Award-winning Pastry Chef Camille Cogswell is known for creative innovations and unexpected (but delightful!) flavor and texture combinations. In this recipe, she bakes beautifully spiced honey cake batter inside a buttery pie shell. Yes, it really is a cake pie, because sometimes when someone asks us whether we want cake or pie, the best answer is yes.
When roasted in honey syrup, slices of ripe pear turn tender and lightly candied, and render a gorgeous syrup to drizzle over each serving of pie. The slices resemble pear-shaped panes of golden stained glass, so they are as beautiful as they are delicious. Be sure to save any leftover honey-pear syrup to stir into hot tea, maybe more of the antioxidant-rich rooibos tea used in the pie filling.
On the day that Camille and I cooked together in her bakery, she used honey from hives located at Old North Farm, home to our mutual dear friends Jamie Swofford (from the Field Pea episode in Season 1) and Keia Mastrianni (from the Muscadine episode in Season 1). You can use any type of honey that you like, preferably a local one from your community where the bees are busily pollinating the flowers and crops and working their sweet magic.
You’ll need dried beans, uncooked rice, or pie weights when you partially blind bake the pie shell before adding the filling.
Recipe courtesy of Camille Cogswell
Makes 1 (9-1/2 inch) pie
Place about two-thirds of the flour into the bowl of a food processor, add the sugar and salt, and pulse to combine. Sprinkle the cubes of butter evenly over the flour mixture and pulse 15 to 20 times or until the butter is the size of tiny pebbles. Transfer to a mixing bowl, add the remaining flour, and toss by hand to incorporate.
Sprinkle half of the water over the flour mixture and use your hands to toss them together to combine. The action is like tossing a salad; do not overmix or knead them together. Add the remaining water and continue tossing to combine. The mixture should look like a crumble topping at this stage. Squeeze the crumbles together into a cohesive ball of dough. If the mixture is too dry to come together, add additional water, 1 teaspoon at a time, as needed.
Transfer to a large piece of plastic wrap laid on the counter. Press the dough into a disc and wrap tightly in the plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to overnight.
Unwrap and transfer the dough to a dry work surface that’s very lightly dusted with flour. Roll the dough into a 1/4-inch-thick round. Rotate the dough a quarter turn between rolls, lifting it gently to ensure it’s not sticking. Add as little flour as possible, but enough to prevent sticking.
Transfer to a 9-1/2-inch pie dish. Press the dough firmly across the bottom and into the corners of the dish and around the edge of the dish. Use kitchen scissors to trim away all but 1 inch of the overhanging dough. Turn under the edge of the dough and crimp it into place. Prick the bottom of the dough all over with fork tines. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
Heat the oven to 375°F. Mist one side of a sheet of aluminum foil slightly larger than the pie dish with non-stick spray. Place the foil, spray-side down, directly onto the dough, letting the foil extend beyond the edges so that the crust is completely covered; use two pieces of misted foil, if needed. Fill the pie dish with dried beans, uncooked rice, or pie weights. Sit the pie dish on a baking sheet and place them on the middle oven rack. Bake for 30 minutes, rotating the dish halfway through the cooking time. Remove the beans and foil. Continue to bake until the crust loses its wet sheen and is lightly browned, 5 to 6 minutes. Leave the pie dish on the baking sheet and let stand to cool completely while preparing the filling.
Decrease the oven temperature to 325°F.
Place the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, coriander, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg into a mixing bowl and whisk to combine.
Place the honey, sugar, tea, olive oil, and vanilla into a separate large mixing bowl and whisk until well combined. Add the eggs and whisk until fully incorporated.
Add one-third of the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk until well combined. Add the remaining wet ingredients and whisk just until smooth and combined.
Leave the cooled crust on the baking sheet. Pour the batter into the crust. Place on the middle rack of the oven and bake 45 to 50 minutes, rotating the dish halfway through cooking. The filling is done when the center puffs, the surface springs back to the touch, and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Set aside to cool completely while preparing the pears.
Increase the oven temperature to 400°F.
Arrange the sliced pears in layers in an 8-inch square glass or ceramic baking dish.
Place the honey, tea, lemon juice, and salt into a small saucepan set over medium high heat. Stir to combine and bring just to a boil, 5 to 6 minutes. Pour the hot honey mixture over the pears.
Roast for 30 minutes, spooning the syrup over the pears 2 to 3 times while they roast. Let stand until cool.
Lift the delicate pear slices out of the syrup and arrange them over the top of the pie. Set the syrup aside.
To serve, slice the pie and top each serving with a dollop of whipped cream and a drizzle of the reserved pear syrup.
©Copyright 2024 Camille Cogswell
Sheri visits pastry chef Camille Cogswell to bake a spiced honey cake pie with honey-roasted pears.
Camille Cogswell is an award-winning pastry chef based in the Asheville area of North Carolina. After growing up in Western North Carolina, she honed her culinary skills at restaurants in New York and Philadelphia, where she was recognized with a James Beard Award for “Rising Star Chef of the Year” in 2018 and was named a 2020 Food and Wine “Best New Chef,” among other accolades. Camille recently returned to the mountains of North Carolina, where she’s become known for her regular pie pop-ups. Camille plans to open Walnut Family Bakery in late 2024, where she will offer wood-fired baked goods, classes and events from her homestead in Marshall.
Sheri Castle, award-winning food writer and cooking teacher, is known for melding culinary expertise, storytelling and humor, so she can tell a tale while making a memorable meal. Her creative, well-crafted recipes and practical advice inspire people to cook with confidence and enthusiasm. She's written a tall stack of cookbooks and her work appears in dozens of magazines. In 2019, the Southern Foodways Alliance named Sheri among Twenty Living Legends of Southern Food, calling her The Storyteller.
Sheri says that she's fueled by great ingredients and the endless pursuit of intriguing stories, usually about the role that food plays in our lives, families, communities and culture.
When she steps away from the kitchen or a local farm, Sheri enjoys spending quiet time at her home near Chapel Hill. She hails from the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.
In each episode of "The Key Ingredient," renowned food writer and cooking teacher Sheri Castle celebrates beloved ingredients, tracing their journeys from source to kitchen. Sheri introduces us to farmers, chefs and other food experts, sharing stories, recipes and tips along the way. Join Sheri & friends to learn the stories behind some of North Carolina's most beloved ingredients.