Welcome to “Cookbook of the Week.” This is a series where I highlight cookbooks that are unique, easy to use, or just special to me. While finding a particular recipe online serves a quick purpose, flipping through a truly excellent cookbook has a magic all its own.
Justice of the Pies is a cookbook as well as a bakery by the same name in Chicago, Illinois, with Maya-Camille Broussard at the wheel. The bakery was created to honor her late father, a criminal defense attorney and a man that brought joy to those around him with his Saturday pies. (As a big fan of puns and desserts, brava on the name.)
For those who don’t think much of dessert pies, don’t fret, because not everything in here is sweet. Check out chapters like Savory Pies, Quiches, and Tarts for some savory numbers.
A great cookbook for some freakin’ positivity
Scattered in between the recipes are human spotlight stories. They each tell an uplifting story about a person or group of people who wanted to bring positive change to their communities, whether it’s addressing food insecurity or resolving to throw birthday parties for children who are housing insecure. These stories deliver a dose of positivity and hopefully provide inspiration to support community efforts in our own ways. These stories echo back to Broussard's own initiatives, like her I Knead Love workshops that provide food education to children right there in the bakery. It’s food with intention.
The dish I made this week
Credit: Allie Chanthorn ReinmannThe crust is a classic butter recipe with only four ingredients, so you don’t have to worry about reinventing the wheel here. There are some recipes that add an egg or drop in some vodka, and it all gets a little irritating. (I’m guilty of overcomplicating pie crust.) It turns out, pie crust just doesn’t need to be hacked.
The filling is what I was most interested in. I adore sweet potatoes at all times, but they’re especially charming when mashed up with brown sugar and loads of butter and baked into a pie shell. This pie preparation was straightforward and positively laden with those two important ingredients. I appreciated Broussard’s clear instructions and tips; they told me what to look out for without being long winded. For example, after the filling is completely mixed, it looks like a mistake. All of the butter specks separate from the mixture and I could see this breaking someone's heart if they didn’t know any better. Broussard drops in a quick line that you’ll know it’s done mixing when you see those very specks show up.
Credit: Allie Chanthorn ReinmannHow to buy it
You can buy the hardcover (which is beautiful) of Justice of the Pies online, and because it’s a couple years old, you can find a good deal. For those with little book shelf space to spare, consider the ebook for five bucks. Or, if you’re a bookstore butterfly like myself (bookstore bee? Still workshopping it), check out your local Barnes & Noble, stop into Warwick’s, or call up your neighborhood independent bookstore to see if they can order it for you.
Justice of the Pies: Sweet and Savory Pies, Quiches, and Tarts plus Inspirational Stories from Exceptional People: A Baking Book $4.99 at Amazon Shop Now Shop Now $4.99 at Amazon Read More Details
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