TIP OF THE DAY: How To Make A Slab Pie & Slab Pie Recipes
 [1] You can use a standard top crust or exercise your creativity. Apple Cherry Slab Pie with a lattice top. Here’s the recipe from Taste of Home.
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In the 15 years that we’ve been publishing THE NIBBLE, slab pies have been under the radar. They didn’t even make it into the different types of pies collection in the early editions of our Pie Glossary. Slab pies have been getting a bit of play lately, but when did they originate? We found a recipe in our Mom’s recipe box that dated back to the 1950s. Surely, they’re older than that. But try as we might, we could find no history of slab pie online. If you have a reference, please let us know. National Pie Day is January 23rd. February is Great American Pie Month. National Apple Pie Day is May 13th. > The recipe for Candy Apple Slab Pie is below. > So is a recipe for Cranberry Meringue Slab Pie. > Plus, links to even more delicious slab pie recipes. > The different types of pie and pastry. A slab pie is a shallow pie that’s baked in a jelly roll pan or a rimmed baking sheet. It has a much higher crust-to-filling ratio than a standard pie, so it’s definitely for the crust-loving crowd (or the hand pie-loving crowd). But there’s another reason to make a slab pie: It stretches pricey ingredients like fresh fruit and feeds quite a few more people than a standard 9-inch pie. In fact, it’s almost as much as two pies! Nor do you need to roll out two sets of crusts for two pies. Just roll out one crust and make a streusel top if you don’t want to roll out a top crust—although two crusts enable people to eat their slices like a hand pie. Of course, you can plate it like a conventional slice of pie and top it with ice cream or whipped cream. You can use any filling in a slab pie; but anticipating the holidays, we have two cranberry recipes below (plus links to other recipes). In this recipe from McCormick, prep time is 25 minutes, cook time is 40 minutes. The recipe is faster to make using purchased crusts. To make crusts from scratch, see the recipes below. This recipe is called “candy apple” because of the red food coloring. Leave it out for a conventional apple slab pie. You can serve the pie plain, à la mode, with whipped cream, crème fraîche, or mascarpone. Another favorite of ours: sour cream with a bit of cinnamon and a pinch of sugar. The tartness is a nice contrast to the sweetness of the pie. Ingredients For 16 Servings (4 crusts), divided 1. PREHEAT the oven to 400°F. Bring the pie crusts to room temperature according to the package directions. Unroll the pie crusts and press two of them onto the bottom and sides of a 13×9-inch glass baking dish. Press together the seams of the overlapping crusts in the middle of the baking dish to seal. 2. MIX the sugar, cornstarch, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Add the apples; toss to coat well. Add the food color; toss to coat well. Spoon into the pie crust and top with the remaining 2 crusts. Pinch the edges of the top and bottom crusts together to seal. Cut small slits in top crust (you can make them artistic; see this photo and this one). 3. BAKE for 35 to 40 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbly. Cool on a wire rack. |
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RECIPE: CRANBERRY MERINGUE SLAB PIE Another easy McCormick recipe, this pie uses cranberry sauce in the filling instead of having to prepare whole cranberries. A meringue top replaces the top crust. Prep time is 25 minutes, cook time is 40 minutes. |
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Ingredients For 16 Servings 1. PREHEAT the oven to 350°F. Bring the crusts to room temperature according to package directions. Unroll the pie crusts and press onto the bottom of a 13″ x 9″ glass baking dish. Fold the edges of the crusts under and press them together to form a thick crust edge. Press the seams of the overlapping crusts in the middle of the baking dish together to seal. Pierce the crusts with a fork. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack. Meanwhile… 2. MIX 1 cup of sugar and the cornstarch in a large saucepan. Gradually whisk in the cranberry juice until well blended. Whisk in the egg yolks and the cranberry sauce until well blended (some lumps may remain). Whisking occasionally, bring to a boil over medium heat and boil for 1 minute. 3. REMOVE from the heat and stir in the orange extract. Pour the hot filling into the baked pie crust. Cool on a wire rack. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight until chilled and set. Then… 4. MAKE the meringue. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Beat the egg whites in a medium bowl with an electric mixer on high speed until foamy. Mix the remaining 2/3 cup sugar and the cream of tartar in a small bowl. Gradually add the sugar mixture to the egg whites, beating until stiff peaks form. 5. SPREAD the meringue evenly over the cranberry-topped pie, sealing the edges of the crust. Bake 4 to 6 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. For the best results, top and bake with the meringue just before serving. |
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MORE SLAB PIE RECIPES It turns out that Martha Stewart has been publishing slab pie recipes since 2006. Here are some of them, each with a different crust treatment: |
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