Privateer of Pies - Results of Pie Tasting #2

The scores are going up, so we’re definitely making progress. Nobody called this pie serviceable, which is also a good sign. Still, there is plenty of room for improvement, especially with the crust. If adding pirate apple brandy makes this pie a captain, I would say it is a generic privateer of a pie rather than, say, the Jean Lafitte of pies. A doughy rather than doughty captain as it were. Read on for a summary of comments…

Crust: 6.81 out of 10 (average of 8 reviews)
Well, the good news is that the addition of apple brandy did not give the crust a creepy apple flavor as I was afraid it would. Several people commented that it tasted like shortbread but there was disagreement over whether that was good or bad for a pie crust. A couple of tasters liked the increased saltiness and butteriness, but others thought it was bland. I think it was definitely an improvement, but it could indeed have had more flavor. If I made this exact pie again, I would sprinkle the top crust with cinnamon and sugar before baking. Along with his comments Eric submitted another chapter of his dissertation “The subduction zones of crustal plates in the formation of Blue Ridge Mountain (area pies).” I’ve studied the cross sections he submitted and agree that the stratigraphy suggests that I need to either roll crusts thinner and/or start using a pie bird to allow the crust to settle as the apples cook down. A Ph.D. in pie geology to you, sir. I think Anna may be right in that the crust could have benefitted from being cooked a tad longer. To be honest, I was afraid that if I cooked it any longer I would fall asleep and burn the pie, as I have famously done before.

Filling: 7.7 out of 10 (average of 8 reviews)
The score for filling increased the most – a whopping .7 point increase. Since the only thing that changed was the apple blend, I think that it was the increased tartness that did it. Plus, I really think I like chunks better than slices – the apples held their shape more and were less mushy. Endrina suggests adding lemon juice for increased tartness. Ultimately, I would like the flavor to come mainly from the apples, but until we’re there, it might be time to play with lemon juice. I suspect there will be a dramatic difference when apples are actually in season. Personally, I thought the pie could have used more spices; I think that when I added more apples, I forgot to also add more spices. Oops. I would continue to add more apples though – this pie just isn’t dense enough for me. Plus, with an entire office sharing one tiny pie, the only way for everyone to have more pie is to build up.

Pie: 7.3 out of 10 (average of 8 reviews)
I added a new question to the survey this go round at Susan’s (co-worker, not sister) suggestion. The final question asked whether or not the tasters would eat a second slice of this pie. While the answers certainly varied in enthusiasm level, they generally proved my theory that any pie is better than no pie, and seconds are best of all. Some people in fact had already had seconds by the time they got to the questions.

Thanks to all who commented. Even if I didn’t quote you, I’ve read your comments carefully and entered them into the pie archive for further study. Hmm, the pie archive might have to start handing out research fellowships...