Well, the test of the pie pastries is over and both were resoundingly successful. I used exactly the same ingredients in both the slurry method and the traditional method, the only variation being in measurement of ingredients, both made precisely to the recipes.
I used the same combination of fats in both crusts; 1-2 butter, 1-4 Crisco, and 1-4 lard. I made the mincemeat pie using the traditional crust and the apple-cranberry pie using the slurry-method crust.
This was only the second time I had used the slurry-method, although both times it was very easy to work with. It could be because I've been using the traditional method for 40+ years, but I still find it more satisfying to work with. Habits are hard to break! :-)
ping: Wayne and Christine 8258On Mon 07 Nov 2005 07:48:48p, jillie wrote in rec.food.cooking: Well, thanks, Jillie. I'm not bragging, but there was a time not so many years ago when I would bake as...
Both crusts were delicious and flaky, although I think that the traditional method may have been just a bit flakier. That could be due to the human factor or the differet fillings, and my far less experience with the slurry method.
I doubt that anyone else would really notice the difference. David didn't know which was which and thought they were equal.
The fairest test, of course, would have been to make two identical pies with the same filling. I just didn't want two of the same pies.
I suspect that an inexperienced pie baker might have better results with the slurry method, since it's less sensitive to introducing the liquid and forming a mbutt. Having said that, I will probably stick to the traditional since that's what I'm the most comfortable with, and the fact that the slurry method introduces another step.
-- Wayne Boatwright *À*
A chicken in every pot is a *LOT* of chicken!
