Pushing Daisies Pie (Pear and Gruyere Pie)

As soon as I had pears to bake with I knew I wanted to make a pear pie.  I bought Gruyere cheese to go in it, but I had no idea why I wanted to use this. That was until I searched recipes online- then it came to me...

When I was a nanny the series Pushing Daisies was on TV and I LOVED it! Every Thursday morning, during nap time, I would watch the show recorded from the night before and I was so sad when they canceled it.  It was such a cute/quirky story line with an adorable cast, the best clothes, and, of course, The Pie Hole- where they made amazing pies. In the show they made a pear and gruyere pie to cheer up Chucks aunts. Apparently this was burned into my subconscious because I needed to make this pie! I found this recipe and modified it a little.



Pear and Gruyere Pie

Ingredients

Crust:
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tbs sugar
3 oz gruyere grated
20 tbs unsalted butter, cut into 1 inch cubes
6-7 tbs ice water
1 eggs, slightly beaten

Filling:
3 pounds pears
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup port wine
1 1/2 cups water
2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp cardamom
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Directions

Crust
In a mixing bowl combine flour, salt, sugar, cheese, and butter until it resembles coarse meal (pieces should be no bigger than large peas.) You can use a food processor, pastry blender, or I like to do this by using two butter knives rested against each other to create an X and pull in opposite directions until mixed.
Next add water one tablespoon at a time and gently stir until it begins to pull away from the sides and when pinched stick to itself. Be careful not to over-work it or it will not be flakey. Divide into 2 balls, one slightly larger than the other, and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until slightly firm, about 2 hours.
While the crust is chilling look up highlight videos of Pushing Daisies and prepare yourself to bake a great pie. This step is optional, but highly recommended.

Filling
In a large sauce pan combine sugar, wine, water, vanilla, and spices and bring to a boil.
Peel, core, and quarter pears and add to pan. Reduce heat and simmer until the pears are tender, about 20 minutes.
Using a slotted spoon remove pears and place in a bowl and chill in the fridge.
Turn the heat back up and cook sauce until it reduced to approximately 3/4 cup. Allow to cool to room temperature. (You can chill to speed up the process.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Starting with the larger dough, roll the bottom crust to fit a 9 inch pie plate. Repeat with top crust. Rolling between two pieces of plastic wrap helps prevent it from sticking since the butter and cheese will start to warm as you roll and want to stick to everything.
Place into pan and fill pie crust with pears. Top with sauce and top crust. Brush with beaten egg and cut slits in the top to allow steam to escape.
Bake for 50 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Move to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.

Now I feel like I need to find some more Pushing Daisies pies to make. And maybe one of Chuck's cute dresses to wear while I bake it!