Mom's Vanilla Pie

I've been making a "pie of the month" since January and for my April pie I chose to make 

Mom's Vanilla Pie.  I'm not sure why it's called this because it is more like a Maple Syrup Pie and 

it resembles shoo-fly pie!  Mom's Vanilla Pie was the farmer's absolute favourite pie that my mom

made - and she made a lot of pies!!

Her recipes were vague with measurements like "heaping" or "scant" and no methods were given.  I followed her instructions as best I could and hoped for the best.

This is how she wrote down the recipe - I've added my tweaks in italic:

Vanilla Pie

Makes 3 pies - I made half the recipe for one large pie

1 Cup Brown Sugar

1 Cup Maple Syrup

2 Cups warm water

1 heaping Tbsp. corn starch

2 tsp. vanilla 

1 egg

Boil and cool - I lightly whisked the ingredients together and stirred it as it boiled and thickened.

    The syrup thickened but looked a bit curdled.  I added a Tbsp. of butter and the vanilla and then

   let it cool slightly.

Pour the slightly cooled syrup into an unbaked pie shell and top with crumbs.

Crumbs

1 Cup Brown Sugar

2 Cups Flour

1 tsp. soda

1 tsp. cream of tartar

1/2 Cup Butter or Lard - I used butter

Cut the butter into the dry ingredients and spoon on top of the syrup filling

Bake at 375F for 25 min. - I started the oven off hotter for 5 minutes and then lowered the temp. to 375F - mine got a bit over baked and dark so I should have followed Mom's instructions closer on this!

This pie was always served with a nice splash of fresh maple syrup and we like it with a dollop of vanilla ice-cream too.  Definitely a "sweet tooth" kind of dessert.  The farmer approved - so I guess it was a success......

Oh my, it's almost midnight and 1/2 the pie is gone!  Oops.

There you have it - my April Pie post!

Till next time ............... hoping that April showers will indeed bring May flowers - oh, how I could use a bouquet of fresh Spring flowers right now!!

BTW - I have the new Mennonite Girls Can Cook "Celebrations" book and am thoroughly enjoying it!  It's like a fresh breath of Spring and Flowers.