Almond Sugar Cream Pie

Okay. I hate messing with family recipes that are so unhealthy they show little potential for redemption. Whatever might that recipe be, you ask. “Sugar Pie” is pretty self-explanatory, wouldn’t you think? This pie basically consists of a sugar/flour/butter mixture with vanilla cream poured atop, then baked until set, but still richly creamy. A bit like the filling of a nut pie, just without the nuts. I gather that Mom justified the whole thing on her practice of substituting evaporated milk for the cream, since that would somewhat cut the fat. Like it needed more fat; it was basically streusel ensconced in fat laden piecrust… if only it wasn’t so damned delicious. Sigh.

Not only does it taste wonderful, it’s also a pie with great history. Also known as sugar cream pie, it has heritage with the Quakers, Shakers, Amish and even with the Quebecois. This pie definitely got around, though the state of Indiana claimed it in 2009 as its official state pie, renamed Hoosier Sugar Cream Pie. Supposedly the Amish and Shaker communities baking the pie were living in Indiana in the 1800s. How it got to Quebec is beyond me! (That version unsurprisingly uses maple syrup.) It does seem that the recipe might have originated just about anywhere, given that it was easily made with pantry staples and decidedly satisfied the sweet tooth. Yes, I suspect this innocent pie was probably at the root of more than a few cavities…

So all I really needed to do was cut the fat and sugar, right?? Problem is, that’s most of the pie… once done, the ingredient list is so short there’s no way for it to fill a piecrust. So-o-o, some substitutions were in order. Almond flour seemed a logical candidate to replace a major portion of the sugar, offering up a tasty balance of protein and healthier fat, while actually being a whole plant food. Cut both the butter and sugar by about two-thirds, bump up the flavor with spices and brandy, (you knew the booze would be in there somewhere) and finish it off with one’s choice of creamy milk product. While I tried lactose free half and half, options would include the aforementioned evaporated milk, light coconut milk and perhaps even oat milk. Getting a little carried away, I topped it with the blackberries I had in the fridge, and was amazed at what came out of the oven! Beautifully full and browned, with a lovely circular pattern of berries on top. Still rich in flavor, but lightly sweet with a moist crumbly texture and the tart sweetness of the fruit.

Was it anything like Mom’s sugar pie? Well, no, but this pie was something delectably new and different! Except it wasn’t, really. Delectable, yes. New and different? Uh…No. Somehow I later came to discover that I had actually baked an eggless French Frangipane tart, the British version being the Bakewell tart. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frangipane

I concluded there were two ways to look at this. One way would be to credit myself with the creativity to reinvent the wheel. The other would be to admit that it takes a clueless American to be so unfamiliar with said ethnic baked treasures from other cultures. But I figure in the big picture, it hardly matters. An almond sugar cream pie is still a mighty fine pie. As to the sugar pie recipe? It’s still peeking at me accusingly from the recipe box. Back to the drawing board.