bit on the high side. I cut it by about 1 gram, and the panna cotta was still rather firm (24 hours in the refrigerator).
useful (1)
Pumpkin Chiffon Pie : page 155
Light as a feather, and with a wonderful pumpkin flavor. This is a somewhat involved recipe - you cook the pumpkin twice, beat egg whites, but really none of the steps are too difficult. The result is amazing.
A few notes - I measured the gelatin using the ounce units on my kitchen scale - but it measures in 1/2 ounce increments. I should instead have used grams units (both weights are given), as this would have given me finer control.
Also - its dangerous to slice it so you can review the recipe before dinner. Only two of us are at home, and the pie is more than 1/3 gone.
This is not the creamy custard of the traditional pumpkin pie, but I love it just as much. In fact, before I read this cookbook, I didn't realize I wanted to know how to make chiffon pies. Now I want to try all the recipes.
The instructions were so detailed, it was easy to know that I was on the right track. And I love that this cookbook tells us why you do each step.
useful (4)
Shaker Lemon Pie : page 132
Strong lemon flavor - in a perfect flaky crust. This is a lovely old fashioned recipe that uses two entire lemons - peel and all.
I used regular large lemons, with a thick peel and lots of that white stuff - pith?? I also hand cut them into thin slices. I wish I had (a) used Meyer lemons, which have very little pith, and (b) had used my mandolin to get even thinner slices.
The lemons macerate in sugar for 24 hours - and then are mixed with eggs. The filling really is that simple.
I prepared this with the flaky cream cheese pie crust. It was the prefect complement. Great instructions for testing doneness - both a knife check and internal temperatures.
If you truly love lemon, then this is a great recipe. However, the two teenagers disliked the rind. I will definitely try this again once I locate Meyer lemons.
useful (4)
Shepherd's Pie : page 328
Superb flavor stew! I couldn't find lamb shanks, and substituted a boned leg of lamb. It developed a great flavor - and adding prunes gave it zings of sweetness.
The mashed potatoes were a good education for me. Rose recommends using a ricer or pushing them through a sieve. No ricer here, so I used the sieve method - and wow - very fluffy! I found that they were a bit dry, perhaps because I used low fat sour cream? It was easily remedied by a couple tablespoons of milk.
I tried to get the rose appearance on the top with the spoon, it looked pretty nice.
My kids love shepherd's pie, and they found this recipe very much to their liking. I wished there were more vegetables, but its flavor just couldn't be beat.
useful (3)