Sambuca Pie Recipes

SASKATOON PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• In a large saucepan, simmer berries in 1/4 cup water for 10 minutes. Stir in lemon juice with berries. Combine sugar and flour together in a medium bowl, then stir into berry mixture. Pour mixture into a pastry lined 9 inch pie pan. Dot with butter. Place second crust on top of pie; seal and flute edges.
• Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Then reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and bake for an additional 35 to 45 minutes, or until golden brown.

CANADIAN SASKATOON PIE

Steps:

• Bring saskatoon berries and water to a simmer; cook for 15 minutes. Drain any excess water; set aside to cool to room temperature, about 20 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Whisk 1/2 cup sugar and tapioca together in a bowl. Stir tapioca mixture and lemon juice into berries.
• Line a 9-inch pie plate with a single crust; pour berry mixture into crust. Dot berries with butter. Place top crust over berries; crimp edges of pie together tightly. Brush top of pie with egg white.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove pie from oven, sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sugar, and return to the oven until pie is golden and filling is bubbly, about 10 minutes.

BLUEBERRY SAMBUCA PIE

Steps:

• For the crust: Pulse the flour, granulated sugar and salt in a food processor. Add a third of the butter and process until combined. Add the remaining butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal, about 3 times. Add the vinegar and pulse again twice. Gradually pour in 1/3 cup ice water, pulsing about 4 times until combined. Turn onto a clean surface and press into a cohesive dough without overworking (you should see bits of butter). Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and press into a 1-inch-thick disk. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before rolling out.
• For the filling: Simmer 3 cups of the blueberries with 1/2 cup of the light brown sugar and 2 tablespoons water until the mixture reduces by half, about 20 minutes. Pour into a bowl and stir in the remaining 4 cups blueberries, the remaining 1/2 cup light brown sugar, the tapioca, sambuca, lemon juice, vanilla, cinnamon and salt. Let cool completely.
• For the assembly: Divide the chilled dough in half and put 1 piece back in the refrigerator. Roll the other piece into a 12-inch-round, 1/8-inch-thick circle on a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough onto a rolling pin, then unroll it into a 9-inch glass pie plate, letting it hang over the edge. Add the filling and dot the top with the butter. Roll out the other piece of dough and place over the filling. Press the crust edges together and trim, leaving a 1-inch overhang. Roll up or pinch the overhang to seal.
• Wrap an oiled, wide band of foil around the pie edge to protect the crust. Make 5 small slashes in the top of the crust from the center out, to make a star (similar to a star anise). Chill for 30 minutes.
• Place a foil-lined baking sheet on a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 450 degrees F.
• When the pie is chilled, reduce the oven temperature to 400 degrees F, put the pie on the baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil band and continue to bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes. Cool completely before slicing.

SAMBUCA BROWNIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. and butter and flour an 8-inch square baking pan, knocking out excess flour.
• In a double boiler or metal bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water melt chocolate and butter, stirring, until smooth and remove top of double boiler or bowl from heat. Cool mixture to room temperature.
• In a large bowl with an electric mixer beat eggs and sugar until mixture is thickened and pale and beat in chocolate mixture and Sambuca. Into a bowl sift together flour, salt, and baking powder and beat into batter just until blended well.
• Spread batter evenly in pan and sprinkle evenly with pine nuts. Bake brownies in middle of oven 30 to 35 minutes, or until a tester comes out with crumbs adhering to it. Cool brownies completely in pan on a rack before cutting into 16 squares. Brownies keep, layered between sheets of wax paper in an airtight container at cool room temperature, 5 days.

SAMOSA PIE

Steps:

• Make the filling: Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the ginger, garlic, cumin and red-pepper flakes, and cook until fragrant, a minute or two. Add the lamb and cook, stirring occasionally and breaking into small pieces, until it is just cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the potatoes, cover, reduce the heat to medium-low and let everything steam, stirring once halfway through, until the potatoes are just soft, about 20 minutes.
• Uncover, stir in the peas and cook until just heated through, a minute or two. Stir in the cornstarch slurry, then turn off the heat and stir in the cilantro. Season to taste with salt, and let cool completely before building the pie.
• When the filling has cooled, arrange an oven rack in the lowest position and heat oven to 400 degrees.
• Make the pastry: Whisk the flour, salt and turmeric in a large heatproof mixing bowl. Create a small well in the center.
• In a small pot, bring 2/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon/165 grams water and the shortening to a boil over medium heat. As soon as the shortening has melted completely into the boiling water, pour the mixture into the well in the flour. Use a wooden spoon to quickly stir the hot water into the flour, making sure everything gets wet. As soon as it is cool enough to handle, knead the dough with your hands in the bowl or on a clean work surface until it comes together in a smooth ball.
• Wrap a third of the dough in plastic wrap and set aside. Roll the remaining dough into an 11-inch circle (about 1/8-inch thick) between two large pieces of plastic wrap or parchment paper. Remove one piece of wrap or paper and flip the pastry into an 8-inch springform pan, centering it and using your hands to gently press it into the bottom and against the sides. The dough should be supple and smooth enough that, if you tear it, you can easily patch any holes. Discard the wrap or paper. Add the filling and use the back of a spoon to press it in and level the surface. There should be a 1/2-inch rim of dough above the filling. Brush it with the beaten egg.
• Roll the reserved dough into a 9-inch circle (about 1/8-inch thick) between two pieces of plastic wrap or parchment paper. Remove one piece of wrap or paper and flip the pastry over the filling, centering it and pushing it down so that it fits snugly. The edge of the top crust will overlap the edge of the bottom crust. Press these two edges together gently against the side of the pan. Using a knife, trim the top of the combined edges to create an even border around the pan, then use your fingers to crimp that bit of dough back down into the pie, sealing the edges.
• Cut a hole in the center of the pie to allow air to escape, brush the top with egg and bake until the top is deep golden brown and firm, 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. Let cool in the pan on a rack for at least 1 1/2 hours before unmolding and serving.

SAMBUCA POACHED FIGS WITH RICOTTA AND PINE NUTS

Steps:

• Heat oil in a small skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then cook pine nuts, stirring, until golden, about 2 minutes. Transfer to paper towels and season with salt.
• Simmer Sambuca with sugar in a saucepan (pan should be just large enough to hold figs upright), stirring until sugar is dissolved. Cut a very thin slice from bottom of each fig and stand figs in liquid in saucepan (figs will not be covered by liquid).
• Poach figs at a bare simmer, covered, 5 minutes. Cool slightly in liquid.
• Season ricotta with salt and pepper. Divide figs among 4 plates alongside mounds of ricotta and drizzle figs with some of poaching liquid, then sprinkle with pine nuts and serve.