PEACH PIE WITH A SOURDOUGH CRUST

Peach Pie with a Sourdough Crust image

This pie is a wonderful way to use the abundant fruit of summer as well as sourdough starter discard. Peeled peaches and unpeeled nectarines make up the sweet, tart and textured filling; but you can adjust the fruit to your preference. Grated apple and corn starch help create a wonderful gel in the filling too. The flaky and delicious crust is made from a blend of home-milled whole grain white wheat, all purpose flour and sourdough starter -- along with the customary butter, sugar, salt and ice water. You'll notice this recipe has you roll and fold the dough immediately after mixing. This approach layers the dough before chilling, enhancing flakiness and making the dough easier to handle.

Provided by Melissa Johnson

Categories Recipes

Time 2h20m

Number Of Ingredients 21

Ingredients

Pie Crust
1 cup organic all purpose flour (135g)
1 cup whole grain hard white wheat flour or home-milled whole grain hard white wheat berries (135g)
½ cup sourdough starter (135g). If you don't have sourdough starter, add approx. 1/2 cup of flour and 1/2 cup of water to the dough instead.
1 cup unsalted butter cubed (226g)
1 Tbsp sugar (12g)
1 tsp salt (6g)
2-3 Tbsp ice water as needed (30-45g)
For the wash 1 lightly beaten egg
For sprinkling 1-2 tsp sugar (large crystal if you have it)
Pie Filling
5-6 cups of cut peaches/nectarines (6-8 peaches/nectarines)
½ cup of sugar
¼ cup of brown sugar
3 Tbsp corn starch
2 Tbsp grated peeled apple
¼ tsp cinnamon (I used allspice)
¼ tsp nutmeg (I used ground ginger)
1/8 tsp salt
1 Tbsp of unsalted butter
1 Tbsp of lemon juice

Steps:

Pie Crust
In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (or a food processor or by hand with a pastry blender), mix together all of the ingredients but the ice water. Break the sourdough starter into pieces before beginning to mix, and stop mixing while the chunks of butter are still visible and about almond sized.
Add the ice water slowly and only as much as needed to bring the dough together.
Turn the dough out onto a floured countertop and roll it into a rectangle, ¼-1/2 inch thick. Flour the top surface, flip the sheet, and flour the second side. Fold the dough into quarters. Repeat the process a second time, then wrap your small square of dough in plastic and refrigerate for several hours and up to three days.
Before rolling your pie crust, cut it in half, cover it again and let the dough warm up 20-30 minutes.
Filling
Mix the cut up peaches and sugars in a bowl, cover and set aside for about an hour.
Strain the juice from the peaches into a medium sauce pan. Set aside the peaches.
Add the corn starch, grated apple and spices. Whisk the contents of the sauce pan over low-med heat, bringing it to a simmer for a couple of minutes. You can add a little water if the mixture seems too dry. It shouldn't break into chunks when stirred, but it should be thick enough to cling to your spoon.
Add the butter and lemon juice until incorporated and then turn off the heat. Add the strained fruit into the saucepan and mix gently.
Pie Assembly
Preheat your oven to 400F.
Roll your bottom pie crust and lay it in a standard sized pie dish.
Roll your top pie crust. (I do this before filling the bottom crust to reduce the time for the bottom crust to get soggy.)
Pour the filling into the base of the pie.
Top the pie with the second crust, and trim and crimp the edges.
Cut slits in the top crust and brush with a lightly beaten egg. If you want, you can decorate the pie with crust scraps and brush those with egg as well.
Sprinkle the top of the pie with sugar and wrap the edges in aluminum foil.
Bake for 50-60 minutes on a lower-middle shelf. Slide a baking sheet under the pie and remove the foil around the edges for the last 10 -20 minutes of baking. Fruit juice bubbling through the crust and dripping down is my sign that the pie is ready.
Let the pie cool on a rack at least an hour before serving.