Page 97 - Pie It Forward: Pies, Tarts, Tortes, Galettes, and Other Pastries Reinvented

A NOTE FROM THE SWEETIE PIE

Top crusts are the tops, aren’t they? They can make or break the
look of a pie. I find that when the pie filling is extravagantly high,
like in the large Vermont Apple Pie (page 91), you need only place

a simple top crust with a vent hole over the filling. The spectacle
of the height is all you need to make it gorgeous. In other cases,
when volume isn’t present, a little drama is welcome.
If you get your hands on some tools, making jaw-droppingly
beautiful crusts is a snap. For my Gesine Confectionary Cherry
Pie (page 75), I cut polka dots into the top crust using a large
open pastry tip. For traditional lattice, I like to use different

thicknesses of strips for added visual impact, as I have done in
the Strawberry Rhubarb Lattice Crumble Pie (opposite). For a
uniform lattice, like that atop pie pops (page 94), I use a lattice
roller available from pastry supply shops like Pastrychef.com. And
I’m sure you’ve noticed that exquisite design on the Wild
Blueberry Pie (page 56)—that’s a pie stencil, also available at

pastry supply shops (I got mine at the King Arthur Flour Baker’s
Shop). And then there’s the Not-So-Traditional Apple Pie (page
83), for which I make the top crust from overlapping heart cutouts.
Beautiful and delicious.