Honey Vinegar Pie
It's all in a name, right? That's what Lou Ginocchio of Cincinnati's O Pie O discovered when Honey Vinegar Pie sent customers' heads spinning. "No one was expecting a pie with vinegar in its name to be this luxurious."
Ingredients
Directions
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Preheat oven to 450°. Prick pie shell with a fork. Line pastry with a double thickness of foil. Bake 8 minutes; remove foil. Bake until golden, 6 to 8 minutes more. Place on a baking sheet; set aside. Reduce oven temperature to 365°.
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Slice one vanilla bean lengthwise; scrape out seeds with knife. Place bean, seeds and cream in the top of a double boiler. Steep over low heat 20 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl; discard vanilla bean.
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Place butter in the double boiler and melt over medium heat; set aside to cool 5 minutes.
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In a large bowl, combine sugar, cornmeal and kosher salt. Stir in melted butter. Whisking rapidly, slowly pour in eggs, followed by the vanilla cream, scraping bowl to get all the vanilla specks. Finally, add honey and cider vinegar.
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Place pan with pie shell on center oven rack. While continuing to whisk, slowly pour filling into pie shell.*** Bake 40 to 50 minutes, rotating pan twice. The pie is done when the middle is golden brown, puffed and springy; the edges are set; and the pie has a firm jiggle when gently shaken.
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Let cool 3 hours on a wire rack. Serve with flaky sea salt and whipped cream.
*SHOPPING TIP
Beans give the fullest vanilla flavor, but a jarred product called vanilla bean paste is a close second (and saves you the step of straining)
**SHOPPING TIP
For max flavor and creaminess, Lou prefers European-style butter, which contains less water and more fat than a standard stick. Irish Kerrygold is one common brand
***PREP TIP
Keep stirring right up until filling the shell so the cornmeal doesn’t settle, then get the pie in the oven right away.
****PREP TIP
Take a cue from pastry chefs everywhere, and keep flaky sea salt in your pantry. (Maldon is the most famous brand, available online or at specialty stores.) Sprinkle it on cookies, brownies, even ice cream for a sparkling, crunchy hit of salt to balance and brighten the sweet.