Happy New Year Everyone! I hope all my readers had a wonderful holiday season, and wish you all a Happy 2013 filled with love, happiness, prosperity, and good food!Today I am going to be giving you a recipe that I made with one of my Christmas gifts. And then on Friday I am going to be doing a special post noting the most popular recipes on this bog in 2012. So make sure you come back later this week to read that.
I mentioned in my last post that for Christmas I received a gift called My Lil' Pie Maker. It is a kit that has a silicone baking tray that holds 4 mini pies, 4 silicone disks to put in the bottom of each cup to vent the bottom of the pies, two cutters (one that cuts dough to form the base of your pies, and one that is dual-sided and allows you to cut a plain dough top or turn it over to cut a decorative dough top), and a instruction/recipe book.
I thumbed through the recipe book and saw a recipe for cheese pies that looked absolutely delicious. I decided that would be my first cooking experience with my new kitchen equipment!
What prompted this gift in the first place was that I was browsing through the stores just after Thanksgiving and saw a Bella Personal Pie Maker. For $15, it was it's own device that you could bake mini pies right inside without having to use the oven. How convenient! Especially for someone like me who is not an expert baker. I did some research and saw a YouTube video and it looked like something I could enjoy in my kitchen. I also saw that Keebler makes one as well, and that retails for around $20. So I had mentioned to some friends and my boyfriend how enthralled I was with this device, and for Christmas, my boyfriend went shopping, saw in Target they had the My Lil' Pie Maker, and here we are! Unlike the Bella and Keebler models, this is not self-contained, and you still have to use your oven. But it was along the exact same vein of what I wanted, and after using it, I am hooked!
What prompted this gift in the first place was that I was browsing through the stores just after Thanksgiving and saw a Bella Personal Pie Maker. For $15, it was it's own device that you could bake mini pies right inside without having to use the oven. How convenient! Especially for someone like me who is not an expert baker. I did some research and saw a YouTube video and it looked like something I could enjoy in my kitchen. I also saw that Keebler makes one as well, and that retails for around $20. So I had mentioned to some friends and my boyfriend how enthralled I was with this device, and for Christmas, my boyfriend went shopping, saw in Target they had the My Lil' Pie Maker, and here we are! Unlike the Bella and Keebler models, this is not self-contained, and you still have to use your oven. But it was along the exact same vein of what I wanted, and after using it, I am hooked!
The kit is easy to use, and did exactly what the package said it would (which is not always true with the "As Seen On TV" products). My pies easily came out of the dish, clean-up was a breeze, and the pies themselves were perfect!These cheese pies in particular were EXTREMELY easy to make, and would definitely make a great brunch item, a nice lunch if paired with a salad or soup, and were the perfect side to our dinner that I made them for. We both agreed the recipe was good, and I was impressed that the pies came out perfectly.
I don't normally endorse specific product brands on this site, but I'm telling you, this is a good one. You can make sweet or savory pies, and I think you might be seeing a lot of mini pie recipes from me in 2013! I'm excited to make some sweet versions, some quiches, and some pot pies with my new equipment. And of course we will be having these cheese pies again!
Here is the recipe, I am doing it as the mini pie version, but I am positive you could adapt the filling to make a regular pie. So don't be afraid to try it (and email me if you have any questions about making a full-sized version at nodessertpodcast@gmail.com, I'll be happy to help!)
Savory Mini Cheese Pies
***recipe slightly altered from My Lil' Pie Maker actual recipe***
***recipe slightly altered from My Lil' Pie Maker actual recipe***
Ingredients:
1 9in refrigerated pie dough round (or make your own dough)
6oz ricotta cheese
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup shredded cheddar
1/2 cup grated parmesan (use fresh or the cannister kind, both work)
Fresh ground black pepper (I like a lot, I used a tablespoon, but adjust it to your taste)
1 tsp onion powder
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Place silicone baking tray on a cookie sheet. Place vent discs into each cup.
Using cutter that comes with kit, cut out 4 bottom rounds (you can get 3 from the dough round by itself, then reroll the dough and cut your fourth, there should be more than enough dough for this) and press into cups in baking tray.
Make filling. Combine all cheeses with pepper and onion powder in a bowl. Mix well. Spoon filling into each cup (I went all the way to the top of each cup with no problem).
Using cutter that comes with kit, cut out 4 bottom rounds (you can get 3 from the dough round by itself, then reroll the dough and cut your fourth, there should be more than enough dough for this) and press into cups in baking tray.
Make filling. Combine all cheeses with pepper and onion powder in a bowl. Mix well. Spoon filling into each cup (I went all the way to the top of each cup with no problem).
Bake at 350 for 40 minutes. Let cool before removing from tray, at least 10 minutes.
Enjoy!
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