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With the anticipation of the holidays and those cold, winter days ahead, it is the time when heirloom pie pans, sometimes handed down through generations, are dusted off in preparation for pie baking season, so we can indulge in America’s favorite dessert around the holiday table. A pie in the oven warms the home with its aroma and dispels some of the winter blues.

Whether it is apple, pumpkin, pecan, sweet potato, chess, pear or mincemeat, pie is a traditional American dessert. We commonly use the term “as American as apple pie.” The history of pie can be traced back to ancient Egypt when they were commonly made with meat. It is also believed that the Greeks originated pie pastry, made with flour and water that formed a paste that was wrapped around the meat. “Coffins” or “coffyns” (basket or box) were what the first pies were called.

For those who have a fear of making pies, which many do because they think a flaky and delicious crust is difficult to make, fear no more. Ken Haedrich, “dean” of The Pie Academy, dishes up the how-to for bakers of all levels in his comprehensive book, “Pie Academy: Master the Perfect Crust and 255 Amazing Fillings” (2020, Storey Publishing, $35). For those who really want to immerse themselves in pie making, Ken’s Pie Academy holds webinars and  sometimes “pie getaways” in different parts of the country.

Ken stressed that pie making is part science, part “feel” — or baker’s intuition. “Don’t worry if your first few pie crusts crack or fall apart, or the dough sticks to the counter top,” he said. “Don’t worry if your pie doesn’t look like the front cover of the magazines on display this time of year. Keep in mind, what they don’t tell you, it took days and a team of professional bakers and food stylists and photographers to achieve that perfect looking pie. Instead, ‘love your ugly pie.’”

I found the step-by-step instructions and photos reassuring guidance, and they reveal the secret ingredients of a truly great pie. Included are the best tools to use; recipes for crusts and pastry including gluten-free, whole wheat, and extra-flaky; how to decorate pies with cut-outs and dough designs; and when to use table salt or kosher salt. The four-pound book coupled with Ken’s four decades of pie baking will put you on your journey to making “blue ribbon pies.”

Happy pie baking and my best wishes for a happy holiday season filled with delicious food and new recipes. Here are a few recipes from Ken’s book to get you started. For the recipe for triple-layer chocolate- pumpkin pie, visit https://bit.ly/2IuyieI.

The headnote says, “New Englanders have known the pleasures of combining apple pie and cheddar cheese for a very long time — long enough to be quite opinionated about how the two should be eaten together. Some cooks include grated cheddar in the filling itself. Others grate the cheese over the top of the pie, which is fine when the pie is warm but less so when it is cool and the cheese hardens. Old-timers lay a slab of cheddar right on top of their pie slice and dig in. I wanted to integrate the cheese into the pie itself, so I baked grated cheese into the crust, which keeps the snappy cheddar flavor front and center.” (Cheddar Cheese Pie Dough recipe below.)

8 cups peeled, cored, and sliced Granny Smith or other apples

¾ cup chopped walnut halves, preferably toasted

Egg beaten with 1 tablespoon milk, for glaze

Prepare and refrigerate the pie dough. Roll the larger dough portion into a 12 ½ –  13-inch circle and line a 9-  9 ½ -inch deep-dish pie pan with it, letting the overhang drape over the edge. Refrigerate the shell until needed.

Combine the apples, sugar, lemon juice and walnuts in a large bowl. Mix well. Let stand for 5 to 10 minutes.

Adjust the oven racks so one is in the lower position, and another is in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Sprinkle the flour over the apples, using the larger amount of flour if the apples seem very juicy. Mix well.

Roll the other dough portion into an 11-inch circle. Turn the filling into the pie shell and smooth it over to level out the fruit. Lightly moisten the rim of the pie shell. Drape the top pastry over the filling, pressing along the edge to seal. Trim the overhang with scissors, leaving an even ½  to ¾  inch all around, then sculpt the edge into an upstanding ridge. Flute or crimp the edge, as desired. Poke several steam vents in the top of the pie with a large fork or paring knife. Put a couple of the vents near the edge so you can check the juices. Brush the pie lightly with the egg wash glaze.

Put the pie on the prepared baking sheet and bake on the lower oven rack for 30 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees and move the pie up to the middle rack, rotating the pie 180 degrees. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes longer, until the pie is a rich, golden brown and juices bubble thickly up through the vents.

Transfer the pie to a rack and cool for about 1 hour before serving. Longer is fine, but you’ll bring out the flavor of the cheese if you serve this pie warmer than most.

The headnote says, “Every true New Englander knows that nothing goes better with apples than sharp cheddar cheese. My favorite way of combining these two is by baking the cheese right in the crust. The baked-in cheddar flavor is out of this world, and it’s one of the prettiest crusts you’ll find, all golden and covered with crispy cheese freckles. It makes a great crust for savory pies, too, like quiches and potpies.”

1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into ½ -inch cubes

1 ¼ cups cold grated sharp cheddar cheese (white or yellow)*

½ cup plus 2 tablespoons cold water

*Alternative: Sharp and flavorful cheeses like Gouda or Gruyére work best.

Combine the flour, cornmeal, cornstarch, and salt in a large bowl. Scatter the butter around on a large, flour-dusted plate. Measure the water into a 1-cup glass measuring cup. Refrigerate everything for 10 to 15 minutes.

Transfer the dry ingredients to a food processor. Pulse several times to mix. Scatter the butter over the dry mixture. Pulse the machine seven or eight times, until the pieces of butter are roughly the size of small peas. Remove the lid and scatter the cheese over the mixture. Replace the lid. Pulse three or four times, just long enough to mix in the cheese thoroughly.

Pour the water through the feed tube in a 8- to 10-second stream, pulsing the machine as you add it. Stop pulsing when the mixture begins to form large clumps.

Turn the dough out onto your work surface and divide it in two, making one part  for the bottom crust, slightly larger than the other. Pack the dough into balls, place on separate sheets of plastic wrap, and flatten into ¾ -inch-thick disks. Wrap the disks and refrigerate for about 1 hour before rolling.

To make this dough by hand:

Combine the chilled dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add the butter and cut it in thoroughly. Mix in the cheese by hand. Mound the ingredients in the center of the bowl. Drizzle half of the water down the sides of the bowl, rotating the bowl as you pour. Mix well with a fork. Sprinkle half of the remaining water over the mixture; mix again. Pour most of the remaining water over the mixture; mix vigorously until the dough gathers in large clumps. If there are dry, floury areas remaining, stir in the last spoonfuls of water. Turn the dough out onto your work surface and proceed as in last step.

Double-Crust Food Processor Pie Dough (below) or another double-crust dough.

7 cups cored and sliced ripe pears, unpeeled

1/3 cup sugar, plus a little for sprinkling

2 ½ tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca or cornstarch

Finely grated zest of 1 lemon (optional)

1 tablespoon minced crystallized ginger or ½ teaspoon ground ginger

2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Prepare and refrigerate the pie dough. Roll the larger dough portion into a 12 ½ –  13-inch circle and line a 9- to 9 ½ -inch, deep-dish pie pan with it, letting the excess dough drape over the edge. Refrigerate the shell until needed.

Adjust the oven racks so one is in the lower position and another is in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Combine the pears, sugar, maple syrup, tapioca, vanilla, lemon juice, lemon zest (if using) and ginger in a large bowl. Mix well. Let stand for 10 minutes.

Roll the other dough portion into an 11-inch circle. Turn the filling into the pie shell and smooth it out to even the top. Dot with butter. Lightly moisten the rim of the pie shell. Drape the top pastry over the filling, pressing along the edge to seal. Trim the overhang with scissors, leaving an even ½  to ¾  inch all around, then sculpt the edge into an upstanding ridge. Flute or crimp the edge, as desired. Poke several steam vents in the top of the pie with a large fork or paring knife. Put a couple of the vents near the edge so you can check the juices. Brush the top of the pie with milk and sprinkle with sugar.

Set the pie on the prepared baking sheet and bake on the lower oven rack for 30 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 375 degrees and move the pie up to the middle rack, rotating it 180 degrees. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes longer, until the juices bubble thickly at the vents.

Transfer the pie to a rack and cool for at least 1 ½  to 2 hours before serving. Cover and refrigerate leftovers after 24 hours.

Ken thinks most food processors do a better job with single-crust recipes than with double-crust ones: because there’s less bulk in the machine, single crusts mix up more evenly. However, it’s quite possible to make a double-crust batch successfully, especially if you take care to read all the notes.

Makes one 9- to 9 ½ -inch standard or deep-dish double-crust piecrust with top or two pie shells.

1 cup (2 sticks) plus 2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into ½ -inch cubes, or ½ cup (1 stick) plus 6 tablespoons cold, cubed unsalted butter plus 4 tablespoons cold shortening or lard in small pieces

Combine the flour, cornstarch, and salt in a medium bowl. Scatter the butter on a large, flour-dusted plate. Combine the water and vinegar in a 1-cup glass measuring cup. Refrigerate everything for 10 to 15 minutes.

Transfer the dry mixture to a food processor. Scatter the butter over the dry mixture. Pulse the machine seven or eight times, until the pieces of fat are roughly the size of small peas. Remove the lid and fluff the mixture with a fork, loosening it up from the bottom of the bowl.

Replace the lid. Pour the water-vinegar mixture through the feed tube in a 8- to 10-second stream, pulsing the machine repeatedly as you pour. Continue to pulse, briefly, until the dough just starts to form larger clumps. The dough should not ball up around the blade.

Turn the dough out onto your work surface or into a large bowl, then divide in two. Remember to make one portion — for the bottom crust — slightly larger than the other. If you’re making two pie shells instead of a shell and top crust, divide the dough equally.

Shape the dough into balls, then put the balls on separate sheets of plastic wrap and flatten each one into a ¾ -inch-thick disk. Wrap each disk and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before rolling.

Recipe for success: You need a food processor with at least a 12-cup capacity to handle a double-crust recipe. Don’t start pulsing the machine until you have the measuring cup of water poised above the feed tube. Start pulsing as soon as you start pouring.

Stephen Fries, is a newly retired professor and coordinator of the Hospitality Management Programs at Gateway Community College, in New Haven, CT. He has been a food and culinary travel columnist for the past 14 years and is co-founder of and host of “Worth Tasting,” a culinary walking tour of downtown New Haven, CT. He is a board member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals. Stephen@stephenfries.com For more, go to stephenfries.com.

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