I’ve wanted to make a pie for the past couple of weeks. I haven’t made one since November and I haven’t bought one since before then. So it became part of my to-do list this past weekend and, honestly, it felt really good to go through the routine of getting ready to make another one. I looked through many sites for something interesting. I came across the women of Four & Twenty Blackbirds while searching for booze pies for St. Patrick’s Day. I checked my list to see what I still had in the pantry (I had most of what I needed) and the fridge (I had none of what I needed). I used their custard recipe but went with my crust recipe. Off to the store and back into the kitchen…

The crust:

1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2 tbsp. sugar

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

3 tbsp. (or more) ice water

Blend the flour, sugar and salt together in a food processor. Add butter using on-off turns until mix resembles a coarse meal. Add ice water and combine. Form dough into a ball and flatten into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill at least 20 minutes. Roll out into 13 inch diameter circle and transfer to a 9 inch pie dish. Trim the excess and crimp as desired. Freeze for 10 minutes. Pre-heat the oven to 450F. Remove crust from freezer and line the bottom with foil. Add beans or pie weights to shell and bake for 15 minutes, until sides are set. Remove from oven and let cool while you prepare your custard filling.

The filling:

1/2 cup butter melted

3/4 cup white sugar

2 Tbsp. white cornmeal

1/4 tsp. salt

3/4 cup honey

3 eggs

1/2 cup cream

2 tsp. white vinegar

1 tsp. vanilla paste

1 or 2 Tbsp. flake sea salt for finishing (Maldon is a good choice)

Combine melted butter, sugar, salt and cornmeal to make a thick paste. Add the honey, vanilla and vinegar and mix. Fold in the eggs, add the cream and continue to blend.

Pour the filling into a pre-baked pie shell and bake at 350 F for 45 to 60 minutes. The filling will puff up like a marshmallow and the center will be just slightly wobbly. Once cooled (at least one hour), finish with a sprinkling of flake sea salt. Slice and serve with freshly whipped cream.

My pie looks a bit like it overcooked. I would recommend staying closer to 45 minutes of bake time and not split the 45-60 minutes into a 50 minute bake time, like I did.

I like the mix of the sweet and the salt. The salt hits the taste buds first and then the sweet kicks in. I suggest going light on the salt. It’s tasty and the texture doesn’t seem like the custard it’s designed to be.