Lifestyles

"Everything I've done my entire life with pies is wrong!" Sarah Fairbrother declared in my Washington, D.C., kitchen a few weeks ago.

She had just watched Rose Levy Beranbaum, author of the landmark "Pie and Pastry Bible," roll out a silken, butter-infused circle of perfect pie crust dough and couldn't fathom how she would be able to make such a thing of beauty.

Fairbrother, a 42-year-old project director for Cultural Tourism DC, also got a lesson in what happens when you ask for piemaking advice.

"I lost my ability to make crust," she had written to us. "It just comes out dry or soggy (there's no in-between) and won't roll out. Can you help me make edible pie again?"

It was a natural lesson for summer's fruit season. Beranbaum, 64, agreed to make a day trip from New York and give Fairbrother a three-hour tutorial, adapting recipes from her cookbook for flaky cream cheese pie crust, a two-crust peach pie, a cherry pie with a lattice top and a pecan pie, which Fairbrother specifically had requested.

Beranbaum's method and appearance were neat, delicate and precise. In a soft, enthusiastic voice, she relayed a constant stream of anecdotes and information, bringing to mind my first favorite teacher.

And she got in a few well-placed, good-natured zingers.

"Could someone clean up some of this mess?" she inquired innocently at one point. "Someone who lives here?"

The only actual demand she made, and understandably so, was that the lesson take place in an air-conditioned kitchen, which disqualified Fairbrother's home. The most important thing about pastry, Beranbaum stressed, was keeping it cool, because the minute it starts getting warm, butter is absorbed into the flour, and that can diminish the crust's flakiness.

Beranbaum began the lesson at noon by addressing Fairbrother's dilemma. She explained scientifically how the crust's flavor, tenderness and golden-brown crispness depend on achieving the right balance of protein, fat, water and acid, and then maintaining that balance during baking.

Given that she holds bachelor's and master's degrees in food science from New York University, it was not surprising that Beranbaum approached the subject matter in that way. Chemistry cannot be ignored or rushed; therefore, it follows that to make a good pie, no step in Beranbaum's process is expendable.

Let's face it. The reason so many cooks make imperfect pies is that we take shortcuts and then rationalize failure by saying we lack a pastry chef's touch; that's more acceptable than admitting laziness or impatience.

Beranbaum gets that concept.

"I used to do unnecessary things, so I hate telling people to do unnecessary things," she said, letting on that she knew her meticulousness sometimes goes too far. "I once took the weight of beans every hour to see just exactly at what point they stopped absorbing water," she said with a giggle.

Teacher and student stood side by side and started making a two-crust batch of flaky cream cheese pie crust, Beranbaum's favorite, which would be used for three kinds of pie. It's not as flaky and crisp as an all-butter crust, but it has a delicious extra tang and doesn't distort much during baking.

To the classic ingredients of cream cheese pastry (cream cheese, butter, flour), she added vinegar to relax the dough when it is rolled out, cream to impart extra richness and baking powder to make it puff up in the oven, which translates into greater tenderness.

All ingredients were kept cold at all times and combined in a food processor as minimally and quickly as possible. Beranbaum said that if you process the dough too much, you lose flakiness, but if you don't process it enough, big clumps of butter become holes in the rolled-out dough.

"As soon as you can, gather the dough together, then you knead it just slightly," Beranbaum explained. She recommends wearing food-safe latex gloves to do so (keeping hands cool) and preferably working on a cool counter. "When you're finished and you pull it, there should be a slight elasticity, just slight. You see all the nice buttery streaks, but it doesn't just break apart. Don't handle it much more after that."

She wrapped the kneaded dough in plastic, formed it into a disk and relegated it to the refrigerator for a 45-minute rest, long enough to help make the dough easier to roll out and less elastic, to reduce shrinkage during baking. Fairbrother did the same with her half of the dough.

What was truly amazing about the dough was that it already was cool at that point; cool enough, in fact, that it could have been rolled out right then, formed and sent to the fridge for resting.

Beranbaum deemed 65 degrees the right temperature for dough that is to be rolled out. (If it has been refrigerated overnight rather than for 45 minutes, she suggests leaving it out for 10 minutes.)

The rolling-out process, done in strokes from the dough's center that stopped short of the edges, was a breeze, thanks to a few bakers' helpers. Beranbaum placed a canvas pastry cloth rubbed with flour underneath the dough and covered the rolling pin with a cloth sleeve, both of which prevent sticking and overuse of flour. Fitted, 1/8-inch-thick rings placed on the ends of the pin ensured the crust would be rolled to an even thickness.

"When you can't roll it any thinner, you're done," she said.

The hardest part was over.

Well, perhaps Fairbrother didn't think so right then, but she soon got the hang of it.

Onward to the fillings. Beranbaum had made a promise that her pecan pie would be distinctive, and she made good on it. She eschewed Karo corn syrup for Lyle's Golden Syrup, which is made from cane sugar. She baked the pie in a tart pan to equalize the ratio of nuts to filling to crust.

Instead of relying only on cornstarch to thicken the peach pie filling, Beranbaum collected the fruit's juices, reduced them to a near-caramelized syrup and added them back to the peaches. Once assembled with its filling and top crust, the pie had to rest in the refrigerator before baking, a notion that exasperated Fairbrother a bit. "This is very demanding pie!" she blurted.

So was the cherry pie, as it turned out. We had furnished bing cherries rather than the sour ones the recipe called for, so Beranbaum had to compensate for that variety's extra liquid by thickening the juice in a saucepan before baking the pie. Problem solved.

Throughout the afternoon, directives on handling dough, making fillings, crimping edges and baking oven-ready pies came in waves. Key among them:

• Use templates to cut out pre-measured sizes of top, bottom and lattice crusts. That will ensure a correct fit and avoid cumbersome trimming after the dough is in the pie pan.

• If using a tart pan with a removable bottom, push the dough thinner against the sides. That will make it rise up higher than the rim. When the crust shrinks during baking, it will still have a good height.

• For blind baking (baking a pastry shell before it is filled), use a large-urn coffee filter to hold rice as the weight that keeps the crust from rising. The filter absorbs butter from the crust, and the rice, which toasts slightly, can be used for pilaf.

• Try baking a pie on the oven floor for the first 20 minutes or so. Use a clear glass pie plate so you can monitor darkness. Once the bottom crust is nice and dark, bring it up to the lowest rack and finish baking.

• Baking a pie that starts out frozen is good; the bottom crust gets a chance to crisp before the filling has softened. Baking from frozen generally takes 20 extra minutes. (Freeze a pie only after it has rested in the refrigerator for an hour.)

By 3 p.m., Fairbrother's head was swimming, and Beranbaum had a train to catch. The start-to-finish pecan pie came out of the oven; the cherry and peach pies were ready to go in. Beranbaum eyed them with approval, saying she could tell from the evident swirls of butter in the crusts that they were going to be good.

Which reminded her of a story.

She was in Oakland, Calif., years ago, visiting her brother, who had bought a pie for dessert. Her then-6-year-old nephew led her to it and voiced his disappointment.

"He said, 'You can tell by looking at it that it's not going to be any good!' and I thought, 'I taught him something!' "

Him and countless grateful others.

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Flaky Cream Cheese Pie Crust

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Rose Levy Beranbaum says this crust holds its shape better than any other pie dough. Keeping the elements as cool as possible helps make a perfect pie crust. Wear food-safe latex gloves, or handle the dough with warm hands as little as possible. You also can keep a bowl of ice water near the work surface to dip your hands into; that will help keep them cool.

This recipe substitutes cold heavy cream for the water used in Beranbaum's original Perfect Flaky and Tender Cream Cheese Pie Crust recipe, as printed in her "The Pie and Pastry Bible" (Scribner, 1998).

From cookbook author and baking instructor Rose Levy Beranbaum.

• 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks; 6 ounces) cold unsalted butter

• 2 cups plus 3 tablespoons pastry flour (10 ounces; may substitute 1 1/2 cups bleached all-purpose flour plus 3/4 cup cake flour)

• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder, preferably Rumford or other non-sodium-based brand

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 4 1/2 ounces cold cream cheese, cut into 3 to 4 pieces (4.5 ounces)

• 3 tablespoons cold heavy whipping cream ( 1 1/2 ounces)

• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar

Cut the butter into 3/4-inch cubes. Wrap in plastic wrap and freeze for at least 30 minutes or until solid. Combine the flour, salt and baking powder in a 1-gallon resealable plastic freezer food storage bag and freeze for at least 30 minutes.

Place the flour mixture in the bowl of a food processor; pulse for a few seconds to mix well. Add the cream cheese and process for about 20 seconds; the mixture should resemble coarse meal. Add the frozen butter cubes and pulse just until none of them is larger than a pea. Add the heavy cream and vinegar; pulse to process the mixture into pea-size pieces. Divide the mixture in half and transfer into 2 resealable plastic food storage bags (1-gallon). If desired, spray the inside of each bag with nonstick cooking oil spray to keep the dough from sticking.

Working with one bag at a time and leaving it unsealed, knead the mixture through the bag by pressing with the heel of your hand to help the dough come together. Remove the dough from the bag and knead it lightly just until it is slightly stretchy when pulled. Flatten the dough into a disk, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes and as long as overnight.

When ready to make a pie, remove 1 disk of dough from the refrigerator. Allow it to sit for as long as 10 minutes, if necessary, to become pliable enough to roll.

Cover the work surface with a large pastry cloth and lightly dust with flour. Cover a rolling pin, preferably chilled or cool, with a cloth cover and roll the dough to a circle about 1/8-inch thick by 12 inches in diameter. Alternatively, roll the dough between 2 large sheets of plastic wrap. The dough should be smooth and cool. Fold it carefully in half, then again into quarters and transfer to a 9-inch pie plate. Unfold the dough and trim the border just short of the edge of the plate. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 3 hours.

Makes enough for a 9-inch, 2-crust pie.

Nutrtion info: 1,372 calories, 101 grams fat (63 grams saturated), 284 milligrams cholesterol, 19 grams protein, 99 grams carbohydrates, 63 grams dietary fiber, 500 milligrams sodium

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Cherry Lattice Pie

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Beranbaum says sour cherries make the best pie, and cherry pie is her father's favorite kind. If you must use bing cherries, which are much sweeter, reduce the sugar to about 2/3 cup and cook the filling on the stove top until thickened before filling the bottom pie crust.

From "The Pie and Pastry Bible" (Scribner, 1998), with adaptations.

• 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar (about 6 ounces)

• 2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

• Pinch salt

• 1 1/2 pounds fresh sour cherries, pitted, juices reserved (3 1/2 cups)

• 1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract

• Flaky Cream Cheese Pie Crust, for a 9-inch, 2-crust pie (see related recipe)

• Flour, for dusting the work surface

Combine the sugar, cornstarch and salt in a medium bowl. Add the cherries and any of their accumulated juices and the almond extract; stir to mix well. Let the mixture sit at room temperature for at least 10 minutes and as long as 3 hours.

Twenty minutes before you are ready to bake, heat the oven to 425 degrees. Remove the pie plate with the (unbaked) bottom crust from the refrigerator; discard the plastic wrap.

Spoon the cherries and their juices into the bottom pie crust.

Ten minutes before assembling the pie, remove the second disk of pie crust dough from the refrigerator.

Cover the work surface with a large pastry cloth and lightly dust with flour. Cover a rolling pin, preferably chilled or cool, with a cloth cover and roll the dough to an oval about 10 1/2- by 8-inches wide and about 1/6-inch thick. Alternatively, roll the dough between 2 large sheets of plastic wrap. The dough should be smooth and cool.

Use a ruler (preferably transparent) and a fluted pastry wheel (called a jagger) to cut the dough oval into 10 strips that are 3/4 inch wide. Arrange half of the strips evenly over the cherry filling. Gently fold back every other strip just past the centerpoint of the pie and place a strip on top that runs perpendicular. Reposition the strips so that they lie flat on top of the perpendicular strip. Working in the same direction, gently fold back the strips that were not folded back the first time. Lay a second perpendicular strip on top and unfurl the folded-back strips. Repeat with a third perpendicular strip, folding back the strips that were folded back the first time.

Apply the remaining 2 strips to the other side of the pie, starting toward the center and working toward the edge. Remember to alternate strips that are folded back so that the strips form a woven pattern.

Use sharp kitchen scissors to trim the strips to a 1/2-inch overhang, if necessary. Use water to moisten the edge of the bottom crust where it contacts each strip, then tuck the overhang under the bottom crust edge, pressing down to seal it.

Crimp the edges in a decorative fashion.

Create a protective shield for the edge of the pie crust (to prevent overbrowning) by lightly crimping a ring of aluminum foil over it. Place the pie on the floor of the oven for 20 minutes, then transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Adjust an oven rack so it is on the lowest level in the oven, place the baking sheet with pie on that rack and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until the juices bubble thickly through the lattice and the center is slightly puffed. If the lattice becomes too dark in the last 15 minutes of baking, cover it loosely with a piece of aluminum foil with a vent hole in the center.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool for at least 3 hours before cutting.

Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition info: 615 calories, 7 grams protein, 73 grams carbohydrates, 34 grams fat (21 grams saturated fat), 95 milligrams cholesterol, 2 grams dietary fiber, 216 milligrams sodium

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Perfect Pecan Pie

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Beranbaum insists this pie be made in a tart pan "so that every bite contains the same amount of crust, nuts and filling."

Lyle's Golden Syrup, derived from sugar cane rather than corn, makes all the difference here. The result is pleasantly balanced and satisfying instead of cloyingly sweet as other versions tend to be. A drizzle of chocolate over the top wouldn't hurt, either. The recipe is from "The Pie and Pastry Bible" (Scribner, 1998), with adaptations from its author, Rose Levy Beranbaum.

• Half of the recipe for Flaky Cream Cheese Pie Crust, for a 9-inch, 2-crust pie (11 ounces total; see related recipe)

• 4 large (2 ounces total) egg yolks

• 1/3 cup (4 ounces) Lyle's Golden Syrup (may substitute dark corn syrup)

• 1/2 cup (3.75 ounces) light brown sugar (tightly packed), preferably Muscovado (do not use dark brown sugar)

• 4 tablespoons (2 ounces; 1/2 stick) unsalted butter

• 1/4 cup (2 ounces) heavy whipping cream

• Pinch salt

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1 1/2 cups (5.25 ounces) pecan halves

Heat the oven to 425 degrees at least 20 minutes before baking the crust. Set an oven rack on the lowest level. Remove the pie plate with the (unbaked) bottom crust from the refrigerator; discard the plastic wrap. Carefully transfer the dough to a 9 1/2-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. (If working with a disk of dough for the bottom crust, roll it to 12 1/2 inches in diameter so there is enough to create a double layer for the sides). Line the tart pan, folding the excess dough inward and pressing it well into the fluted sides of the tart pan so that it rises a little above the top of the edge (to allow for shrinkage during baking).

Create a protective shield for the edge of the pie crust (to prevent overbrowning) by inverting the fluted outside ring of a separate, removable-bottom tart pan over it or by lightly crimping a ring of aluminum foil over it. Lay a circle of parchment paper or an urn-size coffee filter on the inside of the crust and fill with uncooked rice. Place the weighted crust on a baking sheet and bake on the lowest oven rack for 20 minutes, until golden. Remove the weighted liner and use a fork to lightly prick the crust. Return it to the oven to bake for 2 to 3 minutes, just until pale golden; reduce the temperature to 350. Let cool for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine the egg yolks, syrup, brown sugar, butter, cream and salt in a medium, nonreactive saucepan over medium heat; cook, stirring, for 7 to 10 minutes, until it is uniform in color and starts to thicken. Strain the filling into a small bowl and add the vanilla extract; mix well.

Fill the baked crust with the pecans, then slowly pour the filling over the nuts. Replace the protective covering over the edge of the pie crust. Bake the pie (on the baking sheet, at 350 degrees) for about 20 minutes, or until the filling is slightly puffed and beginning to bubble around the edges; it will shimmy slightly when moved. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, which will take at least 45 minutes.

Store, covered, at room temperature for as long as 1 week.

Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition info per serving: 666 calories, 50 grams fat (20 grams saturated) 221 milligrams cholesterol, 8 grams protein, 54 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams dietary fiber, 160 milligrams sodium

David Hagedorn is a chef and former restaurateur.

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