Pies a la road - roadside diner desserts

Sunset, August, 2001 by Elaine Johnson

Western cafes offer wedges well worth a special trip--and recipes to make at home

Some people travel in search of enlightenment. Others seek cultural enrichment. The wisest set their sights on a great piece of pie. On the highways and backroads of the West, there are pie stops worth a special trip, places where culinary kings and queens reign over empires of flaky crusts and luscious fillings. Their kingdoms are modest: eateries strategically positioned near summer travel destinations. But their subjects are loyal, and their treasures mighty. (*) For those of us consigned to our own realms this summer, six of these expert bakers offer peerless pies to make at home. This is enlightenment and enrichment enough.

Rolling in dough

Pie-O-Neer Cafe, Pie Town, New Mexico

* In a place called Pie Town, you'd expect to find great pie. But when Kathy Knapp drove the 150 miles from Albuquerque to Pie Town, population 75, there were no pies.

The town's name and reputation date back to the '20s, when a gold miner started baking pies to supplement his income. Eventually, however, the population dwindled, and with the people went the pies.

So in 1994, Knapp, with the help of family and community, put the pie back in Pie Town, serving up her grandmother's recipes--including one for pinto bean pie (it tastes like pumpkin--Knapp promises).

Closed Mon. Milepost 59 on US. 60, Pie Town; (505) 772-2900.

Pie-O-Neer Coconut Cream Meringue Pie

PREP AND COOK TIME: About 1 hour, plus at least 3 hours to cool

NOTES: Prepare Sunset's Favorite Pie Pastry or the Sunglow Pie Pastry (recipes on page 100), or use 1 refrigerated pastry (half of a 15-oz. package) and follow steps 5 and 6 of the Sunset recipe to line pie pan.

MAKES: 8 servings

Pastry for a 9-inch single-crust pie (see notes)

1 cup sweetened flaked dried coconut

1 1/3 cups sugar

1/4 cup plus 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch

2 1/4 cups whole milk

3 large eggs, separated

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1. With a fork, prick bottom and sides of unbaked pastry in pan at about 1-inch intervals. Bake in a 375[degrees] regular or convection oven until golden, 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool on a rack.

2. Scatter coconut over bottom of pastry.

3. In a 2- to 3-quart pan, mix 1 cup sugar, 1/4 cup cornstarch, milk, and egg yolks until well blended. Stir over medium-high heat until mixture boils and thickens, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Pour over coconut in crust.

4. In a small bowl, mix remaining 1/3 cup sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch.

5. In a deep bowl, with a mixer on high speed (use whisk attachment if available), beat egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt until very foamy. Add sugar-starch mixture, 1 tablespoon every 30 seconds, and continue to beat until meringue holds stiff, glossy peaks.

6. Spoon meringue onto hot pie filling. With a spatula, spread meringue evenly to rim of pie shell.

7. Bake in a 325[degrees] regular or convection oven until meringue is lightly browned, 15 to 20 minutes.

8. Let pie cool on a rack about 3 hours. Cut into wedges and serve, or invert a large bowl over pie (it shouldn't touch meringue) and chill up to 1 day.

Per serving: 399 cal., 36% (144 cal.) from fat; 6.6 g protein; 16 g fat (8.5 g sat.); 57 g carbo (1.1 g fiber); 234 mg sodium; 101 mg chol.

Slice of history

The Eatery Restaurant, Skagit River Resort, Rockport, Washington

* "My dad's mother came here in 1888. She was paddled up the river by the Indians," Tootsie Clark recounts. "She ran a roadhouse above Marble Mount [near the entrance to North Cascades National Park]."

The resort includes a string of cabins, a bed-and-breakfast, and a restaurant, where Clark still holds court with her homestyle cooking. Which of her pies is most popular? Clark hesitates: "Well, the pecan goes over very well. People seem to like the wild blackberry too. We also do rhubarbstrawberry, and lemon, and I make my own mincemeat out of elk meat...."

58439 State 20, Rockport; (800) 273-2606.

The Eatery Pecan Pie

PREP AND COOK TIME: About 1 1/4 hours, plus at least 1 1/2 hours to cool

NOTES: Prepare Sunset's Favorite Pie Pastry or the Sunglow Pie Pastry (recipes on page 100), or use 1 refrigerated pastry (half of a 15-oz. package) and follow steps 5 and 6 of the Sunset recipe to line pie pan. Serve pie with sweetened whipped cream flavored with bourbon and nutmeg.

MAKES: 8 servings

3 large eggs

2/3 cup sugar

1 cup dark corn syrup

1/3 cup melted butter or margarine

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup pecan halves

Pastry for a 9-inch single-crust pie (see notes)

1. In a large bowl, with a mixer on medium-high speed or with a spoon, beat eggs, sugar, corn syrup, butter, and salt until well blended. Stir in pecans. Scrape mixture into unbaked pastry in pan.

2. Bake on bottom rack of a 375[degrees] regular oven or 350[degrees] convection oven until center jiggles only slightly when pan is gently shaken, 40 to 50 minutes. If crust browns too quickly (check after 35 minutes), cover pie loosely with foil.

3. Let pie cool on a rack at least 1 1/2 hours. Cut into wedges and serve, or chill airtight up to 1 day.