Peach Pie

MMMMM! This recipe is delicious and perfect for an outdoor summer party. Who knew four peaches and some pie dough could make such a perfect treat? You'll definitely want to head to the grocery store, farmer's market, or your backyard and pick up some peaches to try this out!

Pie crust can be a tricky thing, so be sure to read Smitten Kitchen's comments on how to make the most flaky, buttery crust possible, here.

And now for the recipe!

(Adapted from Une-deux senses)

What you'll need:

For the pie dough, make half of the recipe found here. Make sure to chill your dough for at least an hour, but preferably two.

For the streusel:

1/4 c. powdered sugar

1/2 tsp. of baking powder

pinch of salt

3-6 tbsp. of flour

1/4 c. unsalted butter, cut into pieces

For the filling:

4-5 medium peaches, pitted and quartered

2-4 tbsp. sugar (depending on your sweetness preference)

pinch of salt

How to prepare:

To prepare the pie dough, roll the dough out about 1/8 of an inch thick to fit a regular pie dish ( 9 - 10 inches in diameter). Trim the edges and fold under or crimp as desired. Use a fork to poke holes all throughout the bottom. Transfer to a freezer for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 F about 15 minutes before you remove the crust.

To make the streusel, mix the powdered sugar, baking powder, salt and 3 tbsn. flour. Add the cold butter and use a fork to work it into the flour until it resembles course crumbs, add additional flour as needed, set aside. (Note: I ended up doubling the streusel recipe because I wanted it to cover the entire pie).

To par-bake the crust, tightly press foil against the crust and fill with beans or pie weights in order to keep the crust from bubbling up. Bake for 10 minutes and then remove the foil and weights carefully. Return into the oven for another 5 minutes or until lightly brown. Transfer to rack to cool slightly. Reduce oven temperature to 375 F.

To make the filling, sprinkle the peaches with sugar and salt. Let sit for 10 minutes. Add the peaches to the pie dish and top with streusel. Bake until bubbly and golden brown about 40 - 50 minutes. If the edges brown up to fast, cover with foil and continue cooking. Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving.

Don't have peaches on you? Try using apples or nectarines!

Roasted Tomato and Artichoke Pasta

This pasta is a great meal if you're looking for something with only a couple of ingredients. Although it is relatively simple to make, I will warn you that you will need to allot about an hour from start to finish, only because roasting the tomatoes takes ~45-50 minutes. Other than that, it's a breeze!

The Ingredients:
(adapted from The Zoe Blog)

1 8 oz. package of pasta. I used Fussilini pasta, but really, any kind will work. (I wouldn't recommend spaghetti or angel hair pasta, only because this is more of a "pick up with your fork" rather than a "spin around your fork" type dish)
Sun-dried tomatoes
12 oz. package of cherry tomatoes
1 can artichoke hearts
A spoonful of brown sugar
olive oil
salt & pepper

How to prepare:

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Slice cherry tomatoes lengthwise and toss with olive oil, a pinch of salt, and a heaping spoonful of brown sugar. Arrange the tomatoes cut-side up on a cookie sheet and bake for 45-50 minutes until shriveled. (Note: try not to get a lot of the olive oil/brown sugar juice on the cookie sheet as it does burn a little/turn into a syrup consistency, which will ruin your tomatoes. I learned this the hard way and didn't end up with as many of these tomatoes in the pasta as I would have liked. They are definitely delicious, so if you want to err on the side of caution, use more cherry tomatoes)



2. Prepare pasta according to directions on box/bag.

3. While pasta is boiling, drain the can of artichoke hearts and chop into bite sized pieces. Place them on a cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Place them in the oven (right beside the tomatoes!) for about 10 minutes, or until they brown slightly.



4. Julienne the sun-dried tomatoes if they aren't already prepared that way.

5. Toss the pasta with the oven roasted tomatoes, artichokes, and sun-dried tomatoes.



Enjoy!