RIDGE & ROOT RECIPES: VINEGAR PIE
- Matt Welsch
- Aug 4
- 2 min read
Updated: Aug 4
SO, WHAT IS IT?
We may never have had much to work with here in Appalachia, but that's fine. We don't need much. We know how to make it work. Sugar, eggs, butter, vinegar standing in for a lemon nobody had access to.
That's the purest form of ingenuity, and it's been passed hand to hand, generation to generation, printed by hand on scraps of paper and notecards. Take what's available and make it more than enough.
For years, this pie fed families before it was ever on a menu at some high-falutin' restaurant in beautiful Downtown Wheeling. It still does both.
The crust gets its own nod to that same ingenuity, a splash of moonshine that evaporates as it bakes, resulting in an amazingly light and crisp crust.
You gotta try it.
Moonshine Pie Dough
1 ¼ C All-Purpose Flour
½ t Table Salt
1 T Sugar
6 T Cold Unsalted Butter (¾ stick), cut into ¼-inch cubes
¼ C Chilled Solid Vegetable Shortening, cut into pieces
2 T Moonshine, ice cold
2 T Water, ice cold
Process 1 cup flour (reserving ¼ cup), salt, and sugar in a food processor until combined, about 2 one-second pulses. Add butter and shortening, then process until the dough just starts to collect in uneven clumps, about 15 seconds. Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula and redistribute the dough evenly around the blade. Add reserved flour and pulse until the mixture is evenly distributed and the dough mass has been broken up, 4 to 6 quick pulses. Empty mixture into a medium bowl. Sprinkle moonshine and water over mixture. With a rubber spatula, use a folding motion to mix, pressing down on dough until dough is slightly tacky and sticks together. Flatten into a 4-inch disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes. Yield: One 9-inch Single Crust
Time: 20 minutes, plus 45 minutes chilling
Vinegar Pie 1 Single-Crust Pie Recipe (above)
6 ea Eggs ¾ C Sugar ¾ C Light Brown Sugar ¾ t Vanilla 9 T Butter, melted 3 T Apple Cider Vinegar 3 T Honey3 T Flour 1 t Kosher Salt Powdered sugar for dusting Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll out chilled pie dough to an 1/8-inch-thick circle. Place in a 9-inch cast-iron pie pan, fit to the sides, and trim the edges, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang. Fold the overhang under itself and pinch all around the perimeter to form the crust edge. Crimp as desired. Line the pie pan with parchment paper, then pour baking weights into the lined crust. Bake for 20 minutes; remove the pie weights and parchment paper, then bake for an additional 10 minutes, until the crust is lightly browned all over. Remove to cool slightly. In a large mixing bowl, vigorously whisk together remaining ingredients until sugar is mostly dissolved and no pockets of flour remain. Pour the filling into the crust and bake until the surface is browned and the center does not jiggle when the pan is lightly shaken, about 30 minutes. Allow to cool completely before dusting with powdered sugar and serving.
Yield: 1 Pie
-- Chef Matt
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