3.14, March 14th also known as Pi Day has grown in popularity over the years and of course what better way to celebrate this than with a slice of your favorite pie. Baking one from scratch is my absolute favorite way to celebrate. I love sharing with my family, especially my two sons and talking about the day while we share a sweet treat.
History of Pi Day
In 1988, the earliest known official or large-scale celebration of Pi Day was organized by Larry Shaw at the San Francisco Exploratorium where Shaw worked as a physicist, with staff and public marching around one of its circular spaces, then consuming fruit pies. The Exploratorium continues to hold Pi Day celebrations.
On March 12, 2009, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a non-binding resolution (111 H. Res. 224), recognizing March 14, 2009, as National Pi Day. For Pi Day 2010, Google presented a Google Doodle celebrating the holiday, with the word Google laid over images of circles and pi symbols; and for the 30th anniversary in 2018, it was a Dominique Ansel pie with the circumference divided by its diameter.
Some observed the entire month of March 2014 (3/14) as “Pi Month”. In the year 2015, March 14 was celebrated as “Super Pi Day”. It had special significance, as the date is written as 3/14/15 in month/day/year format. At 9:26:53, the date and time together represented the first ten digits of π,and later that second, “Pi Instant” represented all of π‘s digits.
Baking Safety Tips
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Store
raw flour, baking mixes, dough and eggs separately from ready-to-eat foods.
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Tie back long hair, clean counters, assemble ingredients and equipment, wash hands and put on an apron before baking.
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Keep separate the measuring, mixing and handling of unbaked batter or dough from cooling, serving and packaging of baked products.
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Check your ingredients are within their use-by dates.
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Be mindful of cross-contamination between raw foods and ready-to-eat foods when you’re storing them.
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Wash your hands with soap and water while you’re baking.
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Maintain cleanliness: Regular cleaning is essential. This includes surfaces, utensils, and appliances.
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Proper storage of ingredients: Store ingredients in airtight containers and keep them away from potential contaminants.
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Pest control: Keep your baking area free from pests.
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Personal hygiene: As a baker, personal cleanliness is essential.
Tips for the Perfect Pie
- Read the recipe before beginning. Some people like to read them twice to be sure they understand the steps required.
- Use Water in Pie Crusts– Hydrating pies crusts properly can be a bit tricky. If you underhydrate it, the dough will crack and fall apart and be brittle when baked. If you overhydrate it, it will be squishy when rolling and be a bit tougher dough to excess build up of gluten.
- Don’t Skimp on Flour– As you are rolling, periodically check to make sure it isn’t stuck and sprinkle more flour underneath the pie crust. It’s useful to have a bench scraper by your side for this, just in case it does get stuck. Use the sharp bench scraper to lift the dough off the surface without damaging it too much.
- As you are rolling, periodically check to make sure it isn’t stuck and sprinkle more flour underneath the pie crust. It’s useful to have a bench scraper by your side for this, just in case it does get stuck. Use the sharp bench scraper to lift the dough off the surface without damaging it too much.
- Nearly any pie that has a filling that needs to be baked below a temperature of 400ºF should be blind-baked. The reason for this is because a pie crust–at least a classic butter pie crust–needs a long baking time at a high temperature in order to be fully baked through.
- There is one main rule to remember when it comes to baking all-butter pie dough: the very cold dough should be put in a very hot oven. All butter pie pastry should be thoroughly chilled before baking, and then baked at a high temperature, ideally around 425ºF.
- Freeze First– There is a bad rep when it comes to the idea of freezing food; that somehow, fresher is always better. Well, when it comes to fruit pies, I can attest that freezing fruit pies before baking will result in a better-finished product. This is because the crust has a chance to cook first before the filling does (since it is frozen going into the oven), so you can ensure you have a beautifully crisp crust and perfectly cooked filling.
- Don’t over-bake your custard pie! And by that, I am referring to not only custard pies but any pie that contains dairy and eggs together. When a custard-style pie is properly baked, it should be just barely set. If you overcook it, you are essentially “boiling” the eggs. Sometimes, that can lead to an actual taste of overcooked eggs. It can also make the pie feel tough or spongy. More commonly, it leads to cracked or separated pies. A properly cooked custard is set (and safe to eat) between 170º – 200º. Each custard recipe will vary a bit in terms of the exact temperature needed to set it.
Happy Pi Day to each of our readers! For more fun food holiday tips and tricks keep your eyes peeled here at Make Food Safe!