30/30 - #1 Strawberry Pie

I'M 30!! Hard to believe that I have officially entered another decade of my life. Instead of being sad and depressed about getting older, I am excited! Life is good, especially in the kitchen ;)

So here it is, the favorite everyone has been waiting for, the #1 recipe in my Top 30 favorites - Strawberry Pie! Not just any strawberry pie, but my Grandma's Strawberry Pie!

This pie doesn't just taste amazing, but it brings me back to my childhood every time I make or eat it. When I first started KettlerCuisine, this was one of the recipes I knew I had to post. I struggled with the recipe for a while since Grandma didn't leave very detailed instructions, but relied on my experience in the kitchen and my Aunt Liz to figure it out. I miss you Grandma!

During strawberry season, I make this pie almost every week. Poor Hubby doesn't get much variety on desserts during that time, but he doesn't mind it. At the peak of the season, I don't even add sugar to the strawberries, I just let their natural sweetness shine through. I couldn't think of a more fitting #1 favorite for the Top 30 than Grandma's Strawberry Pie.

I CRAVE it every year, I MAKE it every year, and I DEVOUR it every year! 

Find the recipe for Grandma's Strawberry Pie here.

Here are other favorite strawberry recipes:

• Strawberries with Lemon Honey Ricotta
• Strawberry Almond Tart
• Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble
• Grown Up Fruit Salad
• Strawberry and Cream Scones (Smitten Kitchen)
• Honey Balsamic Strawberry Galette (Honey & Jam)
• Strawberry Meringues (Bakers Royale)
• Strawberry Jam (Deliciously Organic)

OK, now time for me to go celebrate! Hopefully you have enjoyed seeing me every day for the past month, but I am going to take a little break now and party!!

Strawberry Almond Tart

Strawberry Season!!!

One of my favorite seasons, next to tomatoes and peaches...and zucchini and cherries and sweet corn. OK, so let's face it, I love all produce when it is in season. 

The first thought I had when I went gluten free was that I wouldn't be able to have Grandma's Strawberry Pie anymore!!! I was so devastated that I started right away working on a gluten free version. Instead of trying to do a gluten free pastry crust, I thought a tart shell using ground almonds would work well and compliment the strawberries. 

The best thing about this pie, is the small amount of sugar when using sweet strawberries. When strawberries are in season (a good season), they are super sweet. I based my crust recipe off a gluten-free almond crust over at Krissy's Creations and it turned out very well. 

Strawberry Tart (Gluten Free)

Adapted from Krissy's Creations
Makes: 8 inch tart
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 25-30 minutes

2 cups blanched almond flour
2 T honey
4 T unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp lemon zest, divided
pinch of salt
8 oz mascarpone (or cream cheese), softened
2 T sugar (optional)
6 cups fresh strawberries, washed, dried and hulled (divided)
1/4 to 1/3 cup sugar (depending on sweetness of berries)
2 T arrowroot powder (or corn starch)
sliced almonds for garnish
whipped cream

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Rinse the strawberries well and lay out to dry completely.

In a medium bowl, mix the almond flour, melted butter, honey, lemon zest and pinch of salt together until well combined. Lightly spray a tart pan with olive oil or rub with butter. Form the almond flour batter into a ball and press into the tart shell to form a crust. Lay a piece of foil over the crust and gently press down. Fill the foil with pie weights (I use dried lima beans). This is called blind baking, which I describe in a previous post.

Bake the crust, covered, for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 5-10 minutes, until the crust starts to brown. Remove the crust and let cool to room temperature. Once the crust is cooled, spread the mascarpone along the bottom. If you like a sweeter cheese, mix the softened mascarpone with 2 T sugar.

Hull all the strawberries and line the prepared crust with whole strawberries (cut side down). Just line the bottom of the crust. Take the remaining strawberries and lightly puree in a food processor or blender.

Place the pureed strawberries into a small sauce pan over medium heat. Once the puree starts to boil, slowly add in the sugar and arrowroot powder and stir continuously so the bottom won't burn or turn into gel. After a few minutes, the mixture will start to thicken. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.

Pour the strawberry puree over the whole strawberries on the tart shell, stopping just before the top of the sides of the crust. Reserve the remaining puree for other use (this will keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks).

Place the tart into the refrigerator until ready to serve. Best served with sliced almonds and whipped cream.

Grandma's Strawberry Pie

Strawberry season came early this year, which means only one thing, Grandma's Strawberry Pie!

One of my favorite things from childhood was going to visit my grandparents at the beach. Not only were they the most wonderful people, but my grandmother was an amazing baker! When strawberry season came around, she was known for two things; freezer jam and strawberry pie. 

Her pie is definitely not traditional. Most people think of a baked strawberry rhubarb pie, but this is a cold fresh strawberry pie.

When Grandma passed away, we were sure to save her recipe book. But we quickly learned that she never actually followed a recipe, but did it all from her head. The recipes she passed on were all very short, vague and left a lot of room for imagination.

For some reason, I just couldn't get it right. I called on the help of my Aunt Liz, who provided advice and my mother who remembers Grandma making this several times when I was growing up. After several failed attempts over the years, I was determined this early strawberry season to finally nail it. 

Well, Grandma, I am proud to say that I think I finally produced a successful one today. I have added in necessary notes and changed the recipe a bit to make this a foolproof pie. Each time I make this, I will still think of the wonderful woman, Betty Hegele, my grandmother.

Strawberry Pie

Yields: 9 inch pie
Prep Time:15 minutes
Cook Time:12 minutes for the pie shell

*1 Baked pie shell 

5-6 cups of fresh strawberries (in season)
3/4 cup sugar
2 T corn starch
3 oz. of cream cheese

1 T fresh basil, chopped (optional)

*For the pie shell: you can either get a rolled up pie dough in the refrigerator section (Pilsbury makes a decent one), or make your own pie crust. 

Wash the strawberries well and let dry completely. Cover the cooled pie crust with the cream cheese and place whole strawberries (cut-side down) to cover the bottom of the shell. Take the remaining strawberries and lightly puree in a food processor (or mash well in a bowl if you don't have a processor). The pureed or mashed strawberries should produce about 1.5-2 cups.

Place pureed strawberries into a small saucepan and heat over medium heat. Once it comes to a boil, slowly add in the sugar and cornstarch and stir continuously so the bottom won't burn or turn into a gel. You just want the mixture to thicken. Once thickened, remove from heat and let cool, stirring a few times to release the heat.

Pour the mixture over the whole strawberries in the pie shell and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving. 

I like to serve this with freshly made whipped cream, flavored with 2 T powdered sugar and 1 T Grand Marnier Liqueur.