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Perfect Peach Pie (with Candied Bacon)
Total 4 hours
Active 90 mins
Makes One 9-inch pie, about 8 servings
For me, nothing is more perfect than a peach. And while there are so many different ways to eat and enjoy them, baking them into a pie is my go-to. After meeting Tara Coleman of Hot Hands Pie and Biscuit, I was inspired to create this next-level take on my Perfect Peach Pie recipe by adding bacon!
TIP: When making your pie dough, it's very important for all of your ingredients to be cold, cold, cold.
Ingredients
All-Butter Pie Dough
Pie Filling
Candied Bacon Crumble
Directions
- To make the all-butter pie dough: In a large bowl, combine the flour and cold butter pieces and use a pastry cutter to blend the butter into the flour. Continue to do so until some of the butter is coating the flour, with large pieces of butter still intact. Once combined, add the sugar and salt, and use your fingers to work it into the flour and butter. Add the vodka to the ice water, then drizzle over the dough 3 tablespoons at a time, tossing with your hands until it just comes together in a shaggy dough.
- Turn your dough out onto the counter (or onto a chilled marble or tile slab if you have one). Pile the dough into a long rectangle and use the heel of your hand to smear the dough away from you to create long “sheets” of butter. This technique is called fraisage. Using a bench scraper, fold the dough on top of itself and continue pressing until the dough comes together into a log, folding a few more times. Do not overwork the dough. The goal is to make long, thin sheets of butter throughout the dough.
- Once formed into a log, cut into 2 pieces and form each into a disk. Wrap each in plastic and chill for at least 1 hour.
- To make the pie filling: Peel the peaches by cutting a cross on the base of each peach. Bring a pot of water to a boil and gently lower the peaches into it. Flip after a few seconds. After they boil for a minute or two, remove the peaches and submerge them in ice water. Now the skin will slip right off.
- Cut the peaches in half, remove the pit, and cut the peaches into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Combine the peaches, raw sugar, whiskey, and salt in a large bowl and let them sit for at least 30 minutes. This releases the juices from the peaches. Strain the peaches over a bowl and mix the juices with the cornstarch.
- In a saucepan, cook the cornstarch and peach juice mixture, whisking constantly, until it is thick and translucent. Add the thickened juices back to the peaches in the large bowl and toss. Refrigerate the peaches while you roll out your pie dough.
- Make the pie: On a floured surface, roll out one disk of the pie dough to fit the diameter of the pie dish (the dough should be about 1/8-inch thick). Fold it into quarters so you can more easily pick it up and unfold it over a 9-inch pie dish. Ease it into the bottom and up the sides of the dish. Now you can fill it with your peaches.
- Create the lattice top with the second disk of dough by rolling it out to a 1/8-inch-thick disk and use a fluted pastry wheel to cut it into 2-inch-wide lattice strips. Layer the strips to create the lattice. Trim off the excess dough, then roll and crimp the edges.
- Place the pie in the freezer until completely chilled, at least 20 minutes. (You can also wrap it well in plastic and return it to the freezer until you're ready to bake.)
- Preheat the oven to 425°F. Brush the top of the pie with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Place on a baking sheet (in case the juices bubble over). If the pie was frozen, it goes into the oven frozen (don’t defrost it) and will just take much longer to bake, and you will probably need to tent the crust with foil.
- Bake the pie for 25 minutes, then lower the temperature to 375°F and continue baking until the filling is bubbling and clear. This can take anywhere from 45 additional minutes to 1 1/2 hours (if it was frozen). Tent the edges of the pie with aluminum foil if they start to brown before the middle is done.
- Cool the pie completely. Serve with ice cream and candied bacon if desired.
- Candied Bacon Crumble
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and arrange the bacon slices in one layer. Sprinkle generously with the raw sugar and then sprinkle with honey powder, if using. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until cooked through and crispy. Remove the bacon from the grease and let drain on paper towels or a cooling rack. Crumble or chop into small pieces when cool. Use as an optional garnish for the pie and ice cream.
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