Here it is... my pie recipe from the SF Food Wars Pie or Die 2 Contest.. and let me tell you.... IT. IS. GOOOOOOD.
It may seem like there are a lot of steps to this pie, but you can totally make everything ahead of time. The crust can be made up to a few days ahead of time, as well as cashew drizzle. The fillings can be prepared the day before - just blend in the cornstarch the day of. Also, this recipe includes the minor changes and tweeks I made AFTER the competition. Hope you enjoy!
Luscious Lemon Cream and Blueberry Swirl Pie with a Vanilla Agave Cashew Drizzle
(makes two 9 inch pies)
Crust
2 cups unbleached All-purpose flour
1/2 cup ground oats
1 tsp. salt
2 TBS vegan granulated sugar (I use the Whole Foods 365 brand)
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) VERY COLD Earch Balance - cut into 1/4 in. pieces
1/2 cup VERY COLD shortening (I use Organic Spectrum brand) - cut into 1/4 in pieces
1/4 cup VERY COLD vodka
1/4 cup VERY COLD water
1. Pulse the flour, oats, salt and sugar in the food processor to incorporate everything together.
2. Add butter and shortening and pulse until the fat is in pea-size pieces. (Note: to make sure my fat stayed VERY COLD, after I cut it up, I put it back in the freazer for about 10 minutes). Now dump mixture into a large mixing bowl.
3. Add vodka to mixture a little at a time and start mixing with wooden spoon.
4. Start adding water one tabelspoon at a time until dough comes together and you can mix with your hands (you will probably use the full 1/4 cup). Do not over-mix dough.
(Note: this dough will be slightly sticky because of the extra moisture from the vodka).
5. Divide dough into two even rounds, wrap with prastic wrap and refrigerate (preferably over night).
Lemon Filling
1 1/2 boxes (18 oz.) Firm Silken Tofu (I use MoriNu Organic)
2/3 cup Vegan Cream Cheese (I use Tofutti brand)
1 1/2 cups vegan granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
zest and juice of 4 lemons
1/3 cup cornstarch mixed with
1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (if you dont use unsweetened and/or vanilla, you can add less sugar and/or more vanilla to recipe)
1. Blend all ingredients and reserve.
(Note: Do not add cornstarch until you are almost ready to bake the pie, as the filling will start to set up in fridge after a couple hours)
Blueberry Compote Swirl
1 1/2 cups blueberries (i use fresh, although frozen can surely be substituted)
3 TBS sugar OR agave syrup
1/4 cup water, divided
1 TBS lemon juice
pinch of salt
2 TBS cornstarch
1. Place all ingredients except the cornstarch and 2 TBS water in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Let blueberries cook down, stiring every few minutes.
2. Once cooked down, combine the 2 TBS cornstarch with 2 TBS water and add to saucepan. Stir thoroughly and cook for another few minutes.
3. At this point, you can blend the mixture, so there are no blueberry chunks, or leave as it. I opted to blend half, as to keep a few chunks.
Vanilla Agave Cashew Drizzle
1/2 cup raw cashews (soaked for 4 hours)
1/4 cup agave syrup
scrape of half a vanilla bean (you can substitute a tsp of vanilla extract, but using a bean give the sauce those little black vanilla bean specks)
1. Blend the cashews, agave syrum, and vanilla bean. You can add a little of the reserved soaking water to thin out the sauce.
To Assemble the pie:
1. Roll out pie dough and press into two 9-in pie pans. Crimp edges and poke dough with a fork all over. Line pie crusts with parchment paper and fill with pie weights (I used dry beans).
2. Bake pie crust at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes (you can bake one or both at the same time)
3. After pie crusts cool, spread a thin layer of the blueberry compote at bottom of pies. Fill with leamon cream filling , leaving about a quarter of an inch of space at top of pie. Drizzle in blueberry compoteon top and use a knife to make a ripple design (draw lines through pie filling horizontally and then vertically - see picture below)
4. Place pies back in the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes. Let pies cool completely before serving.
5. Drizzle with cashew sauce.
And VOILA....
