“Schmaltz Pie”
A delicious dinner if you are feeling adventurous!
Last year, my spouse and I decided to jointly enter a pie in the neighborhood “Pi(e) Day Celebration”—which had a judging component for those who wished to compete.
After debating our entry, we decided to make a “new” pie that we have never made before. It is based on one of our favorite dinners my spouse makes, involving chicken, cabbage, and sweet potatoes. As the baker in the family, I provided the pie crust; he provided the filling in a joint project.
The recipe below is an approximation of how we produced the pie. It will not have step by step instructions for each component, and please read the whole recipe through before attempting it, as several components need to be prepared simultaneously.
Ingredients:
- Pie Dough:
I prefer to use the America’s Test Kitchen’s pie dough recipe. I have a lot of experience with that dough, and I know how to work with it for several different pie recipes. (You can find that recipe in this book.)
However, I recommend that you use the pie crust that works for you. If you don’t want to make your own, you can buy a premade pie crust from a number of places, including Turtle Bread in Minneapolis. You will need a “double” pie crush—a pie crust for the bottom of the pie, and a top crust.
Please also have ready: egg whites, and sugar.
- Mashed Sweet Potatoes:
You will need to make mashed sweet potatoes to taste. For this, you will need:
a. Sweet Potatoes (2lbs-ish, but remember it’s okay to have extras!)
b. Butter
c. Milk or cream
d. Salt
e. Any other seasoning that you would prefer to have on your sweet potatoes (suggested: brown sugar, maple syrup, nutmeg)
- Cabbage and Chicken:
a. Regular cabbage
b. Chicken thighs
c. Salt, Pepper, Butter
Equipment:
- Vegetable peeler
- Knife for cutting sweet potatoes
- Pot for boiling sweet potatoes
- Strainer
- Masher
- Rolling pin
- Pie plate
- Cast-iron skillet or other baking pan
- Oven
- Brush for egg whites
- Baking sheet
- Aluminum foil
Directions:
- Prepare your mashed sweet potatoes. Peel and cube sweet potatoes, boil for 15-20 minutes or until tender, then drain and mash with butter, milk/cream, spices, and salt. Set aside (or, ideally—prepare simultaneously with other ingredients).
- Prepare your pie dough. Roll out one of the doughs, and place in the pie plate. If soft, put the pie plate with rolled out dough into the fridge while you finish preparing the filling.
- Prepare the chicken and cabbage. Cut the cabbage into 1 inch cubes. Prepare your baking pan (ideally a cast-iron skillet although, any good baking dish will do), by placing a bed of cabbage on it. Then, salt/pepper the chicken thighs, and place on top of the cabbage with butter. Put baking pan into oven at 450 for 40-ish minutes (or until mostly cooked and there is some charring). When you pull out the chicken and cabbage, pull the cooked meat from the bones and mix in with the cabbage.
- Combine ingredients. Take the pie plate out of the fridge. Put the mashed sweet potatoes on the bottom, with ½ to ¾ inches of mashed sweet potatoes lining the bottom; it’s okay to have more. Place the chicken and cabbage (and the delicious drippings) on top.
- Finalize the pie. Roll out the “top crust”, and place on top of the pie, sealing with a fork or spoon. With a sharp knife, cut 4 slits to vent. Separate an egg, and use a fork to whisk the egg white. Using a brush to paint the top of the pie crust. Sprinkle sugar on top of the pie.
- Bake the pie. It would be smart to put your pie on a rimmed baking sheet, and line that baking sheet with aluminum foil. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 and bake until golden brown on top. Turn halfway through. This should take between 35 minutes to 55 minutes.
