The Grand Finale

For my final act, in this first ever Summer Pie Challenge, I will perform a feat never seen before (by many people at least, someone has made it before, but, alas! not I)! This stunt will make you gasp, it will make you squirm, it make even take your breath away!

So, raise the curtain and feast your eyes on this!



The one, the only, the totally bizarre: Pear and Jalapeno Jelly Pie!!!

"Can it be?!?!" You've been waiting all summer for this!

I know it sounds crazy, but just give it a chance.

Start with the crust: light, flakey, with a bit of crunch. There, there, that's not so bad.

The insides...the pears are sweet, like any normal fruit pie. The jalapeno jelly isn't spicy, like you might think. And it adds a nice pink color to the juices (I use red jam).

It actually seemed slightly Eastern - most likely from the anise.

On first bite, it was just too weird for me, so different from all of the other pies, more savory than sweet - less like a dessert, at least from an American perspective. Sumo took one bite and declared it too Indian (touche). The more of it that I ate, the more I began to understand it: The sweet with the spices. I even started to enjoy it.

I think if I was to ever make this pie again I would use less anise, and probably switch from jalapeno jelly to hot pepper jelly. I think the juxtaposition between the sweetness of the pears and the hot spices would work well together - though I still don't know if I could eat it as a dessert. Oh, and I would refrigerate it before serving it, let it thicken up a little.

So, 16 pies have been made this summer. And 16 pies have been written up. That's a lot of pie. I would like to thank my friends (especially the folks at my office) for helping me eat those pies. Which is interesting, because they probably are thanking me for making them...I mean, come on, free pie! I would also like to thank Sumo for watching the movies I didn't care to see while I stood in the kitchen with my rolling pin and apron.

But now that it's over, don't go thinking I'm going to slack off. I might give myself a week or two, but come on! It's fall! Fall screams pie! Apples and pumpkins are abounding! And I've always wanted to try this one-...