The Rosetown and District Museum has a restored 1923 catalogue farmhouse that is open for tours during the summer.
On Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons, its teahouse serves pie or scones with your tea, coffee or lemonade. Volunteers make the pies and freeze them in pizza boxes.
The most requested pies are saskatoon, apple, rhubarb and lemon meringue. Pecan is also a favourite.
Pie is a prairie dessert that men especially enjoy. Fruit pies travel well for a field meal or family picnic and can be served hot or cold.
Read Also
Stock dogs show off herding skills at Ag in Motion
Stock dogs draw a crowd at Ag in Motion. Border collies and other herding breeds are well known for the work they do on the farm.
Last summer, we attended a country wedding at a ranch where the bride and groom chose to serve homemade pies rather than wedding cake.
Some people shy away from making pies because of the effort and difficulty in working with the pastry. One option is to use purchase frozen pie crusts.
Whether using a frozen crust or making your own, moisten the edges of the bottom pie shell with wet fingers before putting on the top crust. It will seal the two layers together. Gently pinch the edges together to create the seal.
NEVER FAIL PIE CRUST
This makes two double crust and one single crust nine inch (22 cm) pies.
5c. all purpose flour 1.25L
2 tsp. salt 10 mL
1 tbsp. sugar 15 mL
1 tsp. baking powder 5 mL
1 lb. cold all vegetable shortening (could use butterflavoured) 454g
1 egg
ice water
2 tbsp. white vinegar 30 mL
1 tsp. vanilla 5 mL
Sift all dry ingredients together to mix well. Cut 1/2 inch (1 cm) cubes of shortening into the flour mixture using a pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
Beat the egg with a fork in a measuring cup, add ice water to make 3/4 cup (175 mL). Add the vinegar and vanilla.
Sprinkle four tablespoons (60 mL) of the ice water mixture over the flour mixture. Using a fork, stir and draw the flour up from the bottom of the bowl. Add more water and mix until the dough holds together. As larger lumps form, remove them from the bowl and continue adding more water until all the dough is formed. Gently squeeze the dough together to form five balls, place in a bowl and cover. Chill until ready to use. Use within two days or freeze and use later.
To roll out the pie crust, place a ball of chilled dough between two sheets of lightly floured wax paper. Press the dough with the heel of your hand to flatten. Roll from the centre with a rolling pin until about one inch (2 cm) larger than the desired size for the pie plate. Gently peel off the top layer of wax paper.
Place the pie plate upside down over the pastry and place your other hand under the wax paper and pastry. Do a quick flip and smooth the pastry into the pie plate, working from the centre to the outside edges.
Avoid stretching the dough. Gently peel off the paper. Hold the pie plate in the air and use a sharp knife to trim the pastry even with the outer edge of the pie plate. The pie shell is ready to fill or cook.
For the top crust, roll the same way between the wax paper. When ready to add the top pastry, moisten the edges of the bottom crust with water. Peel the top layer of wax paper off and then roll the pastry around the rolling pin, removing the bottom layer of wax paper as you go. Unroll over the top of the pie filling. Trim the pastry and seal the edges.
To bake a double crust pie, prick or slash the top crust. Bake at 425 F (220 C) for 40-50 minutes or as directed in the filling recipe.
To bake a single crust pie such as pumpkin or quiche, fill and bake at 450 F (230 C) for 30-40 minutes or as directed in the filling recipe.
To bake an empty single crust pie shell, prick the bottom of the pastry well with a fork. Bake at 425 F (220 C) for 12-15 minutes. Cool, then fill.
Source: Deobald family recipe.
KATH’S RHUBARB STRAWBERRY PIE
This pie is based on a rhubarb pie recipe that my daughter made when she was a teenager living at home. She likes to add strawberries. I like to add saskatoon berries with the rhubarb.
A combination of all three would give you what a friend of mine calls a prairie berry pie.
2 c. strawberries 500 mL
2 c. rhubarb 500 mL
1 c. sugar 250 mL
3 tbsp. minute tapioca 45 mL
1 tbsp. butter 15 mL
1 tsp. lemon juice 5 mL
Clean and wash fruit. Mix sugar and tapioca together and add to the fruit, add lemon juice.
Arrange fruit in unbaked pie shell and dot with butter. Finish with a lattice top or top crust.
Bake in a preheated 425 F (220 C) oven for 15 minutes, reduce heat to 350 F (180 C) and continue to bake until fruit is tender and crust is lightly browned, about 35 minutes.
Source: Katherine Stoll.
PECAN PIE
1 single pie crust, unbaked
1 c. pecan halves 100 g
3 eggs
2/3 c. sugar 150 mL
pinch salt
1 c. corn syrup 250 mL
1/3 c. melted butter 75 mL
Preheat oven to 425 F.
Prepare pastry according to directions for an unbaked pie shell. Place the pastry into a nine inch pie pan.
Spread the pecans over the pastry. Combine the eggs, sugar, corn syrup and melted butter. Beat together well. Pour the mixture over the pecans.
Bake on lower oven rack for 30 minutes or until set. Source: allrecipes.com.
SASKATOON BERRY PIE
4 c. saskatoons 1 L
2 tbsp. water 30 mL
1 tbsp. lemon juice 15 mL
2/3 c. sugar 150 mL
1/4 c. minute tapioca or flour 60 mL
Exact proportions of fruit vary with juiciness of the saskatoons and personal preference regarding sweetness and thickness of filling.
Place berries, water and lemon juice in a saucepan. Simmer about 10 minutes. (Do not boil. Microwave can be used to cook berries). Add sugar and tapioca and mix until sugar is dissolved. Arrange mixture in unbaked pie shell. Bake at 425 F (220 C) for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 F (180 C) for another 30-35 minutes until juice is bubbly.
SASKATOON BERRY BAKING TIPS
•Almond extract brings out the nutty saskatoon flavour. You can also use something acidic like lemon juice, rhubarb or sour cherries.
•Do not thaw berries before using. Wash in the frozen state.
•Never boil saskatoons with sugar because saskatoon skin will become hard and tough. Add the berries boiled without sugar at the end of the recipe.
Source: Alma Copeland.
Betty Ann Deobald is a home economist from Rosetown, Sask., and a member of Team Resources. Contact: team@producer.com.
