Canned Pie

I had some local, organic peaches that had to be used soon but I'm not one to sit down and get covered in sticky peach juice.  I like the taste, I don't like the mess.  So I decided to make some cobbleresque pie.  My pies generally have a bottom crust and the top is a mix of oats, brown sugar and butter.  I don't really know where I came up with this except to say I'm not real crazy about pie crust.

I've also learned in the past few years that if you can bake it, you can can it.  Mason jars are awesome to bake in and if you put the lids and rings on when they are straight out of the oven they seal air tight.  Even if a couple don't seal, the jars are freezeable so none have to be wasted.  You just have to remember to let them cool completely before putting in the freezer so they don't shatter; however, they are making jars specially made for the freezer that can go straight into the oven.  Pretty cool.

I made these in tiny 4 oz jelly  jars.  What I've noticed is that there is just enough there to make me want more.  My next batch will be in 8 oz jars and will be blackberry, maybe even some cherry too.  

You can use any pie recipe you like.  The only thing to keep in mind is that you don't want to fill it all the way to the top. Things tend to puff a little when baking so I recommend only filling to the bottom of the rings on the jar.  This should leave just enough room for the lid to seal after it's baked.

Can't you just imagine come those cold, dreary winter months opening up one of these.  Hmm, I think I just figured out Christmas presents for this year!

A Dozen A Day

Yesterday I made one dozen cherry pies.  Sounds like a lot, huh?  Not really.

Pie By The Dozen

3/4 jar of Dark Morello Cherries from Trader Joe's
1 refrigerator pie crust
1/2 cup quick cook oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
pinch of salt
1/4 cup flour + 2 Tbsp
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 stick of butter, softened
Non stick cooking spray
and the ancient Chinese secret... a muffin pan!

In a bowl, mix the brown sugar, oats, salt & 1/4 cup flour.  Set aside.  In another bowl, pour out about 3/4 of the jar of cherries and a few Tbsp of the liquid. (Save the rest to pour in soda, lemonade or better yet, vodka!)  Add in the sugar and 2 T flour.  Mix and set aside.  Liberally spray a regular size muffin pan with non-sticky stuff.  Set aside.  Unroll the pie crust and using a biscuit cutter cut out 12 circles. Using a rolling pin roll each of these circles into a slightly larger one and fit them into muffin pan.  They won't come up all the way on the sides, but that is OK.  Now spoon in a layer of cherries but do not overfill!  Spoon the oats & sugar mixture over the top.  Now dot the tops with the softened butter.
Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes or until you can see that cherry juice bubbling up and the tops are brown and crunchy.
Let them cool a few minutes in the pan then run a knife around the edge to loosen them.  Remove them for the muffin pan and cool on a wire rack.
Eat a few, then hide the rest from your family.  This can be done by wrapping each in foil and placing into a large freezer bag.  Label as follows:  Beets, Brussel Sprouts and Other Yucky Stuff.  Put in the freezer. 
When your family has gone to sleep, sneak a couple out and microwave for 30 seconds while you pour a glass of milk.  Savor, enjoy but don't tell anyone!