Deep Dish Plum and Almond Pie

This actually looked really good, and it was. I was really excited about it too because it seemed like one of those pies you cook over the holidays and share with the family over a really nicely decorated table.

One thing that was sort of a puzzle were the plums. I bought them at Food Lion and I thought they were plums, but it turns out (well by one person) that they didn't taste like plums. And one of the 'plums' was really red as opposed to all of the others which were yellow. I tried the one that you would have thought was ripe and that was why it was so dark, but it was awful. I have to say I'm not really a plum eater, but this just wasn't good at all, and then I tried one of the yellow inside one and it tasted wonderful. So I just didn't use the red one.

7/14/2010
I finally figured out that I used Pluots. Which act much better than plums. They are firmer, less juicy, and still taste wonderful. The crust, by the way, is the toughest crust I have ever had to deal with. Doing the pie for the second time, and with ideas on how to make it better, it still didn't work. :(

It called for 3/4 of a pound of plums but that was so little that I used almost the whole batch of 10 plums. It looked soo good. So you should definitely watch out for that. I used a 9" maybe 9 1/2" spring form pan and it wasn't enough for it.

The crust was the worst part. It was so difficult to spread out in the spring form pan. I tried to use wax paper, but it tore and it made lines in the crust. I think my downfall was that I didn't use a food processor. I used my mixer. It seemed to work just fine but it wasn't crumbly it was smooth and sticky a little. It turned so hard and thick, so I would definitely either use a food processor or make sure that the crust thickness is perfect all around.

So I hope the crust goes well for other people. Enjoy!

MB

Here's the recipe:

Deep Dish Plum and Almond Pie

Prep Time:30 min
Inactive Prep Time:1 hr 0 min
Cook Time:1 hr 30 min
Level:Intermediate
Serves:8 servings

Ingredients
Crust:

* 1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons anise seeds, optional
* 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, sliced, at room temperature (1 1/4 sticks)
* 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
* 1 large egg
* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
* 3/4 teaspoon fine salt
* 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

Filling:

* 1 1/2 cups sliced almonds, with skin, plus 1/4 cup for top
* 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, sliced and at room temperature
* 1 cup confectioners' sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1 large egg
* 3/4 pound firm-ripe Italian, prune or Angeleno plums (about 10), pitted and halved or quartered

* Serving suggestions: Ice cream or whipped cream
* Special equipment: 9-inch springform pan

Crust: If using the anise seeds, lightly toast them in skillet over medium heat until aromatic, 2 minutes. Grind in a spice mill or mortar and pestle until fine.

Combine the butter and sugar in a food processor until creamy. Add the egg, anise seed if using, vanilla and salt and pulse to combine. (This may look rough and curdy, but don't worry, it all comes back together.) Add about half of the flour and pulse quickly 3 to 4 times to incorporate. Scrape down the edges of the processor and add the remaining flour. Pulse just enough to make a coarse, crumbly dough.

Press dough into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch springform pan to form a thin, even layer, using waxed paper to smooth. Freeze crust while you prepare the filling.

Filling: Pulse 1 1/2 cups almonds in a food processor until very finely ground (take care not to overprocess the nuts or they can get oily). Transfer nuts to a bowl. In the same processor, combine the butter and sugar until smooth. Add the cinnamon and continue to pulse until evenly combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and pulse in the egg. Add the reserved almonds and pulse until just blended.

Arrange the plums cut side down, over the crust. Spread the filling on top and smooth with a small offset spatula. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup almonds and place in the freezer for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake pie until the filling puffs and is golden but still slightly soft in the center, 1 hour 15 minutes for a glass bottomed pan, or 1 hour 30 minutes for an aluminum pan. If the crust begins to overbrown, cover the pie with foil during the last 15 minutes of cooking. When pie is done, turn off the oven and prop door open. Cool pie in the oven for 15 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Serve at room temperature with ice cream or lightly sweetened whipped cream.
Make ahead:

- Pie can be assembled and frozen up to 2 weeks in advance. Bake frozen pie for about 1 1/2 hours.

- Baked pie can be tightly wrapped and refrigerated for up to 2 days, or frozen for up to 2 weeks. Bring to room temperature before serving.