The Pie Academy’s Tailgate Pie of the Week: Week 4
With more than 600 pie recipes in print, you can imagine that there are times when I can go for months – or even years – before revisiting a certain pie from my past. When I finally do, it’s often like seeing an old friend and being reminded why you hit it off so well in the first place.
Such is the case with this week’s tailgate pie – Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookie Pie, a friend from way back whose origins, I believe, can be traced – where else? – to our friends at Quaker Oats. And I can only hope they’ll forgive me for taking liberties with their original recipe (even though, at this juncture, I can’t recall precisely what those liberties might be.)
As the name implies, this pie will remind you of a big fat gooey oatmeal cookie. The oats create a lovely, textured crust across the surface and form the basis for the argument, if only with yourself, that this is a health food-styled pie in spite of its unabashed richness.
The solution, as I always maintain, is not to deny yourself the pleasure of this pie, but to spread it around and enjoy it with as many others as possible. Remember, it’s always better to send them off longing for more rather than wishing they’d eaten less.
The recipe is about as simple as they come, just a few basic ingredients blended together with some creative add-ins for good measure. The pastry shell isn’t even prebaked, which is not my usual style for this sort of pie, leaving me to believe that I did it that way out of respect for the original recipe.
A nice rugged pie with a firm filling, it travels well – so it’s great for tailgates, potlucks, and fall festivals. Even if it travels no further than the end of your fork to your mouth, I think you’ll soon be calling this one an old friend, too. Enjoy.
PASTRY NOTE: Though you can use any favorite pie pastry here, I like the Good Basic Pie Dough.
Ingredients
- 1 recipe Good Basic Pie Dough, refrigerated
- FILLING
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3/4 cup dark corn syrup
- 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
- 3/4 cup rolled oats (old-fashioned or quick cooking, not instant)
- 1/3 cup sweetened or unsweetened flaked coconut
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup butterscotch chips
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- On a sheet of lightly-floured wax paper, roll the pastry into a 12" circle with a floured rolling pin. Invert the pastry over a 9" pie pan, center, then gently peel off the paper. Tuck the pastry into the pan without stretching it, then sculpt the edge into an upstanding ridge. Place in the freezer for 15 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375°.
- Combine the eggs, sugar, corn syrup, and butter in a large bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat on medium speed until well blended, about 30 seconds. Stir in the oats, coconut, flour, butterscotch chips, nuts, and vanilla. Pour the filling into the chilled pie shell.
- Bake on the center oven rack for 25 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350° and turn the pie 180 degrees, so the part that faced back now faces forward. Bake another 20 to 25 minutes, until the center is set. Give the pie a little nudge to check - the filling should not move in waves.
- Transfer to a rack and cool thoroughly before slicing. This pie refrigerates nicely and makes even cleaner cuts when cold. MAKES 10 - 14 servings
