Peach Pie with Lattice Crust

Peach pie with a lattice crust is my all-time favorite pie. I know, I know, I just blogged about peaches last week. Can't help myself--this is peach headquarters during peach season! I may be blogging about them next week as well.

A couple we know lives next door to the non-peach-loving owners of a fabulous peach tree and have been dropping off lovely organic peaches for us nearly every day. One day I was getting behind on my peach baking and froze a batch.

Couldn't resist doing a quick watercolor sketch

before cutting up the peaches!

My trick for getting good peaches every time at the store or farmers market is to go by smell. If you can't smell the peaches, you might as well buy a bag of fuzzy styrofoam balls! Also, beware of "green shoulders" around the stem end, an indicator that the peaches were picked too soon.

Yellow-fleshed freestone peaches, with the perfect balance of sugar and acid, are the very best for pie-making. White-fleshed peaches are too delicate and subtle for pies. Peach season will be over before we know it, so bake this pie as soon as you can.

Are you a "pie person" or a "cake person?" 

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Peach Pie

(Makes one 9-inch/23 cm pie, 8 servings)

The Pastry

2 1/2 dip-and-sweep cups (12.5 ounces/354 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 sticks (8 ounces/227 grams) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes and frozen for 10 minutes
2 tablespoons (1 fluid ounce/30 ml) apple cider vinegar or fresh lemon juice

Ice water to make 3/4 cup (6 fluid ounces/177 ml) liquid

The Peach Pie Filling

2 1/2 pounds (1.13 kg/about 5 large) perfectly ripe yellow peaches

1/2 to 2/3 cup (3.5 to 4.67 ounces/99 to 132 grams) sugar
1/4 cup (1 ounce/28 grams) tapioca flour or cornstarch (but tapioca flour is better)
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon mace or nutmeg

Note: No food processor? See How to Make an All-Butter Pie Crust by Hand - Pie Crust Unplugged. Food processor method below. 

1 With metal blade in place, add flour, salt and baking powder to work bowl of food processor. Turn on for three seconds to combine. Add half the frozen butter and process for 10 seconds or until mixture has the consistency of coarse meal. Add remaining butter and pulse for six 1-second pulses, or until the frozen butter is the size of small peas. 

2 In 3/4-cup measure, combine vinegar or lemon juice and ice water. Pour over all of flour mixture; pulse for six 1-second pulses or just until dough forms large clumps; do not over-process. (The amount of water you will need depends on your climate and the moisture content of your flour. You may not need to use quite as much water as I do.) 

3 Turn dough out onto work surface. Divide dough into two balls. Place each ball on a piece of plastic wrap and flatten slightly into a 5-inch round disk; double wrap; refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to three days. (Let thoroughly chilled dough stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before rolling.) 

4 Preheat oven to 425F/220C/Gas7. On lightly floured surface, roll out dough to a 13-inch (33 cm) circle about 1/8 inch (3 mm) thick. Line 9-inch glass pie plate with pastry, trimming overhang to about 3/4 inch. Place in refrigerator.

5 On a piece of parchment, roll out second disk of dough just like the first. With a straight edge and a knife or pizza cutter, cut the dough into 10 even strips about 3/4 inch wide. Transfer, on the parchment, to a rimless baking sheet, cover with plastic or parchment, and refrigerate while preparing filling. All-butter pastry is fussy about being kept cold!

6 Peel peaches (or not, if they're thin-skinned and smooth like these) and slice into a large bowl (I use a 2-quart glass measure). You'll have about 6 cups of sliced peaches. (I slice large peaches like this: Quarter peach, cut each quarter into 4 wedges, cut wedges in half or thirds.) In a small bowl, whisk together sugar, cornstarch tapioca flour (vastly superior to cornstarch or any other thickener for fruit pies), salt and spices; add to peaches and mix gently but well. Pour into pie shell.

Note: I almost never peel organic peaches. I just wash them very well and rub off the fuzz. The colorful skin adds nutrition and a beautiful color to whatever you're making.

7 Working from the center, lay 5 strips of dough across the pie in one direction. Fold back every other strip halfway. Place a long strip of dough in the center going the other way. Unfold the folded strips over the crossing strip. Repeat with remaining 4 strips. Trim the overhanging strips even with the bottom crust and crimp the edge.

8 Place a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet in the middle of the oven to catch any drips, and place the pie on the baking sheet. Bake at 425F/220C/Gas7 for 30 minutes. Lower temperature to 350F/180C/Gas4, and bake for an additional 35 minutes (juices should be bubbling). Cool on wire rack for at least 2 to 4 hours before serving.

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Jean