I was pleasantly surprised, well it was more like totally excited when Ryan, over at Ryan Bakes http://www.ryanbakes.com/ held a giveaway for one of her favorite cookbooks and I won! The title, Desserts From The Famous Loveless Cafe. You’ll find the The Loveless Cafe in Nashville, Tennessee and opened its doors in 1951. The original owners, Anne and Lon Loveless began by selling fried chicken and biscuits out the front door. The place was small and southern. In 2004 a restaurateur named Tom Morales, stepped in and saved the Loveless from its demise and boy am I happy he hired a crazy good pastry chef named Alisa Huntsman. I noticed she and I have something in common, we are both bee keepers! The Loveless Cafe is southern to a T, with recipes like Peach Upside-Down Cake, Chocolate Mashed Potato Cake, Biscuit Pudding with Drunken Caramel Sauce and Double Coconut Cream Pie. I read the foreword and the introduction and then went straight to the recipes.
The first category is Blue-Ribbon Pies. As I began to flip through pages the book fell open to a recipe for Honey Chess Pie. Be on the lookout for my post when I share that recipe it is incredibly delicious. Today, however I baked Naked Berry Pies in keeping my fresh fruit or veggie theme going this month. They came out of the oven just a little while ago and they are the most adorable little pies ever. Truthfully they are more like galettes but small and easily held in your hand. I can’t wait to have dinner this evening so I can try one of these little babies for dessert! I have a hunch these naked pies won’t last long. Oh and “naked” refers to the lack of a pie pan.
Thank you Ryan, for having a giveaway and sending me, the winner, this delightful cookbook. No wonder it’s one of your favorites, it’s one of mine now too. Readers if you’ve not visited Ryan’s blog please make a point to stop over, particularly if you’ve a sweet tooth. She makes some gorgeous and tasty sweets, often times southern and homey and always worth a peek.
Enjoy!
Naked Berry Pies
Adapted from Loveless Cafe
Ingredients:
One sheet unbaked pie dough
2 cups blackberries, raspberries, blueberries or a mixture of these
1/4 cup pure honey
3 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. orange zest
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
Preheat oven to 375*. Line two sturdy baking sheets with parchment paper or foil and grease liners lightly. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces and roll each out to an 8-inch circle. Arrange the dough circles on the baking sheets.
Just before you’re ready to bake, place the berries in a medium bowl (I used fresh blackberries). Add the honey, flour, zest, vanilla and cardamom and toss gently until the berries are evenly coated. Immediately spoon 1/2 cup of filling in the center of each dough circle. Gently fold the edges toward the center, pleating as necessary and leaving a 2-inch circle of filling exposed.
Bake for 25 minutes, or until juices are bubbling. Let cool for at least 15 minutes before serving to allow the juices to thicken.
I added honey instead of the 1/3 cup of sugar called for. If you don’t have honey on hand add in the sugar instead.
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