Because One Pie is Never Enough

Here is the second pie I made for Thanksgiving this year! I have never actually had pecan pie before and figured my switch to veganism would completely rule it out for me, but then I found this recipe. My dad, who loves pecan pie, says it's the best he's ever had. My mom, who hates pecan pie, went back for seconds, and my brother and my aunt will love any pie as long as it's drowned in whipped cream. This pie was the overall favorite dish at my family's dinner- which is saying a lot, because we ate some amazing food! 

Maple Pecan Pie (recipe from here)

1 9-inch pie crust

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup pure maple syrup

1/4 cup nonhydrogenated margarine

6 ounces extra-firm silken tofu (1/2 of a tetra pack)

1/4 cup cold, unsweetened, plain nondairy milk

2 1/2 tbsp cornstarch

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

2 cups pecan halves

1. In a medium saucepan, mix the sugars and maple syrup. Heat on medium-low and stir occasionally until bubbles begin to form, then stir constantly for 10 minutes. DO NOT let it boil too much, or you will end up with this. It should turn into a thick, syrupy caramel. After 10 minutes, stir in the margarine. Remove from heat and pour into a bowl to cool.

2. Crumble tofu into a food processor then add the milk, cornstarch and salt. Puree until smooth.

3. Preheat oven to 350º. Once the caramel is cooled (it can still be warm), add the tofu mixture and vanilla and stir. Fold in the pecans and pour it all into your prepared crust.

4. Bake for about 40 minutes, let cool and store in the refrigerator until you're ready to serve!

Crispy and filled with maple custard- the perfect winter treat.

Apple Brown Sugar Tart

I have to be honest... I've been holding out on you guys. I made this recipe weeks ago but I didn't have my cookbooks for a while (slow shipping...) so I couldn't type it up! So here it finally is, a delicious fall twist on a regular fruit tart.

What's funny is I actually set out to make a normal peach tart with plain pastry custard. Then I thought to myself "I wonder what would happen if I made custard with brown sugar instead of plain sugar..." and then I noticed "Those peaches are actually nectarines. And they're moldy. Gross." Luckily there were some lovely apples sitting at the bottom of our fridge, and voila, the apple brown sugar tart was born. Sometimes it's great when things don't quite go as planned. Like ending up at a dance party when you really should be studying ancient Greek palaces... but that's another story.

Apple Brown Sugar Tart (crust and custard recipes adapted from The Joy of Vegan Baking)

Brown Sugar Custard:

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 tbsp flour

4 tbsp cornstarch

1/4 cup water

1 1/3 cups soy milk

2 tsp vanilla

1. In a medium bowl, beat together sugar, flour, cornstarch and water quickly for about 2 minutes, or until it's creamy.

2. Bring the milk to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Pour 1/3 cup of the milk into the sugar mixture and combine. Add the sugar and milk back to the saucepan and heat over medium-low heat, whisking constantly. It starts to thicken right away.

3. Cook until it begins to bubble, whisk super hard for 30 seconds then remove from the heat. Add in vanilla.

4. Transfer to a bowl and let cool in the fridge while you prepare the crust and apples.

No-Bake Pecan Crust:

2 cups raw pecans

3/4 cup pitted dates

1/4 tsp salt

1. Grind nuts in a food processor until they make a course meal.

2. Add dates and salt and process until thoroughly combined. Press into a lightly oiled 9-inch pie pan.

Baked Apple Topping:

2 medium apples

1 tbsp maple syrup

1. Slice the apples and mix them with the maple syrup.

2. Place them on a baking sheet and bake in an oven or toaster oven for about 20 minutes, or until soft.

Assembly:

Pour custard into the pecan crust and spread evenly. Arrange baked apple slices on top and sprinkle with 1 tsp cinnamon and a little powdered sugar. Either place in the fridge to chill, or serve immediately.



It's amazing how well the flavors of this tart complement each other. At first I was a little weirded out by the brownish, wiggly custard, but once it all comes together- the crumbly crust, crunchy apples and creamy custard (yesss alliteration, my poetry professor would be proud)- it works perfectly. Eat this on a lovely fall day and enjoy!





Good to the last crumb...