Pear and Ginger Pie

So the Great American Bake Sale- Philly Food Blogger Edition- was today, and it went great! I took tons of pics and met lots of sweet ladies and gents with even sweeter snacks. And then I LEFT MY CAMERA THERE. Epic Fail. Since I haven't gotten it back yet, you'll just have to wait to see/hear about it. But in the meantime, I've got some other things to talk about.

I need to tell you about my dear friend Theresa. She's awesome. She's smart, and beautiful, and sweet and kind. She's tons of fun to hang out with and extremely supportive of her friends, and just generally a top-notch gal. To know Tree is to love her. And another reason why I love Theresa? She loves my pies. In particular, my pear and ginger pie. So for her birthday (which was back around Easter), I made her a little pie to call her own. 

I happened to have some mini-pie crusts in my freezer left over from a pie-a-palooza a few months ago. I had made a bunch of crusts, lined some small disposable tins, wrapped them in plastic wrap and threw them in the freezer. I don't normally plan ahead like this, but I was quite pleased with myself for the foresight. And I'm not usually one to take shortcuts while baking, especially with my pies, but since I was baking and decorating 4 dozen cupcakes that same morning, I thought i'd give myself a break. 

Theresa's not the only one that loves this pie. This pie can convert cake eaters and make boys fall in love with you. There's lots to love about it, but it's quite simple. It's not too sweet. I like to let the pears sing quietly in their subtle sweetness. But just when you thought everything was safe and mild, the ginger lights a match in the back of your throat and kicks you from behind. And somehow, it all works together and marries beautifully and delicately on your tongue and in your belly. And you'll start to find excuses to eat it for breakfast. 

Now I know that many people talk about baking being a science. And it is. I'd be lying if I said I never measure anything because somethings require precision and ratios. Like pie crust. I've fine-tuned my crust-making techniques over the last year and now have a flawless recipe. But when it comes to fruit fillings, I like to play fast and loose.  I don't think I've ever actually followed a fruit pie recipe. I tend to think of them as "suggestions", and just kind of toss the ingredients together until it looks right. But I realize some people need rules, boundaries, maps. So, I'm going to give you the recipe that I didn't follow, which is for a full 9 inch pie. I used every item listed in the recipe, but may have added some as I saw fit. As for amounts and ratios, all bets are off. 

Pear and Ginger Pie

adapted from The Garden of Vegan

One 9 inch vegan pie crust (i'll post a recipe eventually)

4 pears, not too ripe, cored and sliced

1/2 cup dry sweetener

3 tbsp fresh ginger, grated

1 tbsp arrowroot powder

2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp grated lemon zest

1 tbsp cinammon sugar

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, I like to pour the sugar over the fruit first, and mix it up, then combine the other ingredients together (except for the cinammon and sugar) in a small bowl, and pour over the pears, tossing to cover. Pour into prepared pie shell, and sprinkle cinammon and sugar on top. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until liquid is bubbling and filling is set. Allow to cool completely on wire rack. Unless you're Theresa, and you can't wait for it to cool or set and need warm soupy pie immediately. Either way, it's delicious. 

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