Last month I was honored to join the Made in America cookbook festivities held at the Four Seasons Hualalai in breathtaking Hawaii.  One of the many events was led by one of the chefs featured in the book, Evan Kleiman.  She taught a pie making class with a special twist – our pie would be inspired by the beautiful surroundings!

Needless to say, it isn’t hard to find inspiration in paradise.  The use of local, seasonal ingredients is also an important goal for the  Four Seasons culinary team.  In fact, all the restaurants on the property make an effort to source their ingredients from producers on the Hawaiian islands.

Evan is an expert in the pie making field.  In fact, she just released an indispensable “pie app” just in time for the holidays!  (How appropriate I snapped a photo of her with a phone!)

“Easy as Pie” is now available on App Store for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore.  The app offers 20 original pies, 5 different pie crust options and 3 toppings.

Some of the pie recipes featured in Appetites’ Easy as Pie include High Hat Apple; Butterscotch Toffee; Pear Blue Cheese Slab; Chai Spice Pumpkin; Chocolate Winter Nut; Plum Sour Cream; Apple Cider Maple; Lemon Curd Meringue; Pear Almond; S’more; Nutella Hand Pies; as well as several savory pies include Butternut Apple Bacon and Cherry Tomato with Cheddar Garlic Crumble.

Is your mouth watering yet?  Hurry and download it for Thanksgiving! 

It was a blast to be able to cook in the Four Seasons kitchens.  The workspace was sublime and we arrived to class with all our ingredients and supplies ready to go.

*Note the glass Pyrex pie pans.  Even recommends glass because you can peek underneath and see through to check for doneness on the crust.  Great tip! 

My fellow classmates included Carrie Vitt of “Deliciously Organic”, Lucy Lean author of the Made in America cookbook, and esteemed chef Ludo Lefebvre of Ludo Bites.  We were joined by other hotel guests and members of the community eager to learn from an expert.

Who needs a pastry blender when your hands are your greatest tools!  Just remember to use well chilled butter, and not to handle to too much.  The heat of your fingers will warm the pastry.

Check out the Four Season’s Facebook page for a gallery of photos from the class! 

I just loved the look of all these rolling pins.  Every shape and size you could imagine!

Pie making is so much easier when you have a team of sous chefs.  Look at that pineapple!  Undoubtedly, the best I have ever tasted.  (I mean, it is Hawaii afterall!)

Another tip from Evan:  When making fruit pies, taste your fruit!  Sweetness varies and you should adjust your sugar accordingly.

Believe it or not, this was Chef Ludo’s first pie making venture!  He may have had his moments of frustration with the delicate crust, but I think he was a star student!

Isn’t there something so beautiful about a countertop covered in flour?  It means something delicious is about to happen…

My crust, waiting to be filled.  Crimping the edges is my favorite part!

Evan’s completed pie!  The model we all tried to re-create.  When the class was over, the Four Season’s chefs were nice enough to bake our pies to perfection.  Each was labeled with our name and later that night our “Paradise Pies” were delivered to our rooms.

I snapped this photo the next morning on my balcony.  It was like no other pie I had ever tasted!  The pineapple-mango-coconut-ginger combination epitomized the flavor of our surroundings.  Why not venture beyond the typical apple, pumpkin or pecan pies this year and take an edible trip to the Big Island with this “Paradise Pie!”

Evan Kleiman’s Tropical Pie

1/2 recipe Flaky Pie Dough or 1 recipe Easy Cream Cheese Dough

1 recipe Coconut Crumble

4 1/2 cups fresh Mango,  cut into large chunks

1 1/2 cups fresh diced Pineapple

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1/4 cup chopped candied ginger

3-4 tablespoons Cornstarch

1/4  – 1/2 cup firmly packed Brown Sugar

Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Roll out bottom crust and situate it in 9” regular or deep dish pie pan.

Refrigerate while preparing filling.

Make Coconut Crumble topping and set aside in refrigerator while preparing filling.

Place mango and pineapple in mixing bowl.  Add lime juice and candied ginger.  Mix together sugar and cornstarch in small bowl with pinch of salt.  Add dry mixture to fruit and mix well.

Place prepared fruit into pie pan.

Top with prepared Coconut Crumble.  Cover pie loosely with aluminum foil so coconut doesn’t burn.

Place pie in preheated oven on lowest oven rack.  Cook for 30 minutes.  At 30 minutes check topping to see if it’s already starting to brown. Rotate pie so it bakes evenly.  Turn oven down to 375 degrees.  Continue cooking an additional 10 to 20 minutes or until the fruit juices are well thickened, the pineapple is tender and the crumble topping is golden brown.

Coconut Crumble

1 cup flour

½  cup unsweetened coconut flakes

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar

Pinch of salt

1 stick butter (4 oz.), cut into tablespoon sized pieces

Place flour, coconut flakes and sugars in bowl of food processor with steel blade.  Add salt.  Pulse ingredients to mix.  Add butter.  Pulse to mix, processing as necessary to end up with a crumbly mass.  Remove from processor and place in ziplock bag or covered bowl and refirgerate until needed.  You can make this way ahead and freeze it.  Use it frozen without defrosting.

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