Happy Pi Day!

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Hello Sunshines! I don't know about you, but I think it's time for vacation. I'm thinking somewhere warm with brilliant turquoise water and silky powdery sand. Long days filled with lounging and exploring. And of course eating amazing seafood and cocktails served with umbrella. I must be dreaming!! 

I selected mangoes for this pie because I could use a little brightness today as it's a blizzard outside with snow and freezing rain. Ugh!! For now I'll have to settle for eating tropical fruits, such as these mangoes, and plotting my next get away. 

The base of this mango pie is a rich delicious vanilla custard. It's creamy and the perfect complement with a fruit. Here I used ripe mangoes, but in the past I've paired the vanilla custard with baked pears which makes for a beautiful fall or winter dessert. The vanilla custard is essentially a blank canvas for whatever fruit floats your boat.

Let's get to it - Pre-bake the pie crust, lined with parchment paper and weighted with rice or dry beans so the dough doesn't puff up as it bakes, approximately 20-25 mins. This gives you a nice pie crust that won't go soggy when you bake it with the pie filling. 

Pull out all of the ingredients to make the custard as you'll need to continuously stir the mixture as it cooks and thickens. The dairy will cook quickly and and if you're not continuously stirring you will accidentally burn the custard. 

I like to use a heavy bottom pan such as a cast iron skillet to make the custard. In a separate bowl whisk the eggs together prior to starting the custard. On medium temperature add the milk, cream, sugar, cornstarch, and vanilla and cook for about 5 minutes. Using a tablespoon, add 2 to 3 tablespoons of the dairy mixture to the whisked eggs. Quickly stir this together and slowly add the egg mixture to the developing custard. You are tempering the eggs because if you were to add the eggs directly to the custard they would scramble and you would instantly ruin the custard. Continue cooking for 2-3 minutes and turn off the heat. Add 2 tablespoons of butter and stir. Pour into your pie shell and add your chopped fruit. Top off with the top layer of the pie crust and brush with egg so the crust bakes to a nice golden brown.

Happy Pi Day! I hope you enjoy! 

Recipe

xo L