This cakey pie, with a name that has produced a myriad of reasons for its existence, may have its roots in the early bakeovens of Pennsylvania. Dense cakes of heavy dough were put into the bakeovens following the weekly breadbaking, which required the hottest fires. This hybrid cake within a pie shell weathered the bakeoven well. It was with the advent of the kitchen range and its more easily controlled temperatures that lighter pies with custards, creams and more delicate fruit became common.
Crumbs
1 cup flour
2/3 cup light brown sugar
1 Tbsp. shortening
Mix flour and sugar. Cut in shortening. Take out 1/2 cup crumbs and set aside.
Bottom part
1 egg , slightly beaten
1 cup molasses
1 cup boiling water
1 tsp. baking soda
1- 9" unbaked pie shell
To larger portion of crumb mixture add egg and molasses. Blend in 3/4 cup boiling water. Dissolve soda in remaining 1/4 cup water and add last.
Pour into unbaked pie shell. Sprinkle reserved crumbs on top. Bake at 425o for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350o and bake 40-45 minutes longer.
Makes 1- 9" pie
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SOUR CREAM SUGAR COOKIES
Sugar cookies' plain looks belie the emotion that sugar-cookie connoisseurs carry about them.
"Our favorites were sugar cookies with a little confectioner's sugar sprinkled on top."
"We ate lots of sugar cookies, sometimes with a little lemon in the batter."
"We made our batter with sour cream, rolled out the dough and put a raisin on top of each."
"I cant make them like my mother, who used buttermilk!"
"Drop sugar cookies are more common than rolled-out ones."
"I make drop sugar cookies but my mother made rolled ones. Her's were spongy soft. When they're rolled and cut out, they rise to the same height all over."
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup margarine
2 eggs
1 cup sour cream or buttermilk
3 3/4 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. vanilla
Cream sugar and shortening. Add eggs and beat well. Add milk, dry ingredients and vanilla and mix thouroghly. Drop by teaspoonful onto greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375o for 8-10 minutes.
Variation:
Use 1 tsp. lemon extract in place of vanilla. Place a rasin in the center and sprinkle the top of each cookie with sugar before baking.
These recipes was obtained from The Best of Amish Cooking by Phyllis Pellman Good.