Fruit Pie
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a hot oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
Layer the fruit and sugar in the pie crust for uniform sweetness, but do not put sugar on the last layer of fruit.
Adjust the amount of water based on the juiciness of the fruit.
Make openings in the sides of the pastry to allow steam to escape.
Bake and finish
Bake for 20 minutes at 400°F (200°C), then reduce the temperature to 300°F (150°C) to finish cooking the fruit.
Optionally, brush the crust lightly with cold water and sprinkle with a small amount of sugar, being careful not to use too much.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Fruit
- Provides the main filling, along with its juices that set the pie's texture as it cooks.
- Moist sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps draw moisture from the fruit into a syrup.
- Short paste
- Forms the crust that holds the filling and browns in the oven.
The step that matters
Adjust the water to the fruit's juiciness. Juicy fruit releases liquid as it bakes; too much added water can make the filling runny and soggy, while too little can leave it dry and underset.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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