by Jeannie Travis
When I buy a fried pie at a fair I always reach for the ones made with dry peaches….and that’s what I usually make. I’ve learned from experience that you have to watch dry peaches close as you simmer them, as they are bad to burn after they are cooked down pretty good. The pkg’s you buy now don’t hold a pound, I don’t think…Gotta watch those old recipes and todays chintzy weights. I just simmer dry apples or peaches till done in some water added to barely cover them, sweeten to taste. Start with a half cup to a modern pkg. of peaches…Apples might need less. I also add some butter to the fruit along with the sugar.. Use a stainless steel or enamel pan . Almost ALL of the water should be cooked away…Mash them up with the potato masher….
Hubby says only cream cheese fried pies should be made – Cream cheese and
powdered sugar to taste like Cheese Danish – but agrees that the dried apple ones are OK if fixed right…In his case I think this must mean cooked, because he eats a hefty share of any type I cook . Son says I should make only Sugar pies , but I notice he can also force down any kind ……As for my favorite, bring ’em on! I love them every one and can sure eat my share, washed down with a glass of sweet milk so cold it has shards of ice in it….I don’t hardly ever make them because I have no willpower to resist them…
The cooking method is up to the cook…I like to use a little butter shortening…just enough to fry them. On the sugar pies, I cook them reeeaaalll slow, so the butter and sugar caramelize the crust….I have also put them on a cookie sheet sprayed with butter Pam and then sprayed the pies and baked them…Good enough if you don’t know any better. Hubby’s sister in law uses canned biscuits.. I wouldn’t. Tried it twice..thought maybe expensive biscuits would be better…They are…better than nothing, but White Lily self rising flour makes for easy dough, and tons better pies.. My sweet Mountain born Mother in law just about deep fried her pies, in lard, probably….and they were SO good ! A friend uses those refrigerated pie crusts cut to size..
Sugar pie directions ? Just roll out ‘rich’ biscuit dough…this only means you use more shortening than if making regular biscuits…A bit of sugar is good, also…Roll it pretty thin…On one half spread butter pretty thick, sprinkle on a thick layer of sugar. Experiment with little sample ones that first time. Turn the ‘flap’ over and crimp it
around the edge, using a fork dipped in flour. Put it in the skillet with a skim of hot shortening, turn down on med. low. Make another pie. Turn the first pie over if it is brown, and put the second pie in. When No 1 is browned, take it out to cool on a rack, then you can turn No 2 over in the empty space. I figured that one out for myself. *grin* Do up pie number three real fast Race over to the fridge and pour yourself a glass of sweet milk. Eat pie number 1…Purely research ..Gotta make sure it is done right, right ?
Ma used to make fried pies for me to take in my lunch to the little one room school I started out in…Sugar pies were my favorites , so she mostly made those…Mama knew there was absolutely no food value in them , so usually made Apple or Peach…I was the envy of the other kids with my fine lunches when I was staying with Ma. They mostly just had store bought light bread sandwiches and stuff….If roasting ears was in she put in one of those…and a big old boiled egg with a little twist of salt…She rolled big slabs of country ham in flour and fried it for our breakfast, with an extra slice to put on one of her big biscuits for my lunch…And she saved back enough biscuit dough for a pie or two…Her biscuits were bigger than anyones I ever saw, and Mama said it was because she was too lazy to cut regular sized ones…They didn’t get along…can you tell? On some days after school there would be a plate piled high with fried pies sitting on the oil cloth covered table….Two pies were big enough to cover the old crackled up biscuit plate, and we each got a pie of our own…She fried the 10 pies in her 2 big old iron skillets earlier, so she could use one of them to bake the pone of cornbread …Those skillets baked mighty good cakes, too..