Strawberry Sour Cream Pie

I'm back from my trip, and I've brought home the most amazing recipes! Hurrah!! My bag is still unpacked, and there is a huge stack of mail on the counter, but who cares.....I *must* share this recipe with you. On my way to Bryce Canyon in Utah, I stopped in a town so small it didn't even show on the map. Looking for a bite to eat, I ended up in a tiny little café called Mom's Café and had one of the most memorable meals ever, partly because of the excellent food, and partly because of the friendliness of the staff. 

The last part of that meal was of course dessert and when I hesitated because I was already so full, the waitress said I could not possibly leave without trying the sour cream pie. Well, call me a sucker, but who says no to a piece of pie? I, for one, don't and I'm sure glad I didn't. And hopefully, after you tasted it yourself, you're glad I didn't either!!

When I asked for the recipe, I received the typical "oh a cup of this and a tablespoon of that" but no clear directions. I took notes as well as I could, and when I got home, the first thing I did was to pull out a couple of pie shells I keep in the freezer for emergencies, like this :-)

The dough is neither salt nor sweet so is perfect for either quiches, pies or empanadas, so make sure you always have one or two at hand! They thaw in a heartbeat and provide their own pan which saves on dishes to wash.

Since I didn't get proper measurements, I've been trial baking for the last couple of days, much to everybody's enjoyment. The recipe below produces a pie that comes closest to my Utah experience.

Strawberry Sour Cream Pie
1 unbaked pie shell
2 medium eggs
1 cup of sugar
2 cups of sour cream
1/4 cup of all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For topping:
1 lb fresh strawberries
1 tablespoon of sugar

Heat the oven at 350. Pull the pie shell out of the freezer and set aside. In the meantime, unearth the mixer and beat the two eggs for about five minutes at medium speed, until they've doubled in volume. While mixing, pour in the sugar in three stages, each time waiting until the eggs have successfully absorbed the sugar and mixed it well. After you have mixed in all the sugar, continue to mix until the eggs and sugar combination doubles again in volume, add the sour cream and continue to mix until the dough has a consistent light yellow coloring and a thicker consistency, usually after another five minutes of medium mixing.

While you continue to mix, add the salt and the flour and the vanilla extract, beat until all the flour has been integrated into the mix and pour it into the pie shell. Place the shell in the preheated oven and set the timer for 30 minutes.

For the topping, wash and hull the strawberries, then chop them in little inch-size pieces and toss in a bowl with the sugar. Place in refrigerator.

Bake the pie until the middle is set, or 30 minutes, and set aside to cool. Chill for at least three hours, and place the strawberries on top right before serving. As with everyting, this pie tastes better the next day.

You can replace the strawberries with blueberries, peaches, plums or chocolate shavings.
Okay, it's time for you to get cooking and for me to get my luggage unpacked, see you in a day or two for more road trip recipes!