Pie Academy: Master the Perfect Crust and 255 Amazing Fillings, with Fruits, Nuts, Creams, Custards, Ice Cream, and More; Expert Techniques for Making Fabulous Pies from Scratch

by Ken Haedrich

“An excellent resource for home bakers looking to up their pie game." – Publishers Weekly, starred review "The wide-ranging, well-curated mix of classic and contemporary recipes and expert advice make this an essential primer for avid home bakers." – Library Journal, starred review "Readers will find everything they'd ever want to know about making pie, and even the dough-fearful will feel ready to measure, roll, and cut." – Booklist, starred review “Fear of pie? Ken Haedrich to the rescue. Pie Academy takes you through everything pie related — perfect crusts, fillings, crimping techniques, blind baking, lattice toppings and more.” — Kathy Gunst, coauthor of Rage Baking and resident chef for NPR’s Here and Now “A true baker’s delight.”— Amy Traverso, Yankee magazine food editor and author of The Apple Lover’s Cookbook Trusted cookbook author and pie expert Ken Haedrich delivers the only pie cookbook you’ll ever need: Pie Academy. Novice and experienced bakers will discover the secrets to baking a pie from scratch, with recipes, crust savvy, tips and tutorials, advice about tools and ingredients, and more. Foolproof step-by-step photos give you the confidence you need to choose and prepare the best crust for different types of fillings. Learn how to make pie dough using butter, lard, or both; how to work with all-purpose, whole-wheat, or gluten-free flour; how to roll out dough; which pie pan to use; and how to add flawless finishing details like fluting and lattice tops. Next are 255 recipes for every kind and style of pie, from classic apple pie and pumpkin pie to summer berry, fruit, nut, custard, chiffon, and cream pies, freezer pies, slab pies, hand pies, turnovers, and much more. This beast of a collection, with gorgeous color photos throughout, weighs in at nearly four pounds and serves up forty years of pie wisdom in a single, satisfying package.

• ISBN10: 163586111X
• ISBN13: 9781635861112
• Publish Date: 27 October 2020
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 31 August 2022
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Storey Publishing LLC
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 480
• Language: English

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

The Pie Academy - Master the Perfect Crust and 255 Amazing Fillings is a comprehensive encyclopedia of mix and match crusts, fillings, and presentations with virtually endless possible combinations written by Ken Haedrich. Due out 27th Oct 2020 from Storey, it's 480 pages and will be available in hardcover and ebook formats.

I enjoyed reading the non-recipe background/tutorial parts of the book as well as the recipes and found them easy to understand and follow. The layout is logical and understandable. The introductory chapters and how-to tutorials include the basic hows and whys of the tools, ingredients, and processes including a -very- thorough step by step illustrated generic pie recipe. The recipe chapters are arranged roughly thematically: from dough variations to fillings and processes, fruit, cream, nut, fillings, pairings of fill and crust, and more. This is an exhaustively complete list including some fill ingredients I wouldn't have normally associated with pie at all: polenta, rice, and more.

Each of the recipes includes an introductory description, ingredients listed in a bullet point sidebar (US measurements only), step by step instructions, as well a footers with tips and alternatives as well as professional tips on presentation and more. One of the high points of the book for me are the photographs. They're high quality and clear - and serving suggestions are appealing and appropriate. Really beautiful pies with professional finishes, and something to aim for. The author has also included an information rich troubleshooting guide which covers potential problem spots (overbrowned crusts, cracked pumpkin pies, pie crusts falling apart before they make it to the baking vessel, and more).

The recipe ingredients themselves are (mostly) easily sourced and will be available at well stocked grocery stores. There are a very few ingredients which might be a little more difficult to source, but definitely nothing that is 'way out there'.

All in all, -very- well written, beautifully presented pies, made from tasty ingredients which are easily sourced and beautifully enhanced with decorative complex looking fancy crusts. For cooks looking for a pie cookbook, this one is definitive.

Five stars, we'll be revisiting this recipe book often. A useful antidote to boring deserts. There are -so- many of these which will blow the socks off the "competition" at the next holiday gathering, reunion, or church social.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.