13 Holiday Pie Recipes from Pecan and Pumpkin to Salted Caramel and Pear
Enjoy a baker's dozen of seasonal treats from our favorite chefs and cookbook authors.
Any way you slice it, the holiday season is prime time for sweet celebrations, and we've got holiday pie recipes from some of the best bakers in the business. Whether you're in the mood for a traditional British Mincemeat Pie or Banoffee Pie; tucking into the season's bounty with an Apple Flambé Pie, Cranberry-Glazed Pumpkin Pie, or Citrus Meringue Pie; or indulging in a richly flavored Purple Sweet Potato Pie with Coconut and Five-Spice Pie or Sweet Potato Honey Beer Pie, there's a holiday pie recipe that's bound to become your future festive favorite.
Purple Sweet Potato Pie with Coconut and Five-Spice
Artist and baker Krystal Mack draws inspiration from Baltimore's communities. The purple ube, or sweet potato, in this pie comes from the Filipino Americans who make up a vital part of Baltimore’s culture. The Taiwanese and Southeast Asian populations introduced Mack to five-spice seasoning and inspired the addition of coconut. The toasted marshmallows on top seal the deal.
Sweet Potato Honey Beer Pie
Dark beer, honey, and spices including turmeric, ginger, and cardamom give cookbook author Nik Sharma's favorite holiday pie rich, complex flavors and an aroma that will make your whole house feel extra cozy.
Black Sesame Pumpkin Pie
A silky stovetop pumpkin custard sits on top of a layer of nutty black sesame paste in food editor Paige Grandjean's innovative and undeniably delicious take on a classic pumpkin pie.
Apple Flambé Pie
Apple cider and a combination of fresh, cooked, and dried apples join forces in Paige Grandjean's stovetop apple pie filling enhanced with licorice-laced pops of toasted fennel seeds and fragrant orange zest. Just before serving, top the pie with flaming Calvados for an extra punch of apple flavor — or, if you'd like to play off the cinnamon in the pie, flambé using Fireball.
Mom's Citrus Meringue Pie
In 2018, Food & Wine named this recipe from the legendary food scholar Dr. Jessica B. Harris as one of our 40 best. She contributed several articles to F&W in the 1980s and 1990s, including a piece on her Southern family's traditions and heirloom recipes, inspired by her mother and two grandmothers. Harris said, "Each was representative of the major African-American culinary traditions that have marked America," and her mother's influence included this spectacular citrus meringue pie baked into a pastry shell made with fresh orange juice.
Bourbon Pecan Pie
Baker and cookbook author Cheryl Day's gooey pecan pie tastes of dark caramel, toasted nuts, and a hint of bourbon. The press-in crust means you don’t even need to go looking for a rolling pin.
Mincemeat Pie
Recipe developer Melissa Roberts makes this traditional British holiday pie with jarred mincemeat and sasses it all up with brandy-spiked apples and a lemony crust.
Chilled Grapefruit-Caramel Meringue Pie
© Tina Rupp
Citrus is in peak season in the winter, and in this cold, creamy dessert, pastry chef Deborah Snyder layers pink grapefruit curd in a crunchy graham-cracker crust with caramel sauce and a delicate topping of fluffy meringue.
Flaky Pear Pie
2002 F&W Best New Chef Grant Achatz attributes his mom's superior pie crusts to her "finesse" and "genetically cold hands," but this lightly sweet, spiced, and pear-packed pie is well within your grasp, even if you're not a regular baker.
Salted Caramel Apple Pie
The team behind Four & Twenty Blackbirds recommends using a blend of sweet apples and tart apples – like Granny Smith and Golden Delicious — but if you're sourcing from a local orchard, ask them to recommend a sweet softer apple and a tart firmer apple.
Coconut Cream Pie
Every part of this fluffy pie from pastry chef Kierin Baldwin has coconut: the crust, the filling, and the topping. Refrigerate it overnight for a no-fuss finish to your holiday meal.
Banoffee Pie
Dulce de leche, bananas, and a thin layer of chocolate make this make-ahead British banoffee (banana-toffee) pie from baker and cookbook author Kamran Siddiqi a holiday highlight.
Cranberry-Glazed Pumpkin Pie
Until 2020, Greensboro, Alabama's Pie Lab served as a café as well as a classroom where young people just out of school could learn about business and culinary arts. The Pie Lab team's recipe calls for a simple crust made with store-bought gingersnaps and ground walnuts, a silky pumpkin filling and a cranberry compote topping with more crunchy walnuts.
For more Food & Wine news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!
Read the original article on Food & Wine.
