One-Crust Peach Pie.—Pare and remove the stones from ripe, nice flavored peaches; stew till soft in the smallest quantity of water possible without burning. Rub through a colander, or beat smooth with a large spoon. Add sugar as required. Bake with one crust. If the peach sauce is evaporated until quite dry, it is very nice baked in a granola crust. When done, meringue with the whites of two eggs whipped stiff with two tablespoonfuls of sugar. The flavor is improved by adding by degrees to the egg while whipping, a tablespoonful of lemon juice. Return to the oven and brown lightly. Serve cold.
Canned peaches or stewed dried peaches may be used in place of the fresh ones. In using the dried peaches, carefully examine and wash; soak them over night in cold water, and stew them in the same water until soft enough to rub through the colander. For each pie, add two tablespoonfuls of sweet cream, and sufficient sugar to sweeten; too much, sugar destroys the flavor of the fruit. Evaporated peaches, soaked over night and stewed carefully until tender, then removed from the syrup, which may be sweetened and boiled until thick and rich and afterward turned over the peaches, makes a delicious pie. Bake in one crust, with or without a meringue.
Orange Pie.—Rub smooth a heaping tablespoonful of cornstarch in three tablespoonfuls of water; pour over it a cup of boiling water, and cook until clear, stirring frequently that no lumps form. Add one cupful of sour orange juice, a little grated rind, and the juice of one lemon, with two eggs. Bake with under crust only. Meringue the top when baked, with the whites of the eggs well beaten with a tablespoonful of sugar, and a very little grated orange peel sprinkled over it.
Peach Custard Pie.—Cover a pie plate with an under crust. Take fresh peaches, pare, halve, and stone them, and place a layer, hollow side up, in the pie. Prepare a custard with one egg, one cup of milk, and three tablespoonfuls of sugar. Pour the custard over the peaches, and bake. If the quantity given will not entirely cover the peaches, a little more must be prepared. Canned peaches which are not broken can be used instead of fresh ones. The pieces should be drained free from juice, and less sugar used.
Prune Pie.—Prepare and cook sweet California prunes as directed for Prune Marmalade. Fill an under crust and bake. The top may be ornamented with strips of crust or pastry leaves; or if desired, may be meringued with the whites of two eggs beaten to a stiff froth with two tablespoonfuls of sugar and a little grated lemon peel. This pie is excellent baked in a granola crust.
Pumpkin Pie.—To prepare the pumpkin, cut into halves, remove the seeds, divide into moderately small pieces, and bake in the oven until thoroughly done. Then scrape from the shell, rub through a colander, and proceed as follows: For one and one third pints of the cooked pumpkin use one quart of hot, rich, sweet milk. Add one half cup of sugar and the well-beaten yolks of three eggs, beat well together, add the whites of the eggs beaten to a stiff froth, and beat thoroughly. Line the tins with a stiff cream paste, fill, and bake in a moderate oven till the pies are barely firm in the center, or till the custard is well set.
Pumpkin Pie No. 2.—For each pie desired, take one half pint of baked pumpkin, a pint of rich milk, one third of a cup of sugar, and two eggs. Mix the sugar and eggs, add the pumpkin, and lastly the milk, which should be hot, and beat all together with an egg beater until very light. Fill the crust, and bake slowly.
Pumpkin Pie without Eggs.—Prepare the pumpkin as previously directed. For two medium-sized pies, heat a pint and a half of milk in a farina kettle, and when scalding, stir into it two scant tablespoonfuls of white flour rubbed smooth in a little cold milk. Cook, stirring often, until it thickens. Add half a cup of sugar, or a little less of syrup, to a pint and a half of the sifted pumpkin, and after beating well together, stir this into the hot milk. Bake in an under crust; or, for three pies, take one quart and a cupful of pumpkin, three fourths of a cup of sugar, two thirds of a cup of best New Orleans molasses, and three pints of hot milk. Beat all together thoroughly. Line deep plates with a cream crust, and bake an hour and a half in a moderate oven.
Simple Custard Pie.—For one pie, take one pint of milk, two well-beaten eggs, one third of a cup of sugar, and a little grated lemon rind for flavor. Bake in an under crust. If eggs are scarce, a very good pie can be made by using only one egg, and a tablespoonful of cornstarch, with the above proportions of milk and sugar; in which case, heat the milk to scalding, stir in the cornstarch, and cook till thickened; cool, and then add the well-beaten egg. If preferred, the crust may be baked before filling, and the custard steamed, meanwhile.
Squash Pie.—Squash prepared as directed for pumpkin, and flavored with rose water, makes an excellent pie. Or, for each pie desired, take one pint of rich milk (part cream if it can be afforded), add one cup of nicely baked mealy squash which has been rubbed through a colander, one third of a cup of sugar, and two well-beaten eggs. Beat all together thoroughly. Bake in a deep pan slowly and carefully until firm.