The Perfect Pie: Your Ultimate Guide to Classic and Modern Pies, Tarts, Galettes, and More

by America's Test Kitchen (Editor)

Overview

Get the dough rolling and perfect your pie-making skills to bake beautiful, foolproof versions of the corner bakery classics and French patisserie favorites—plus a host of whimsical, modern pies and tarts of all kinds like sky-high meringue pies, uniquely flavored fruit pies with intricate lattice-woven tops, and lush elegant tarts.

The Perfect Pie is the definitive guide to gorgeous pies and tarts. Maybe you want to master homespun pies that celebrate seasonal produce, or get creative with pastry-encased canvases for modern flavor profiles. No matter your pie preference, this collection will inspire you to bake. We've tested our way to the best techniques for building foolproof bakery-quality pies from the crust up: Learn how to create the flakiest pie crust from dough that's a breeze to roll. Become the expert in classics like Sweet Cherry Pie and also wow with pies that show off interesting flavors like Blueberry Earl Grey Pie (tea is infused into the filling and an adorning glaze) or Browned Butter Butternut Squash Pie with Sage. Make meringues that don't weep, or fruit filling for Deep-Dish Apple Pie that doesn't shrink under the tall-standing top crust. Discover the world of tarts like Chocolate-Hazelnut Raspberry Mousse Tart with looks that deceive its simplicity (we top crispy store-bought puff pastry with a quick mousse), sleek sesame brittle-decorated Chocolate-Tahini Tart, and rustic galettes.

When you're ready to up your game, learn to design intricate pie tops (think: braided edges for Pecan Pie; a herringbone lattice pattern for Ginger Plum Pie; creative cutouts for Apricot, Vanilla Bean, and Cardamom Pie; and candied peanut clusters for Peanut Butter and Concord Grape Pie), fashion pies big (slab pies for a crowd) and small (muffin tin pies, jar pies, and pie pops), and use ingredients you never thought to put in pie like husk cherries or rose water.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781945256912
Publisher:	America's Test Kitchen
Publication date:	09/10/2019
Series:	Perfect Baking Cookbooks Series
Pages:	376
Sales rank:	210,791
Product dimensions:	8.60(w) x 10.10(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

America’s Test Kitchen is well-known for its top-rated television shows with more than 4 million weekly public television viewers, bestselling cookbooks, magazines, websites, and cooking school. The highly reputable and recognizable brands of America’s Test Kitchen, Cook’s Illustrated, and Cook’s Country are the work of over 60 passionate chefs based in Boston, Massachusetts, who put ingredients, cookware, equipment, and recipes through objective, rigorous testing to identify the very best. Discover, learn, and expand your cooking repertoire with Julia Collin Davison, Bridget Lancaster, Jack Bishop, Dan Souza, Lisa McManus, Tucker Shaw, Bryan Roof, and our fabulous team of test cooks!

Editorial Reviews

09/16/2019

The editors of America’s Test Kitchen turn their eye to sweet pies and tarts in this satisfying outing. Recipes range from tried-and-true deep-dish apple pie to a fanciful crème brûlée option whose filling is infused with lavender and torched for crackle. The book opens with a rundown of eight basic pie types—tarts are “an elegant subcategory”; chiffon pie has “old-fashioned charm”—and a chapter titled “Pies Big and Small” includes charming “pie pops” and a sheet-pan galette. Sidebars cover such aspects as crimping or braiding a decorative edge, and firm guidance makes it all seem doable, even a stunning herringbone lattice. However, some photos don’t quite match instructions: an intriguing butternut squash and sage pie is depicted with leaf cutouts on top, though readers are directed to make a double-crust dough, not the single-crust dough in the instructions. Clever ideas abound, from decorative shards of sesame brittle on a chocolate-tahini tart to a Hawaiian dessert made with haupia, a coconut pudding so thick it can be sliced. A chapter on crusts meets every possible need with vegan and gluten-free options. Fear of pastry is real for many home cooks, and this book is poised to help readers vanquish it. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

"With their bounty of photos and information, ATK cookbooks are great for meeting readers right where they are, and while all home chefs can find a pie recipe here tailored to the skills they already have, they're bound to pick up more along the way." —Booklist

"The editors of America’s Test Kitchen turn their eye to sweet pies and tarts in this satisfying outing. Recipes range from tried-and-true deep-dish apple pie to a fanciful crème brûlée option whose filling is infused with lavender and torched for crackle. . . . . Fear of pastry is real for many home cooks, and this book is poised to help readers vanquish it." — Publishers Weekly

"With obsessively tested classic and creative recipes, America’s Test Kitchen offers everything you’ll ever need to know about making pie." —Library Journal

"When perfection is the goal, this cookbook makes it easy as pie...'The Perfect Pie' provides loads of inspiration." —Portland Press Herald

"America’s Test Kitchen cookbooks are a trusted teaching source which offer both thorough instructions and explanations about why the recipes work well. So with Thanksgiving looming, The Perfect Pie: Your Ultimate Guide to Classic and Modern Pies, Tarts, Galettes, and More is the book you need to make sure the desserts on your sideboard are ... well, perfect." —Toledo Blade

"The Perfect Pie: Your Ultimate Guide to Classic and Modern Pies, Tarts, Galettes and More features more than 180-kitchen tested recipes, including Pear-Butterscotch Slab Pie and a dreamy, streusel-topped Pumpkin Praline Pie that will both revive pie memories and inspire new and exciting flavor combinations. . . This book offers step-by-step guides to every critical drape, fold and bend, in addition to tips and tricks to prevent common pie dilemmas, from cracked custards to “weeping whipped cream." —San Jose Mercury News

From the Publisher

10/01/2019

America's Test Kitchen (ATK) follows up The Perfect Cookie and The Perfect Cake with this comprehensive guide to pies and tarts. As expected from ATK, the book is extremely detailed about every aspect of the baking process, from choosing ingredients to cooling and storing the finished product. Helpful step-by-step photos enhance a chapter of classic pies, such as deep-dish apple pie and a not-cloying pecan pie, and accompany instructions for more visual steps (rolling dough, decorating) and unusual components (e.g., crafting a meringue crust). In addition to well-loved standards, ice cream pies, and regional favorites (New England mincemeat pie), the book includes innovative flavor combinations such as cape gooseberry pie with elderflower meringue, and recipes for both vegan and gluten-free dough. A chapter of "Pies Big and Small" comprises hand pies, pie pops, and individual pies in a jar, as well as slab pies to feed a crowd. To finish it off, the chapter "Upping Your Pie Game" demystifies impressive-looking edge and top crust designs so even home bakers can display something beautiful. VERDICT With obsessively tested classic and creative recipes, America's Test Kitchen offers everything you'll ever need to know about making pie.—Katy Hershberger, School Library Journal

Library Journal