Mini Pies

Hello again!



For the last day of Japanese class, a classmate and I made mini pies in cupcake tins. We baked them in her dorm's kitchen, which has laundry machines in it!



After finding out what pies were our classmates' favorites, we made banana cream, key lime, and apple pies. We ended up making the custard for the banana cream pies in a frying pan and whisking it with a spatula.



When we were making the key lime pies, we looked at our can of condensed milk and realized that we didn't have a can opener! We needed to run to the campus center to ask someone to open it.



We made the whipped cream fifteen minutes before class. I think it turned out okay!

They certainly disappeared in record time.

Banana Cream Pie
(adapted from Epicurious)

Crust
1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 stick melted unsalted butter

Filling
1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons corn starch
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cups whipping cream
3/4 cups whole milk
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 or 2 ripe bananas, peeled and cut into thin slices

For crust:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Place six cupcake liners in a cupcake tin. Mix graham cracker crumbs and sugar in a bowl. Add butter and stir so that the mixture is moist. Press mixture onto bottom and sides of each liner and chill until firm.

Bake until set and golden, about 7 minutes. Let cool.

For filling:
Whisk sugar, corn starch, and salt in a saucepan (we used a frying pan, which you probably don't want to use). Slowly whisk in whipping cream, whole milk, and egg yolk. Whisk over medium high heat until the custard thickens and boils. Then take the pan off the stove and whisk in the butter and vanilla extract.

Scrape custard into a bowl and allow to cool. Whisk custard every so often while it cools to prevent lumpiness.

Layer banana slices and custard in crust, covering the bananas completely. Chill pies until filling is set and the crust is soft.

Top with whipped cream.

Apple Pie
(adapted from Epicurious)

Crust
Unbaked pie crust (we used store bought)

Filling
1 - 2 large granny smith apples, cored and thinly sliced
Sugar
Ground cinnamon
Unsalted butter
A little egg white beaten with water

To make pie:
Preheat oven to 450°F. Place six cupcake liners in a cupcake tin. Cut rounds of pie crust dough and tuck into cupcake liners.

Eat a few apple slices to figure out how much sugar is needed to make them sweet. Put the slices in a bowl. Add sugar and cinnamon to taste. Pour the filling into the cupcake tins. Mound toward the center and put a little butter on top. Cut rounds out of the rest of the pie crust dough and cut holes for venting. Lay it over the filling and seal the edges. Brush egg wash over the surface of the dough.

Note: This is where I'm going to get a little annoyingly vague.
Bake for up to ten minutes, depending on the brownness of the crust. Then turn the temperature down to 350°F and continue to bake until the crust is golden brown and you smell apples. If the edges start to darken, cover them with aluminum foil.

Key Lime Pie
(adapted from Epicurious)

Crust
10 tablespoons graham cracker crumbs
1 tablespoon sugar
3.5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Filling
1/2 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2 large egg yolks
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon fresh or bottled Key lime juice

To make crust:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Place six cupcake liners in a cupcake tin.

Mix together the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and butter in a bowl with a fork until combined. Press mixture evenly onto the bottom and up the sides of each cupcake liner. You should get a thin layer of graham cracker crust. If the mixture stops sticking, microwave until the butter melts more evenly through the mixture.

Bake the crust for 5 minutes or so and allow to cool.

Make filling and bake pie:
Whisk together the condensed milk and yolks in a bowl until well combined. Add the juice and combine.

Pour filling into the crust and bake for 7 minutes or longer. You want the filling to be lightly golden and thicker. Cool the pie. The filling will set as it cools.

Chill for 4 hours.

Whipped Cream
Ingredients
Heavy cream
Confectioner's sugar

Beat cream in a bowl with an electric mixer, gradually adding sugar to taste, until it holds stiff peaks. Top pies with cream and serve.