Pie Crust Cinnamon Rolls

Folks-

I was just going through my old recipes, and noticed in my recipe for Bread Machine Cinnamon Rolls, I mentioned that I also make Pie Crust Cinnamon Rolls, and that I would post the recipe later.

Well, more than 10 years later, here it is.

A pie crust cinnamon roll is more like a coffee cake. I often make one along with a fruit pie out of the leftover pie crust dough for breakfast the next day. Unlike bread-dough cinnamon rolls, you don't slice this until after you've baked it. You also don't frost these. That would be gilding a lilly. They're pretty rich and filling on their own, so you don't want to add anything on them. Just slice the finished cinnamon roll into little cookies and serve with coffee!

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3 Tbsp ground Cinnamon 

1/4 to 1/2 cup softened butter

1/2 of a pie crust recipe like my mom's Foolproof Pie Crust

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Wisk together the sugar and cinnamon. Roll out the pie crust to about 4-6mm thickness (a bit less than 1/4"). Spread the softened butter evenly over the surface of the pie crust all the way to the edge. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar evenly over the butter, trying to get it no more than 1mm thick. You don't want dry piles of cinnamon sugar. It should all be in contact with the butter all the way to the edge. Roll the pie crust up into a roll and lightly pinch the ends closed. Place in a baking dish/pie tin/casserole dish/jellyroll pan (something with sides) and bake at 350 F for about 20-40 minutes just until it's starting to turn a bit golden, or until the pie you're baking it with is done. This should be finished roughly at the same time as any pie you're making it with, and they make great "oven buddies."

Allow to cool until it's just warm to the touch or even room temperature before slicing. Slice into 1-2 cm disks, like cookies, and serve with coffee or tea.

Note: Do not slice before baking. The cinnamon sugar and butter will run out while it's baking and burn on the pan.

Updated Quiche Recipe

I've been making this recipe since my kids were still little, as you can see from reading my old posts, since after our trip to Disney World in Florida.
I never leave a recipe alone, and I figured it was time to update it. I found that the old recipe made too much for one quiche, not quite enough for two. So this is just a modified version of my old recipe.
Enjoy!

Quiche

2 prepared 9" deep-dish pie crusts or 3 regular 9" pie crusts
6 strips of cooked crispy bacon, coarsely chopped, or 2 cups chopped ham, or 1 cup cooked and thinly sliced bratwurst, or 1 cup cooked and crumbled breakfast sausage, or 1 cup diced cooked chicken or turkey breast, or 1 cup chopped artichoke hearts (or any combination. Just go nuts.)
2/3 cup minced onion
2 tablespoons diced green onions (optional)
3 cups shredded Swiss/mozzarella/Jack cheese (any works)
1/4 Cup shredded parmesan cheese
2 cups milk or half-and-half (anything from skim milk to half-and-half, you can combine milk and sour cream or plain yogurt for additional flavor)
9 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Divide the  meat/artichokes, minced onions, optional green onions, and Swiss cheese amongst the pie crusts. Whisk together the other ingredients and pour into the pie crusts, and top with the parmesan cheese. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, then turn the heat down to 300 degrees and continue baking for another 30 minutes. Allow to cool for ten minutes before cutting into eight slices and enjoy while still warm.

French Silk Pie

I know, I must have lost my mind posting another recipe so soon after putting my Lasagna recipe up. But today is Pi Day (March 14th, or 3.14.) My daughter asked me to make a pie for it, so I looked up my French Silk Pie recipe, and realized I don't have it online. I decided I needed to fix that.
Really, this is a three-recipe dessert: Crust, filling, and topping. You can use my mom's Fool Proof Pie Crust recipe, or a Graham Cracker crust, for it. I'm going to include a whipped cream topping recipe that has the advantage of never separating.
My daughter is trying to make a peanut butter pie filling to put in the bottom of the pie. I'll try to let you know how that goes later.
Please note, you will definitely want a sturdy powered stand mixer for this recipe, such as a KitchenAid. You can't mix this by hand in any meaningful way, and cheaper plastic-body or hand-held mixers can't stand up to the roughly 25 minutes of continual use this recipe calls for. I actually melted the case of the first stand mixer I tried to use for this recipe!

Please note that the filling contains uncooked eggs and is never cooked. Always use fresh eggs when making this and do not serve it to young children, pregnant women, or the elderly.
For now, here's the French Silk Pie recipe, shockingly unmodified.

French Silk Pie

1-Cooked and cooled pie crust or Graham Cracker pie crust
1-2 Cups Whipped Cream Topping (see below recipe for a good version)
3 oz Unsweetened Baking Chocolate
3/4 Cup Softened Butter
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
4 Large Very Fresh Eggs

Melt the chocolate in a double-boiler or microwave oven; cool, but make sure it is still a liquid (roughly 97 degrees.) In a sturdy mixers bowl, cream the butter, then add the sugar and vanilla. Beat well for about five minutes. Add the melted chocolate and mix it in well. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing at a medium speed for five minutes for each, and scraping the bowl down between each egg. Do not try to rush this. It will take at least 25 minutes of mixing to do it right. Pour the mixture into the prepared pie crust and top with the whipped topping (recipe follows.)

Whipped Cream Topping

1-Tsp Unflavored Gelatin
2-Tbsp Cold Water
2-Cups Heavy Whipping Cream
1/2-Cup Powdered Sugar
2-Tsp Vanilla Extract

Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water in a small heatproof bowl and let sit for a few minutes. Place the bowl in a shallow saucepan of water and heat over low heat until the gelatin dissolves. Reserve 3 tablespoons of the cream. In a large mixer bowl, combine the cream, sugar, and vanilla extract. Beat well until the mixture holds its shape. Add the reserved cream to the gelatin and quickly mix it into the whipped cream. Beat until stiff peaks form.

Quiche Lorraine

Folks-
We just got home a couple of weeks ago from our family vacation in Florida (it was a blast!) While visiting Epcot at Disney World, my daughter had a Quiche Lorraine for lunch at the France Exhibit at World Showcase. She enjoyed it so much that I decided to make one tonight for dinner. I started with this recipe at allrecipes and modified it from the suggestions in the comments. I actually made two at once due to the amount of ingredients I had, with the intent to freeze one. We'll see if that plan lasts through tomorrow!
In any case, here's my recipe:

Quiche Lorraine

1 prepared 9" deep-dish pie crust, or 2 regular 9" pie crusts
12 strips of cooked crispy bacon, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup minced onion
1 cup shredded Swiss cheese
1-1/3 cup half-and-half
6 eggs
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place the bacon, minced onions, and Swiss cheese in the pie crust. Whisk together the other ingredients and pour into the pie crust. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, then turn the heat down to 300 degrees and continue baking for another 30 minutes. Allow to cool for ten minutes before cutting into eight slices and enjoy while still warm.
Tip: This recipe works well with ham instead of bacon. Deli ham is acceptable. Cooked spinach is also good in it. You can change out the Swiss cheese, substituting in mozzarella or Monterey Jack in its place.

Fool Proof Pie Crust

Folks-
It's been a while since I've updated the site with a new recipe, and that's because I use the site as my own personal recipe card file. If I haven't needed an old recipe, have been experimenting much in the kitchen, and haven't found a new recipe that I need to add to the old card file, then I don't update.
Well, one of Zhenie's old high-school friends (she went to school in The Philippines, so how did one of her old friends end up living only a mile away?) dropped off a whole bunch of pairs at our house. I was thinking pie, but didn't find my mom's old pie crust recipe online. Time to fix that.
Here's a recipe that my mom got from one of the cooks at the school she retired from:

Fool Proof Pie Crust

Ingredients:
4 Cups Flour
1 Tablespoon Sugar
2 Teaspoons Salt
1 ¾ Cups or 335g *Shortening
½ Cup Cold Water
1 Tablespoon Vinegar
1 Large Egg

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in the shortening using a pastry blender just until mixed in and crumbly. Do not overdo it or the liquids won't mix in! In a separate bowl, mix together the water, vinegar, and egg. Add liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients just until a kneadable dough forms. Roll out on a floured surface to about 1/8 inch thick. If making an uncooked pie, be sure to poke the bottom of the pie crust multiple times with a fork before cooking to prevent bubbles.

Notes:
1. Shortening is getting harder to find these days. I intend to experiment with a coconut oil soon as a replacement. If I do, I'll let you know the results. Update: It works, but gives it a strong coconut flavor. This might work for some pies. I recommend sticking with shortening or maybe ghee.

2. It is best to get the liquids ready first then leave them in the refrigerator until ready. In fact, it's best to make this recipe when it's cold, and store it in the fridge until ready to roll out.

3. I made this for hand-pies recently using lard instead of vegetable shortening and it came out stronger than using the regular shortening. It still refused to seal (especially around the blueberry filled ones.) I may try a completely different recipe for hand-pies. (7/5/25)