Julie Hasson

Pies And Tarts With Heart, And A Giveaway!

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I am so excited to be a part of Dynise Balcavage’s blog tour for her brand new book Pies And Tarts With Heart! I take my pies seriously, and let me just say, Dynise knows her pies! As some of you may know, I have a tremendous amount of cookbooks (I stopped counting a long time ago), but only a select few actually make it onto my kitchen shelf. Well, this book is snugly tucked in amongst the chosen few. It’s one of my favorites these days.

Pies and Tarts with Heart is Dynise’s third book, and it’s really adorable, with gorgeous color photos, creative recipes and an awesome layout (so you don’t have to flip pages in the middle of a recipe). The recipes are also tagged with icons, so you can see if it’s gluten free, fast, low-fat, kid-friendly, raw, or no-bake.

All of the recipes are super creative, and make me want to skip into the kitchen and bake a pie. She’s got over 60 recipes, from the traditional (apple and pumpkin), to creamy pies (including my faves key lime and lemon fluff), nutty pies, raw pies, tarts, savory pies and so much more! Dynise even includes pie toppers, like whipped toppings and sauces, to take your pie to the next level.

One of my favorite things about the book, is how Dynise has really de-mystified the pie making process, and made these recipes very user-friendly. Plus, she’s veganized some gems that I haven’t had in years, like my beloved key lime pie. For that, I will be forever grateful!

With pie season just around the corner, you are going to want to have this book in your arsenal. That way you’re armed and ready, whenever your significant might whisper to you “boy, I sure have a hankering for pie.” Yes, I seriously hear that one often; ). But honestly, hello, this is prime pie making season!

The awesome folks over at Quarry Books have offered to give a copy of this book to one lucky blog reader. Simply leave a comment below, and tell me what your favorite pie is. Oh, and don’t forget to leave your info as needed, so that I can reach you should you win. Unfortunately this is open to US residents only. Good luck you guys!

Oh, and now for the tasty part! Dynise was kind enough to allow me to share her recipe for Lemon Fluff Pie. I love, love, love citrus pies, and this one is right up my alley!

Lemon Fluff Pie
Refreshment in a crust. This tart-sweet pie is filled with a creamy, lemony pudding punctuated with happy flecks of lemon zest, topped off with a fluffy cloud of Coconut Whipped Topping. It’s a light finish to a heavy meal. Because it’s no-bake and citrusy, it’s a summer dessert no-brainer. Who needs an oven with a pie like this?
Makes one 9-inch (23 cm) pie

1 All-Purpose Cookie Crust made with graham crackers or gluten-free graham crackers
½ cup (120 ml) fresh lemon juice 1 tablespoon (8 g) agar
1 (12-ounce, or 336 g) container aseptic-packaged firm silken tofu (do not use refrigerated tofu; it’s too grainy for this recipe)
1 (8-ounce, or 225 g) container nondairy cream cheese
2 cups (240 g) confectioners’ sugar
1 tablespoon (15 ml) lemon extract
1 teaspoon arrowroot
2 tablespoons (12 g) finely grated lemon zest, plus extra for garnish
Pinch of turmeric, to boost yellow color (no more than 1/8 teaspoon)
2 recipes Coconut Whipped Cream or your favorite nondairy whipped cream

Preheat the oven to 400ºF (200ºC, or gas mark 6).

Press the crust into a pan and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool thoroughly before filling.

Pour the lemon juice and agar flakes into a small microwave-safe bowl.

Nuke for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the agar flakes are all dissolved and the liquid is very hot. Set aside and let cool completely.

In a food processor, mix the tofu, cream cheese, sugar, lemon extract, arrowroot, and lemon zest until creamy. Better to overprocess than underprocess. Add the lemon juice–agar mixture and continue processing.

Pour the filling into the prepared crust, leaving ¼ inch (6 mm) of headspace. Do not overfill. If you have any extra, pour it into ramekins to make individual lemon puddings. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours. I suggest freezing for an hour before serving.

(C) 2013 by Quarry Books and Dynise Balcavage.
Reprinted with permission.

Disclosure: I was provided with this book to review. All opinions are always my own, and I honestly love this book!

 

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Krys Kagan

    Hands down, my favorite is lemon. I LOVE lemon. Every year I ask for a lemon pie or cake for my birthday. I have been doing so, since I was a wee child. Lemon is the best. 🙂

  2. Amanda

    I reserve pie-making for special occasions. Maybe that’s why it remains my favorite dessert. The best pie is blueberry, of course, but a good pumpkin pie is a close second.

  11. Marcy

    This Lmon Fluff Pie sounds like it’s my favorite (at the moment). I could really go for a slice of it right now. This sounds like a book I’d really use and enjoy.

  17. Karen Faivre

    This book looks so awesome. It has been on my wishlist ever since I first heard about it! My favorite pie would be anything chocolate, I’m not picky. And let’s not forget pumpkin pie.

  19. Jill Russell

    THis is a hard choice to make…probably a tie between Strawberry-Rhubarb and good old Apple!

  26. Lizzie

    I like the rebels who went savory instead of sweet! 🙂 But I still have to go with strawberry rhubarb! (with almond extract, not vanilla)

  29. The Peace Patch

    Lemon blueberry pie with a shortbread crust is my favorite. As soon as you said “including my faves key lime and lemon fluff” though I got the most overwhelming craving for lemon meringue pie. I remember as a kid first tasting it and the zinging tang of the lemon surprised me but then the melty sugary yumfulness crept in and I was hooked. So I kept reading and there you have the Lemon Fluff Pie recipe…thank you thank you! I can get my lemon zing fix now. 🙂