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How to Win at Pie

Nothing says home for the holidays like a freshly baked pie, and no one knows the art of pie-making like Lisa Tisdale.

"I come from a large family—six siblings—and over the years, I've become the default dessert maker for our family get-togethers," says the Old Saybrook native, who worked for years as a grower at a nursery and earned a degree in art history, which, she admits, "I never pursued."

Tisdale learned to bake pies from her mother, whose specialty was a combination of pineapple, strawberry, and rhubarb.

"I learned how to make a simple shortening crust when I was young. My mother made it look so easy, so I was never intimidated. As I got older and my love of pies grew, I taught myself how to make a crust by combining butter and shortening, which I still use. I find pies rustic and beautiful, and I haven't tired of making them yet."

She adds, "My father could make a really good pie, but what I also learned from him was what not to do! His first attempts included a filling with apple seeds and hard bits of core. Any one of my siblings could easily remember his 'pellet' pie, an Italian wheat pie in which he failed to precook the wheat berries."

Aside from fruit pies, Tisdale's parents made an Italian favorite—ricotta pie—for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter.

Though she learned from her parents and watched them bake together, for Tisdale baking isn't a family affair.

"I have a daughter in college and a 10-year-old son, and I would love to say we all bake together, but I really love my solitude when I bake. I find it very relaxing."

This is Tisdale's second season baking for 3rd Generation farm stand and The Pursuit of Pastry in Old Saybrook.

"Their pie business has really taken off, and as a result I sometimes do between 30 and 50 pies a day."

With all of that crimping, filling, and baking come a few flops, she acknowledges.

"I've made a lot of mistakes, and I continue to learn every day. I think the biggest mistake people make with pies is trying to work with crust that's too soft or hasn't had a chance to chill."

For Tisdale, the perfect pastry crust can be made in a food processor, using both butter and shortening.

"Try to make it at least a few hours in advance—ideally a day—and let it chill. For the filling, use really good ingredients. I like Maine wild blueberries in my blueberry pie, and two types of apples in my apple pie: Granny Smith and Cortland. I've been focused on fruit pies, but cream pies are also excellent. If crust is a problem for you, a nice crumb top is great on almost any fruit pie. I use one that has oatmeal and brown sugar in it. As for cream pies, graham cracker crusts or Oreo crusts are delicious and simple to make. Chocolate cream pie, banana cream, and coconut cream, while a little more time-consuming, are fairly easy to make. Top with whipped cream, and no one will complain!"

Jill Peterson, owner of Pursuit of Pastry, says her customers' favorite is the bestselling apple pie.

"I will often get creative and feel the need to jazz up a recipe, but the customers always bring me back to basics," she says. "Pie is comfort food. People want a flavor experience they are comfortable eating. They don't want to have a 'new experience' with pie. They want what they remember from their past."

Like Tisdale, Peterson knew her way around the kitchen at a young age; she started cooking at 10.

"I come from a long line of horrible cooks, so we were not used to food being pleasurable," she recalls. "The first thing I ever made was a Mickey Mouse cookbook meatloaf. I didn't have one of the spices in the ingredients list, so I smelled everything in the spice rack to find something that might taste good."

Peterson, it turns out, had a nose for cooking.

"I was so pleased when the meatloaf turned out tasty, and the praise from my family lit the spark that turned into a love of food."

Her local public library also helped fuel her passion.

"They had an extensive cake decorating cookbook collection," she remembers. "I would flip through the pages thinking how fantastic it would be to make food that was so beautiful—and sweet too!"

When it comes to making pies, she tells people, "Don't be afraid of pie crust. So many people say they can't make it because they've heard that it's tricky. Simple ingredients, simple techniques. Don't stress. The pie knows when you are struggling."

She suggests starting with a basic fruit recipe.

"The first time, follow the recipe. From there, you can adjust the flavors to suit your personal taste. Baking is less forgiving than cooking, but pie is very forgiving. If it's too runny, it can be served in a dish with a rim. If it's not sweet enough, add some ice cream. If it's too sweet...well, there's no such thing."

Like Tisdale, she reminds new bakers to keep their pie ingredients chilled and avoid overworking the crust.

"The nice thing about pie accidents is that there is always someone ready to eat the mistakes," she says. "It's just pie. Wonderful, magical, familiar, and packed with memories. Don't make it out to be a super tricky food. No matter what, people will love it."

7 Tips for Making the Perfect Pie

1. Keep ingredients cold. Butter should refrigerated until you're ready to use it; vegetable shortening can be stored in the freezer. Add ice cubes to a measuring cup and fill the cup with more water than you'll need. When you add water to your pastry mixture, make sure its ice-cold, and refrigerate the dough after every step.

2. Handle the dough as little as possible. Patch up cracks in your dough rather than rerolling it. Overworking makes it tough.

3. Bake cold crusts or pies in a hot oven to set the structure.

4. Vent pies that have a crust on top. Cut slits in the top, use decorative cutters, or create a lattice crust to let the steam escape.

5. Use aluminum foil or pie shields to keep the crust from burning. Remove these near the end of your baking time to allow the crusts to brown.

6. Bake pies on the lowest oven rack on a preheated sheet pan.

7. Cool it! Don't cut and serve your pie until it has sufficiently cooled. The filing needs time to set, or the pie will be runny. Fruit pies need at least four hours to cool.