Pie

Makes 1 9-inch pie In her new "The All-American Dessert Book," Nancy Baggett writes that this fudge pie is standard fare at cafeteria-style restaurants and lunch counters in the South, where modest menus boast "meat-and-three. " 1 recipe best pie pastry (see facing page ) 1 cup light corn syrup 3/4 cup granulated sugar 1/8 teaspoon salt 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into cubes 4 ounces unsweetened chocolate,...

Makes one 8-inch pie DOUGH 1 cup flour, and more for sprinkling ½ cup cornstarch ¼ cup granulated sugar ½ teaspoon salt 10 tablespoons butter 1 egg yolk 1½ tablespoons sweetened condensed milk ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 1. In food processor, pulse flour, cornstarch, sugar, and...

After St. Francis University in Pennsylvania invited retired Globe columnist Ellen Goodman to deliver a lecture on civility next month, the incivility soon began. A national Catholic group called on the university to disinvite Goodman because of her support of abortion rights, and the provost eventually complied. "Imagine my disappointment at having my plea for civility returned with a pie in a the face," Goodman told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Obviously, the St. Francis administration is within its rights to disinvite a speaker.

I like baking, and I generally like baking books even when they're fussy. So I took an instant shine to the new pie book by Gesine Bullock-Prado (bakery owner, multiple-cookbook author, blogger, and ex-Hollywooder; she's Sandra Bullock's sister). "Pie It Forward" is a loose wordplay on "pay it forward," being grateful for something good, and paying it forward to others. The book has gorgeous photography, and there are cute little sidebars offering advice: say, how to salvage overwhipped cream.

Serves 2 1  tablespoon canola oil  2  carrots, sliced  2  stalks celery, sliced  2  cloves garlic, sliced  1/3  cooked roast beef, chopped   1 1/2  cups onion gravy  1/4  cup frozen peas, rinsed with cold water   Salt and pepper, to taste  1/4  cup milk  3 1/2  cooked red potatoes  1/4  cup sour cream  1  tablespoon butter  1. Set the oven at 425...

The "honeymoon roast," a small, flat piece of beef, is also called the sirloin cap, and is the ideal centerpiece for a romantic dinner. It's a specialty of Grill 23 & Bar's executive chef Jay Murray, who makes it at home. "It can be sliced into small steaks and it's great cut for two," says Murray, who browns the steaks on one side, turns them, and finishes them in a 325 degree oven for about 20 minutes. At butcher shops, order the meat in advance because the cap isn't typically removed from the sirloin before it is cut. Request a 28-ounce piece with the fat trimmed.

As we step into the tiny storefront home of Peace o’ Pie pizzeria in Allston, we are enveloped by the aromas of cheesy, tomatoey goodness. Gorgeous, bubbly-crusted pizzas occupy diners at nearly every shiny table. Walls in avocado green frame the scene. Behind the bamboo counter, a young chef scoops tantalizing pies from the oven. In short, everything about the place looks and smells like a regular, trendy pizzeria, but the ingredient list is far from standard. Peace o’ Pie, which opened last month, is scrupulously vegan.

Makes one 9-inch pie This lard and butter crust is adapted from the 1896 "Boston Cooking School Cook Book," by Fannie Farmer. CRUST 3 cups flour 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup lard, cut up 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, cut up 1/2 cup ice water, or more if needed Extra flour (for sprinkling)

Self-described "pie ladies" Laurie Bowen and Kristin Broadley of Centerville Pie Company - which Oprah Winfrey continues to talk up to her fans - were at the Golden Globes over the weekend to share their famous pies with celebrities. They gave tastes to "The Office" actor Leslie David Baker (who apparently said the pie was so good he wanted to "rub it all over" himself), Jennifer Love Hewitt, Eric Stonestreet of "Modern Family," "Modern" kid Rico Rodriguez, Betsy Brandt of "Breaking Bad," and Massachusetts natives Nat Faxon (he co-wrote George Clooney's "The Descendants")

President Barack Obama has telephoned 10 U.S. service members stationed abroad to wish them a happy Thanksgiving and praise their military service. Obama made the calls Thursday morning from the Oval Office to two members each from the Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marines and Navy who are deployed in support of U.S. operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. Obama has made the Thanksgiving calls each year since becoming president. In a radio address to the nation, the president also asked Americans to remember the men and women in the military...

There's a hint of mature romance — or at least hot sex involving older folks — in the latest sequel to "American Pie. " "American Reunion" brings back the comedy ensemble from the 1999 gross-out hit and includes a comical hookup between Eugene Levy, who plays Jason Biggs' squarer-than-square dad, and Jennifer Coolidge, who plays Seann William Scott's boy-seducing mom. It all starts as Biggs' Jim, home for a high school reunion, tries...

For anyone wondering where actors like Jason Biggs, Mena Suvari, Chris Klein, and Tara Reid have been hiding, this third "American Pie" sequel is like lifting a rock and discovering they've just been pretty much waiting for this. "American Reunion" is the first of these movies in nine years (ignoring the straight-to-DVD spinoffs), and it's a sign of its desperation to exist that the high school reunion in the title is the "big 13th. " Perhaps, the thinking was that had the filmmakers waited for 15 or 20 no one would care.

APRIL 28-29 CELEBRATION, Fla. The 2012 Great American Pie Festival: We sleep better knowing that there is an organization dedicated to preserving our country's proud pie heritage. To that end, the American Pie Council (with partner Crisco) sponsors the Great American Pie Festival, a two-day extravaganza of baking demonstrations, pie-eating contests, exhibitions, and entertainment. To hook the next generation, the Council lets kids make their own pies and participate in pie decorating and other contests.

GRASSHOPPER PIE Makes 1 9-inch pie 2 teaspoons unsalted butter, softened, plus 5 tablespoons, melted 40 chocolate wafer cookies Salt 1/3 cup green creme de menthe 2½ tablespoons white creme de cacao ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 2 cups heavy cream 1 envelope plain gelatin 3 large egg yolks 1/3 cup sugar With the oven rack in the center position, heat the oven to 350 degrees....

 PICK OF THE DAY Big Apple state of mind Moving to the city that never sleeps has made a difference in the work of pianist/composer Jason Yeager. What he calls ‘‘the great energy, diversity, and chaos" of New York inspires him to take more chances. Not that he's ever been afraid to try new things or incorporate his personal experience into his art. Yeager's debut CD, ‘‘Ruminations," showcases the young artist's affinity for improvisation. Hear how that's developing when the Framingham native comes home with New York colleagues Michael Gleichman on drums, Danny Weller on bass, and guest...

Consider the poor meat pie. Historically speaking, it hasn't always had the best associations attached to it. "Is that just revolting?" sings Mrs. Lovett, the pie-shop owner in Stephen Sondheim's "Sweeney Todd," the musical tale of meat pies gone seriously awry. "All greasy and gritty? It looks like it's molting, And tastes like, Well, pity. " (And that's BEFORE she turns to shepherd's pie, "peppered with actual shepherd. ") But pity the meat pie no more: Much loved in Australia, Britain and elsewhere, but traditionally ignored in the United States, it's showing...

WASHINGTON — The cost of the ingredients that make up an average Thanksgiving dinner went up a little more than a half dollar this year, to $43.47, the American Farm Bureau said. The biggest increases in the annual survey were for milk and cream, while the price of a 16-pound turkey actually fell 99 cents, Farm Bureau economist John Anderson said. More than 100 volunteer shoppers in 34 states took part in this year’s survey. They bought the same items: the turkey, bread stuffing, sweet potatoes, rolls with butter, peas, cranberries, a relish tray of carrots and celery, pumpkin pie mix...

Walk into The Flatbread Company in Davis Square and even if you spent half an hour circling for a space and a host now informs you there’s a long wait, you’ll smile. You’re looking at beautiful bowling lanes with happy customers nibbling pizzas. The air is smoky and aromatic. You don’t have to bowl to eat this wonderful, thin pizza, baked in wood-fired ovens so the edges of the crust are puffy, mildly smoky, and delicious. Many places set out to source from local growers.

The "honeymoon roast," a small, flat piece of beef, is also called the sirloin cap, and is the ideal centerpiece for a romantic dinner. It's a specialty of Grill 23 & Bar's executive chef Jay Murray, who makes it at home. "It can be sliced into small steaks and it's great cut for two," says Murray, who browns the steaks on one side, turns them, and finishes them in a 325 degree oven for about 20 minutes. At butcher shops, order the meat in advance because the cap isn't typically removed from the sirloin before it is cut. Request a 28-ounce piece with the fat trimmed.