Thank you, your help and the video you linked was invaluable! I also love the simplicity of Stella's pie thickening ratios, with it throwing out the guess work behind how much thickener is needed. Since you seem experienced with it, have you had success using it for other fruits? I know she has blueberry and cherry pie published, but doesn't recommend it for fruits like peaches, raspberries, etc. since they're thinner-skinned and will lose more structure (but she has recipes for some other fruits in alternative formats, such as galette or crumble). However, I don't mind a bit mushier filling, and I'm also a bit OCD about this and would love the idea of a "master recipe" that I could use for all fruits.
Let's Talk Pie Crust: Rolling out, Blind Baking, etc. Your Method?
- Thread starter J13
- Start date
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2017
- Messages
- 4,067
- Reaction score
- 2,081
Last year I made quite a few peach pies. Peaches actually have quite a bit of pectin in them. I tried whole tapioca pearls as well as tapioca flour. Both worked. But the pearls work best if your peaches are really juicy because it requires that moisture to fully dissolved.
I also very the sugar depending on how ripe sweet the peaches.
I can’t speak to raspberries because I’ve never made raspberry pie. I’ve only used them fresh on a tart.
The ratios for thickening range:
- Fruit 1.00 (100%)
- Sugar .12 - .30 (12% - 30%)
- Tapioca starch .055 - .013 (5.5% - 1.3%)
- Apples 100%
- Sugar 12%
- Tapioca starch 1.3%
- Blueberries 100%
- Sugar 25%
- Tapioca starch 5.5%
- Peaches 100%
- Sugar 12% - 15%
- Tapioca starch 4%
1/4 tsp Saigon cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
- Trader Joe’ Dark Morello Sour Cherries 100%
- Sugar 30%
- Tapioca starch 5.5%
It’s important to drain cherries extremely well
I realize I've been talking a lot about pies recently, but there's another question that I've been thinking about. Outside of the extra time commitment, is there ever any disadvantage to prebaking a pie crust for a single-crust pie, provided you ensure that the edges don't burn? I've seen people say that the filling protects the bottom crust from overcooking, so there wouldn't be any risk of it being overbaked. In that case I guess the only downside might be that the blind bake may not always be necessary for less runny fillings.
I'm also reading a couple pastry textbooks and they usually specifically note that mealy pie dough, often unbaked, is used for baked custard pies. I found this an interesting contrast to the usual pie recipes in cookbooks or online, where people only ever talk about flaky pie dough, not mealy. Is the reason for using mealy pie dough and not blind baking it due to time constraints in commercial food operations (and hence not necessarily applicable for a home setting)?
I'm also reading a couple pastry textbooks and they usually specifically note that mealy pie dough, often unbaked, is used for baked custard pies. I found this an interesting contrast to the usual pie recipes in cookbooks or online, where people only ever talk about flaky pie dough, not mealy. Is the reason for using mealy pie dough and not blind baking it due to time constraints in commercial food operations (and hence not necessarily applicable for a home setting)?
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2017
- Messages
- 4,067
- Reaction score
- 2,081
Absolutely blind bake your single piecrust. And do not bake at high temperature. Stella Parks wrote an article on blind baking at 350°F temperature. And she’s correct this is a far better way.
I freeze my piecrust for about 15 minutes so I do not damage it. I gently crumple a piece of regular aluminum foil, then open it up. I form it to the inside of the crust taking care to get it in the edges. I’ve been lifted out to make sure it does not stick to the crust before I set it back down.
I use rice as the pie weights. I don’t like to use beans or ceramic pie weights as they’re too heavy. Stella Parks uses sugar since you can use toasted sugar for other things.
I bake my crust to a light golden brown. Stella Parks over bakes hers IMO. but to each their own.
You can also blind bake double crust. And in fact it’s recommended by many bakers. Erin McDowell has a good technique for blind baking double crust. See link below. I also think McDowell over bakes hers but again to each their own.
Most so-called ”textbooks” are riddled will errors.
The one book that is well regarded and is in fact used by many professional pastry chefs is Advanced Bread and Pastry A Professional Approach by Michel Suas. This is my baking bible. There’s some things in this book that is strictly commercial, ingredients in the equipment that you’re not going to use in the home setting. B the science and technique is rock solid.
Suas actually founded and continues to run The San Francisco Baking Institute. Aside from training thousands of bakers, and some of the award winning bakers in the world Suas is also a consultant. Every baker who is anyone in the US has turned to Suas for assistance including Thomas Keller of Bouchon Bakery; Chad Robertson of Tartine; Steve Sullivan of Acme; Nancy Silverton of La Brea. Suas’ client list reads like the Who’s Who of bakers in the world.
A few months ago I was in a class conducted by a master baker. This baker won the gold at Coupe du Monde de la Boulangerie. One of the participants asked for recommendation on baking books. He said the only baking book he would recommend is Suas’ book.
Suas is business partners with Belinda Leong in b. patisserie. Their bakery won the James Beard award in 2018 for Outstanding Baker. So his work translates into the real world.
https://food52.com/blog/18422-par-bake-your-double-crust-pies-join-the-anti-soggy-crust-crusade
That's an interesting technique for blind baking a double-crusted pie! I've also seen that Shirley Corriher apparently has a recipe in CookWise for an apple pie where the bottom crust, filling, and top crust are all cooked separately and assembled after, but it seems to be pretty niche technique since the top crust still wouldn't be attached.
Advanced Bread and Pastry was actually conveniently next on my list. I already read Professional Baking by Wayne Gisslen and am currently reading through The Professional Pastry Chef by Bo Friberg, since I've had those recommended for being good overviews and introductions to techniques. I've also seen other people also comment on that some of the recipes in Advanced Bread and Pastry aren't feasible for a home cook, but that's the extent of the critique I've heard, while I know multiple people have had problems with some recipes in Gisslen's and Friberg's books.
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2017
- Messages
- 4,067
- Reaction score
- 2,081
Shirley is an incredible food scientist. One of the best. But as a baker well let me just say I love her for her science not her baking techniques or formula.
I really can’t comment on Gisslen's and Friberg’s books because I haven’t read them. I’ve read the reviews on them and I know that even in culinary programs they have had issues with them.
Suas’ book is definitely 100% textbook. It is not written for the home baker. It’s written to train professionals, in a professional kitchen.
I live in the Napa Valley not too far from CIA. I’ve taken classes at CIA and have not been all that impressed.
I prefer the classes at Keith Giusto’s Artisan Baking Center. Some of the best bakers in the country teach there. They also get guest bakers from around the world to come in This year I hope to take classes at Suas’ SFBI because they offer 5 day intensives, something the Artisan Baking Center does not.
I got impatient and since I already have a copy of the Suas book, I gave it a quick viewing, skipping straight to the Pastry Dough chapter since that's what I'm currently working on. Let me just say, wow! The chapter had more in-depth information about the basic tart doughs than in the other two books combined. While the other books just gave an overview of the formulation and purposes of the basic doughs, Suas goes into much more detail, like how egg yolks/whites affect the dough, why cooked yolks are sometimes used (I've seen it in some linzer dough/batter recipes, but never actually knew why), the difference between using powdered/granulated sugar, and even the difference between pâte à foncer and pâte brisée (because I'm super pedantic and have tried googling that question before, but couldn't find anything definitive).
I now know why the pâte brisée I made before shrunk heavily after baking - it must've been from me overworking the butter in, which meant I used less water, causing the dough to not be strong enough. That was a question that I had for quite a bit, since I always associated shrinking = too much gluten, but I made two tarts with that batch of dough, and both of them shrunk a lot in height, but they were still surprisingly tender and not tough as I expected.
I won't say I'm not envious that you live so close to all those baking classes and institutions! It's no wonder you know so much. What do they teach in the advanced classes? I wonder what the higher-level stuff is that would be new even for someone like you. Unfortunately as a beginner, I've still got this 1000-page tome to finish if I want to get just the fundamentals right.
Last edited:
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2017
- Messages
- 4,067
- Reaction score
- 2,081
Hahaha! You understand now why I say his book is my baking bible!!! And not just for me but for some of the greatest bakers in this country. This is why bakers travel from all over the world to go to SFBI. Suas is a master baker. He’s been baking since he was 14 years old. he is the only master baker to write a comprehensive textbook.
Even if you can’t use all of the formulas, that book is invaluable because of the baking science.
I’m fortunate that I live close to Petaluma. That’s where Keith Giusto Bakery Supply is headquartered. Which is the distribution arm of Central Milling Flour. Which is the flour supplier for SFBI and most of the best bakeries in the country. They repackage most of their flours into small 5 lb bags for retail sale to home bakers. You can buy it online as well but the shipping is a bit expensive.
Whole Foods All Purpose organic 365 is their Beehive flour. As is Safeway’s O All Purpose Organic.
The Central Millings Beehive is the flour I use for my pie crusts, tarts, etc. Its organic hard red winter blend, unbleached 10% - 10.5% protein with 57% ash and malted. It really makes a nice crust. So if you have a Whole Foods anywhere, try their 375 Organic all purpose flour because it’s Central Milling’s Beehive flour.
Now that many more fruits are in season, I've got some fruit pies planned out to bake, so coming back to this post. So the important thing with the ratios is that the sugar raises the gelatinization point of the tapioca starch so it doesn't break down. With 25% sugar, 5.5% tapioca starch (what Stella uses for her blueberry and cherry pies), the pie is cooked to 213°F (101°C). With 16% sugar, 2% tapioca starch (what she uses for her apple pie recipe), it's cooked to 195°F (91°C).
This brings up the question, how would you know the final cooking temperatue for different ratios then? I'm gonna be making a peach pie soon, which you recommend a similar ratio of sugar as for apples, but 4% tapioca starch. I'm guessing that with a lower ratio of sugar:tapioca starch than the apple pie, the final internal temperature should also be lower than the apple pie?
- Joined
- Jan 12, 2020
- Messages
- 1,043
- Reaction score
- 218
when the filling bubbles, (boil) , its done.
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2017
- Messages
- 4,067
- Reaction score
- 2,081
It’s really about the pectin levels. Apples are baked to a lower temperature because they contain a lot more pectin. Sweet varieties of apples contain a lot more pectin than tart apples so they break down during baking. IMO sweet apples should not be baked in a pie. I think they are more suited for crisps, tarts, and crumbles where you bake for a shorter time. Tart apples have less pectin than sweet apples, so they hold up better in baking, but still cannot be baked as hot and long as other fruits with less pectin.
Compared to blueberries, peaches have a lot more pectin; but not nearly as much as apples. Adding sugar to fruit helps the natural gelling of pectin as well as helps the fruit to keep its shape. The more ripe the fruit, the more quickly it cooks, and the more mushy it becomes. But adding sugar and acid (mainly lemon) to ripe fruit will help counter that.
The plant cell is a polysaccharides which means it is a molecule made of several times of sugars. The three major parts are protopectin, hemicellulose and cellulose. When the fruit ripens, something called depolymerization of the protopectin and hemicellulose occurs. Depolymerization is the breakdown of the polymer bond between two identical monomer molecules. So in the case baking of fruit, the heat converts the protopectin to pectin and breaks down the polymer bond between pectin molecules; it also depolymerizes the hemicellulose molecules. When the conversion of the protopectin happens, the molecules release water. That’s why the fruit turns to mush.
The order of chemical change when fruit ripens is protopectin to pectin to pectic acid. This chemical change is also triggered by heat. So you cannot use overly ripe fruit for baking.
If you think your fruit is a little on the riper side, but still firm enough to bake, just up the sugar some. Don’t forget to up the tapioca starch accordingly. BTW, I used Bob’s Red Mill tapioca pearls last year in a few peach pies and they worked as well. My sister’s neighbor has a couple of peach trees and every other year they produce a bumper crop. So we had a bunch of peaches. So I did some experimenting.
The interesting thing is sugar and an acid will slow the protopectin conversion to pectin and hemicellulose breakdown. But how ripe the fruit is before baking is also important. Start with a medium ripe peach. An under ripe peach (or any under ripe fruit) will just stay tough and chewy from the sugar and it hold the protopectin, hemicellulose and cellulose matrix together.
Cut the peaches in thick wedges. Use an acid like lemon juice. The temperature of the peaches can be brought as high as boiling in the pie if your peaches are medium ripe and there is enough sugar and an acid.
Theoretically, you can also use a calcium powder instead of acid. Calcium powder is used in canning and jam making. The calcium inhibits the breakdown of the protopectin hemicellulose matrix if it’s intact. The brand of pectin I use, Pomona Pecitn, is a natural fruit pectin made from citrus, and it has a separate packet of calcium powder to dilute in water. It is used to trigger the gelling of the pectin. So if you poached the peaches gently in a sugar and calcium solution, like poached pears, then added them to the pie, that would help keep the peaches from turning to mush during baking. But I am not sure how much calcium powder to add.
There's a lot of information here, and I've an absolute ton of questions if you don't mind. Might take some time to get through them all haha.
- So if I understand correctly, more pectin in the fruit = they break down more when cooked? I knew that fruits break down and release water when their pectin breaks down (I guess this is the depolymerization process you mentioned), but wouldn't it intuitively make sense that since pectin is what holds up the cell walls of fruits, then more pectin = breaks down less?
- And on a related note, as sweet apples have more pectin than tart apples, that would mean they also thicken fruit fillings more, right?
- And on a related note, as sweet apples have more pectin than tart apples, that would mean they also thicken fruit fillings more, right?
- I also didn't know that sugar and acid slows down depolymerization (well technically didn't even know about depolymerization until now). For practical purposes, this means that more sugar and acid = less broken down fruits and thicker filling?
- I baked the peach pie yesterday using a ratio of 15% sugar and 4% tapioca starch, and the peaches were a good medium ripeness. With a total of 1200 prepared fruit, that meant 180g sugar and 48g tapioca starch. Also used a 15g lemon juice. I noticed after tossing all the ingredients together for the filling that there was a lotof liquid - measured it out to be about 250ml. So I decided to cook it down a bit, but since I'd already included the tapioca starch, it thickened way too much on the stovetop, and I ended up only cooking it down to about 200ml before it became too gelatinous. Ended up baking to 214°F (a bit higher than I'd intended), and even after cooling down to 85°F (the temperature Stella gives), the filling was way too runny. The texture of the peaches themselves were actually basically perfect - soft but not mushy, although surprisingly we all thought it could've been sweeter (to be fair, the peaches themselves weren't that sweet).
- Was all the liquid that came out of the peaches pre-baking normal? It wasn't from a long maceration process, but rather came out immediately within combining all the ingredients.
- Another guess I have for the cause of the too-runny filling is it's possible I overbaked the filling since 214°F is a bit high, which would've caused the peaches to break down too much and release more water. However they weren't at all mushy, so not sure whether this was a big cause.
- Is it possible that with the lower ratio of sugar:tapioca, 214°F was too high and caused the tapioca to start breaking down? I'm not sure on how sensitive of a temperature range tapioca starch has between gelatinization and breaking down though, so maybe this isn't a concern whatsoever.
- For next time, my current plan would be to increase the sugar and tapioca starch to the standard 25%/6% Stella uses for her blueberry and cherry pies. In theory, the extra sugar wouldn't be bad since this pie could've been sweeter, the sugar would also slow down depolymerization which means less water coming out of the peaches, and the increased starch of course provides even more thickening. Is there anything you'd do differently?
- And a bit related to my experience, do you ever macerate your fruits and reduce the liquid? I know this is a common method employed for fruit pies, but Stella Parks writes for her apple pie recipethat most of the liquid leftover is just dissolved sugar, and not water drawn out from the fruit. She backs this up by showing how the weight of the liquid isn't much more than the weight of the sugar added to the fruit, but I'd figure that a lot of the sugar would also be absorbed into the fruit itself. So while some of that liquid might be dissolved sugar, a not-insignificant amount would still be water. Do you know anything more on this?
- J. Kenji Lopez-Alt wrote in his apple pie article that maceration only draws moisture from the exterior of the fruit, but not from the interior where most of the water is contained. This might explain it?
- However, Stella still macerates her apples for her recipe just to reduce their volume, which allows her to fit more fruit into the pie. Maybe a possible idea for other fruits like peaches or pears?
- The idea of adding calcium to inhibit fruits from breaking down is also pretty interesting. It sounds similar in concept to the method Kenji uses for his apple pies, where he holds the apple slices at 140-160°F for 10 minutes before cooking to stabilize the cell walls. Have you ever tried this approach for apple pies? And maybe it could have applications for other fruit pies too.
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2017
- Messages
- 4,067
- Reaction score
- 2,081
@Cahoot
- So if I understand correctly, more pectin in the fruit = they break down more when cooked? I knew that fruits break down and release water when their pectin breaks down (I guess this is the depolymerization process you mentioned), but wouldn't it intuitively make sense that since pectin is what holds up the cell walls of fruits, then more pectin = breaks down less?
- No. There is a network of which the three main components are protopectin, hemicellulose, and cellulose. These are made of molecules called monomers, molecules that bind to other identical molecules. When they bind together, they form polymers. So the pectin molecules bind to pectin; the hemicellulose to the hemicelllulose; and cellulose to cellulose.
- So together these form a polymer network that gives the plant cell its solid form. Think of it like the plant’s cell wall is made with various colors of bricks held together with mortar. When depolymerization occurs that network is blown apart. Think of it like the mortar of a brick wall begin blown out between the bricks.
- One of the thing that happens in depolymerization is the protopecitn converts to pecitn. When this happens, water molecules are released. But with the entire process of depolymerization, the entire network collapses, so the plant loses its structure when pectin is created in the conversion.
- Plants with a high level of pectin like apples, grapes, quince can be turned into jam without added pectin powder because of the natural pectin in the fruit. This is done by slowing boiling the fruit with about 20% - 22% sugar and an acid like lemon juice. But you have to boil it for a long time to evaporate all the water molecules that are released when the depolymerization occurs.
- And on a related note, as sweet apples have more pectin than tart apples, that would mean they also thicken fruit fillings more, right?
- No. When the depolymerization happens in the apples, the apples turn to mush. For the the pectin to then thicken, there has to be enough sugar and an acid, then you have to boil for an extended period to evaporate the water molecules to get the pectin to thicken.
- I also didn't know that sugar and acid slows down depolymerization (well technically didn't even know about depolymerization until now). For practical purposes, this means that more sugar and acid = less broken down fruits and thicker filling?
- Only to a certain extent. If your fruit is too under ripe, sugar will only made the fruit tougher because it prevents depolymerization. Fruit that is at peak will benefit from more sugar. Fruit that is very ripe will not hold up during cooking do matter what you do. There’s such a thing as too much sugar. Remember, sugar is hygroscopic, so pulls in water. That’s a good thing. What after baking, it will also start to release water as well.
- Since fruit for the grocery stores is picked way before peak, it is often under ripe when purchased. These require ripening on the counter for a few days before use. And they rarely have any flavor after ripening. Fruit like peaches are best purchased at a farmer’s market where they are going to be closer to ripe when picked for sale.
- Was all the liquid that came out of the peaches pre-baking normal? It wasn't from a long maceration process, but rather came out immediately within combining all the ingredients.
- Let a pie cool completely before cutting. I know what Stella says, but the full gelling effect will not fully happen until the pie is completely cool.
- Did the peaches macerate by sitting in the sugar? Remember sugar is hygroscopic, so will pull water from its environment. So it will pull the water from fruit.
- Peaches of different varieties and any given batch may contain more juice than others. If your peaches release a lot of liquid, don’t be afraid to up the tapioca starch.
- Regarding the sweetness, I’ve been there. I’ve learned now to buy a couple extra pieces of fruit and to taste my filling and correct the sugar and spices before I put it in the pie plate to bake.
- Another guess I have for the cause of the too-runny filling is it's possible I overbaked the filling since 214°F is a bit high, which would've caused the peaches to break down too much and release more water. However they weren't at all mushy, so not sure whether this was a big cause.
- 214°F is on the high side; 212°F (or the boiling point adjusted for altitude) in the center of the pie is good for most pie except apple. Apple cannot that long hot bake.
- If the internal temperature were too high and full polymerization happened, your peaches would have been mush. I think it was a matter of adjusting for the amount of juice in the peaches.
- My guess is you had a batch of peaches with a lot of juice. What you can do in the future is just strain off the juice before you add any sugar and tapioca. The reduce the juice in a saucepan on the stovetop. Then cool some and add it back to the peaches.
- Is it possible that with the lower ratio of sugar:tapioca, 214°F was too high and caused the tapioca to start breaking down? I'm not sure on how sensitive of a temperature range tapioca starch has between gelatinization and breaking down though, so maybe this isn't a concern whatsoever.
- For next time, my current plan would be to increase the sugar and tapioca starch to the standard 25%/6% Stella uses for her blueberry and cherry pies. In theory, the extra sugar wouldn't be bad since this pie could've been sweeter, the sugar would also slow down depolymerization which means less water coming out of the peaches, and the increased starch of course provides even more thickening. Is there anything you'd do differently?
- And a bit related to my experience, do you ever macerate your fruits and reduce the liquid? I know this is a common method employed for fruit pies, but Stella Parks writes for her apple pie recipe that most of the liquid leftover is just dissolved sugar, and not water drawn out from the fruit. She backs this up by showing how the weight of the liquid isn't much more than the weight of the sugar added to the fruit, but I'd figure that a lot of the sugar would also be absorbed into the fruit itself. So while some of that liquid might be dissolved sugar, a not-insignificant amount would still be water. Do you know anything more on this?
- I don’t think Stella simply weighing of the fruit is prove of anything. First off she doesn’t take into account any sugar dissolved sugar that coats the fruit as it sits. So even if she separated the liquid and fruit, the fruit might be weighed down by the sugar even if it released water. When I weigh rice, I measure out 400g exactly. After washing in a mesh colander, it weigh significantly more because water is stuck to the rice and some has probably absorbed into it. No doubt as the apples sit in the sugar, they get coated in sugar adding weight. But that isn’t proof that the sugar isn’t also drawing out water from the apples.
- We know that sugar is hygroscopic, that is a scientific fact. Why would sugar suddenly not be hygroscopic on sliced apples?
- J. Kenji Lopez-Alt wrote in his apple pie article that maceration only draws moisture from the exterior of the fruit, but not from the interior where most of the water is contained. This might explain it?
- Did you let the fruit sit in the sugar for 10 minutes or more? If so, then maceration occurred.
- However, Stella still macerates her apples for her recipe just to reduce their volume, which allows her to fit more fruit into the pie. Maybe a possible idea for other fruits like peaches or pears?
- Apple has more pectin than peaches and pears, so once peeled, they are firmer and remain firmer. Low pectin fruits tend to break down faster once peeled since the skin is a large part of the polymer network.
- The idea of adding calcium to inhibit fruits from breaking down is also pretty interesting. It sounds similar in concept to the method Kenji uses for his apple pies, where he holds the apple slices at 140-160°F for 10 minutes before cooking to stabilize the cell walls. Have you ever tried this approach for apple pies? And maybe it could have applications for other fruit pies too.
- Yes, I have a sous vide, so I tried Kenji’s sous vide apple pie. Meh. and way too long for to sous vide the apples. Kenji is too much nerd and not a baker. There’s no reason to go through that kind of unnecessary trouble to set up a sous vide, wait for an hour for the apples to cook, then proceed to bake a pie. Now his reverse sear steak—holy crap!! I won’t cook a steak any other way!!
@Norcalbaker59 Thanks for clearing all that up! I really do appreciate you taking all that time to answer my questions. I'll just have to pay more attention to the water from my fruits and see if any adjustments have to be made then. That's something that frustrates me about fruit pies - I value consistency a lot, but there are so many different factors here such as the variety of fruit, its ripeness, etc. that are difficult to control for. With more experience, I'd probably be able to tell when and how much to adjust sugar, starch, whether to reduce juices, but I prefer not having to fail dozens of pies to get there haha.
And I very much agree regarding Stella's claim on maceration being doubtful. In fact, wouldn't just the fact that you can reduce the liquid from maceration prove how much water is in it? E.g. if you had 1 cup of liquid and reduced it to 1/2 cup, then that's 1/2 cup water that you've just gotten rid of. So I'm surprised she wrote that.
And I very much agree regarding Stella's claim on maceration being doubtful. In fact, wouldn't just the fact that you can reduce the liquid from maceration prove how much water is in it? E.g. if you had 1 cup of liquid and reduced it to 1/2 cup, then that's 1/2 cup water that you've just gotten rid of. So I'm surprised she wrote that.
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2017
- Messages
- 4,067
- Reaction score
- 2,081
@Cahoot, yes Stella misses the mark every once in a while. She’s a brilliant baker and food science nerd. But every once in a while we do miss the obvious. And with the maceration I think she misses the obvious.
Yes baking is strange dichotomy of rigid practices of absolutes in baker’s percentages and DDT that play out along side dynamic practices that require constant assessment and adjustment such as pie filling. And that’s why using Baker’s percentages is so important; volume simply isn’t flexible and nuanced enough to make those necessary chances.
So made another pie today, this time strawberry-rhubarb. Used 480g rhubarb, 320g strawberries, mostly following the Stella Parks ratios, with 25% sugar (200g), but more tapioca starch at 7% (56g). There was way less liquid that came out of the filling pre-baking than last time with the peach pie (which wasn't macerated at all), so I'm thinking that was definitely an anomaly. Cooked to 210°F, and I'm happy with the result. Maybe could have used slightly less thickener, but honestly I prefer pie fillings on the thicker side than thinner. 1 tsp cinnamon and 1/2 tsp Chinese five-spice powder went pretty well with the fruits too.
![IMG_20200711_211506[1].jpg](https://www.baking-forums.com/attachments/img_20200711_211506-1-jpg.3130/ "IMG_20200711_211506[1].jpg")
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2017
- Messages
- 4,067
- Reaction score
- 2,081
@Cahoot. WoW! That pie looks perfect! The crust is is flaky and perfectly baked. And I’d say the filling is perfect too! I don’t think you could do any better from an aesthetic perspective.