kitchen rap

It's summertime for most of us [did you know that Golda has several customers in Australia and New Zealand?] and the abundance of fresh fruit makes this the perfect season for home-baked pies. Whether you are a pie baking expert or a curious novice, Golda has advice and equipment to help you improve or perfect your skills. And, this month, Golda shares her favourite recipe for lemon meringue pie!

• in the spotlight… baking pies
• Cuisinart and Waring small appliances
• kitchen art
• in this corner… spice tins
• site sights!
• from Golda's recipe box… lemon meringue pie
• from Golda's recipe box… all purpose pie dough

choosing a pie pan

Does the choice of pie pan really matter? Well, in some cases it does. For open pies (like lemon meringue) where the crust is blind-baked, there's ample opportunity for the crust to brown. For filled fruit pies - and especially for those with very juicy fillings, like blueberries - the choice of pie pan can impact the degree to which the bottom crust is properly baked and browned, or whether it turns out soggy.

Older pie pans, made of tin, are poor conductors of heat. Steel pie pans absorb and conduct heat beautifully. Dark steel pans help give a golden brown colour to pie crusts. Glass pie plates have excellent heat conductivity, with the added benefit of being able to look at the bottom crust to determine when it is nicely browned. Some pie pans are now available with perforated bottoms (like many pizza pans) which improves the transmission of heat to the bottom crust. Non-stick pans are great for when you want to slide the finished pie from the pan for serving -- which avoids the potential of marring the non-stick surface when cutting the pie. There's even a pan shaped like an apple, pumpkin, or cherry!

Pyrex glass not available	Chicago Metallic - Commercial perforated steel not available	Wilton - Excelle non-stick steel 5 year warranty not available	Chicago Metallic - Silverstone non-stick perforated steel 10 year warranty not available	Wilton - Performance apple/cherry/peach/pumpkin shape aluminum $10.75 each       more info

blind-baking a pie crust

Blind baking is when you prebake the bottom crust of a pie without a filling. If you have succeeded in preparing a flaky pie crust, it will need to be weighted when baked, otherwise the dough will puff up. Pricking the unbaked dough isn't enough, since the holes will close up as the dough starts to bake. The solution is to line the dough with parchment paper (a coffee filter also works great; avoid foil wrap as it doesn't allow the dough to breathe) and then fill it with rice, dried beans, or ceramic pie weights. Bake for 2/3rds of the time your recipe calls for, then lift out the parchment paper and the rice/beans/weights. Prick the crust all over with the tines of a fork, a roller docker, or the tines of your chocolate chipper and return the pie shell to the oven for the remainder of the baking time. You should check the pie shell every few minutes and re-prick the crust if air bubbles form under the dough.

ceramic pie weights 1 pound $8.00       more info	roller docker $13.50       more info	chocolate chipper not available

cutting steam vents

Have your pies ever come apart at the seams? This is likely due to the steam produced by bubbling fruit fillings as the pie bakes. In order to allow the steam to escape, cut steam vents into the top crust before baking. For many fillings, simply slashing the top crust in a few places with a knife is sufficient. For very juicy fillings, such as blueberries and cherries, this may not be sufficient. You are best to use a lattice top crust or cut larger holes which won't reseal. One solution is to cut the vent holes using small shaped pastry cutters; you can place the bits of dough which you removed back on top of the pie.

lattice pie top cutter $11.75       more info	pie top cutter - lattice $3.50       more info	pie top cutter - apples $3.50       more info	pie top cutter - hearts $3.50       more info

baking a filled pie

A crisp crust results when all of the water present in a pie dough (including the water present in butter) evaporates. Baking at high temperature (400°F or more) or close to the heat source both help achieve a crisp crust. Depending on your oven, you may be able to bake your pie directly on the floor of the oven. In many ovens, however, the positioning of the heating element doesn't allow for you to do this. Instead, bake your pie on the lowest rack on top of a preheated baking stone or baking sheet.

round baking stone 13" diameter not available	rectangular baking stone 14" × 16" not available	baking sheet $15.50       more info	pie crust shield $5.50       more info

Another option is to freeze your pie before baking it. Take your pie directly from the freezer and place it in the preheated oven (on a lowest rack, preferably on a preheated baking stone or baking sheet). You'll need to bake it longer than for a freshly-made pie, but the added time will help to fully bake the crust.

Do you recognize these names: Carl Sontheimer and Frederick Osius? Probably not. But these two men invented the kitchen appliances which have changed the way we prepare food. Carl Sontheimer is the inventor of the Cuisinart food processor and Frederick Osius invented the Waring blender. Both appliances have become fixtures in our kitchens.

Golda's Kitchen carries the most popular Cuisinart and Waring appliances, including all sizes of food processors, the frozen dessert maker (makes ice cream, frozen yogurt, or sorbet in only 30 minutes!), and a lovely electric tea steeper. And in honour of the addition of Cuisinart and Waring appliances, selected models are on sale through July 31.

If you already own a Cuisinart food processor (any model) and need additional blades and cutting discs or replacement parts and accessories, we can special order these for you. Contact Golda for more information.

Cuisinart 11 cup food processor not available	Cuisinart frozen dessert maker $92.50       more info	Cuisinart blender $99.00 $85.00 more info	Waring blender $195.00 $180.00 more info
Cuisinart immersion blender with chopper/grinder attachment $83.25 $75.00 more info	Cuisinart hand mixer 9 speeds $96.00 $86.50 more info	Cuisinart coffee maker 10 cup, programmable $88.00       more info	Cuisinart tea steeper not available

If you are thinking of sprucing up your kitchen or dining room, Golda has a suggestion for you. These lovely framed print sets with kitchen motifs, of which one from each series is shown below, make a stylish addition to any home.

golden vegetables watercolour paintings artist: Sherry Loehr not available	antique utensils mixed-media photographs artist: Claire Lerner not available	wire vegetables mixed-media photographs artist: Claire Lerner not available

useful items which are often difficult to obtain

Is your garden overflowing with fresh herbs? Dry the excess herbs and save them for future use. Spice tins are the perfect containers for herbs and spices, since they keep out moisture and light which reduce the shelf life of dried herbs.

16 oz spice tin $3.75       more info	8 oz spice tin $3.00       more info	4 oz spice tin $2.15       more info	12 oz herb can stainless steel also available with shaker tops $7.50       more info	48 spice labels pre-printed not available	48 spice labels blank not available

Golda's Kitchen now offers almost 2500 products, with new items added weekly! We've recently added a page of customer comments and past issues of this newsletter are now on-line.

If you've always made lemon meringue pie with a packaged lemon pie filling, try this simple recipe. You may decrease the amount of sugar called for in step 2 if you prefer a less sweet/more tart filling.

1. Preheat the oven to 425°. In a 9-inch pie plate, blind bake the all purpose pie dough for 20 minutes, removing the pie weights after 15 minutes. Raise the oven temperature to 475°.
2. In a pot, bring to a boil 2 cups of water, the lemon juice, and 1/2 cup sugar.
3. In a bowl, stir together 1/4 cup sugar, the cornstarch, 1/2 cup water, and the egg yolks. Add this to the pot of boiling liquid in a small stream, whisking constantly until there are large bubbles and the filling has thickened. Place the butter on top of the filling to form a film, and allow to cool slightly while preparing the meringue topping.
4. In a large bowl, beat the egg whites on high speed until soft peaks are formed. Add 1/4 cup sugar and beat until stiff peaks are formed. Add an additional 1/4 cup sugar and beat just until the sugar is combined into the meringue.
5. Pour the lemon filling into the baked pie shell. Pipe or spoon the meringue topping over the filling, being sure to completely cover the filling. Place the completed pie in the oven for approximately 5 minutes until the meringue topping is a golden brown (be careful not to let the meringue burn).

Keep refrigerated. Serves 8 - 12.

Your kids can help make this dough, as it is best prepared using your hands. The dough patties (step 3) may be wrapped in plastic wrap and frozen for 6 months; allow the frozen patties to defrost and come to room temperature before rolling. This recipe yields enough dough for 3 9" filled pies or 6 shells. It may also be used as a base for quiches.

1. In a large bowl, combine the all purpose flour, cake and pastry flour, and salt. Using your hands, squeeze the shortening into the flour and combine by pressing the flour and shortening between your palms.
2. Make a well in the center of the bowl and add the water. Place half the flour over the water and then mix together, rolling with your hands (not pressing or kneading).
3. Divide the dough into 6 portions. Form each portion into a round patty (like a hamburger).
4. Dust the rolling surface with all purpose flour. Rolling from all sides, roll the dough out to 1/2 the necessary size. Turn the dough over and continue rolling until the dough reaches the full size.

flour duster not available	pastry frame includes rolling pin cover $25.50       more info	pastry mat marked with grid and pie circles $10.25       more info	non-stick rolling pin $15.00       more info