Pie Crust

On this Halloween, you can put a skeleton in your oven. Sharlene Russell and her family from Rising Sun requested a Skeleton Pie recipe like the one their mother made "using half-and-half cream, sugar and cinnamon. It was a bony, skinny white pie," she wrote.The response sent in by Blanche Cox of Longview, Wash., "is one and the same recipe but I call it a cream pie. A friend gave me this recipe about 62 years ago," says the 76-year-old Ms. Cox."There were no specific amounts of ingredients at the time just simple instructions that began with a generous dotting of butter on an uncooked 8-inch pie crust.

Vinegar? In a pie? Don't say no until you try it.Along with Vinegar Pie, you will want to try the pumpkin cheesecake, too. All these recipes are oh-so-good.Shelby Lambert of Towson requested a pumpkin cheesecake recipe, and her answer came from Judy McNaughton of Bend, Ore., who sent in two recipes. The first is from Better Homes and Gardens magazine. The second recipe came from a Philadelphia Cream Cheese package.Easy Pumpkin CheesecakeServes 81 (10 1/2 or 12 1/8 -ounce) package of no-bake cheesecake mix.1 teaspoon ground cinnamon1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg1/2 teaspoon ground cloves3/4 cup milk3/4 cup canned pumpkin1/2 teaspoon vanillawhipped creamground cinnamonPrepare the graham cracker crust according to package directions.

French Silk Chocolate Pie is one of the world's ultimate chocolate indulgences. However, the dreamy dessert has a bad side: It's loaded with fat and calories.Our recipe here has about half the calories and fat of the original.Lighter Chocolate Silk PieMakes 8 servingsCRUST:11 whole graham crackers2 tablespoons granulated sugar1 egg whiteFILLING:1 (8-ounce) block fat-free cream cheese1 cup powdered sugar1 whole egg2 egg whites1 (2-ounce) square unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled1 teaspoon vanilla1/3 cup heavy whipping cream1 tablespoon finely chopped walnuts or almondsHeat the oven to 350. In a food processor or blender, grind graham crackers into fine crumbs.

Who says you can't bake something delicious in a brown paper bag? Christine K. Roberts of Parkville came up with the request for a recipe called brown bag betty, which, she writes, is an apple pie with a bottom crust and baked in a paper bag.From the number of responses, everyone seems to know about this pie. Chef Gilles Syglowski chose one from Shirley A. Massey of Ellicott City.Massey's Paper Bag Apple PieFILLING:4 to 6 large baking apples1/2 cup sugar2 tablespoons flour1/2 teaspoon nutmeg2 tablespoons lemon juiceCRUMB TOPPING:1/2 cup sugar1/2 cup flour1/2 cup butter or margarine1 9-inch unbaked pie crustFor the filling, peel, core and quarter the apples, then cut quarters in half.

While developing and testing recipes for her book on low-fat baking, Susan Purdy found ways to cut the fat content without sacrificing flavors. Here are some of the tricks she used in "Have Your Cake and Eat It, Too."* Maximize small amounts of nuts, which are high in fat, by sprinkling them on top of a cake or pie instead of mixing them into the batter or filling. "They have what I call 'taste visibility' that way," Ms. Purdy says. Toasting the nuts intensifies the flavor. Nut oils also are a way to add a nutty flavor to a recipe.

TC What's more autumn than apple pie?Apple-cranberry pie, of course.Though apples are in stores the year-round, fall is the harvest season for most varieties.Cranberries are truly seasonal. The fresh berry is available October through about the end of December; for the rest of the year, we have to substitute frozen.So if the arrival of cooler days gives you the urge to bake, consider the apple-cranberry pie.Apple-cranberry pieMakes 1 piepie crust for 10-inch, double-crust pie4 cups peeled and sliced apples (McIntosh or Cortland)

It was a weekend of back-to-back strawberry pies. The two glorious pies were made with local berries, freshly whipped cream and a borrowed recipe.Pie No. 1 was devoured Saturday night in about 40 minutes. Pie No. 2 was dessert for Sunday's supper. Two pieces of the Sunday night pie were hidden in the fridge for safe keeping. And on Monday morning, in what I hope will be the start of a Memorial Day tradition, two pieces of strawberry pie with whipped cream were eaten as breakfast.The best strawberries are sold at stands sitting on the wrong side of the road.

It could just as easily have been baseball, Chevrolet and fruit cobblers, instead of apple pie. Fruit cobblers are even more American than apple pie. Europeans had apple pie, but they didn't have fruit cobblers.Cobblers are a deep-dish baked fruit dessert of American origin made with a top crust only. The crust is usually made with biscuit dough rather than pastry, but lest the Civil War begin again, suffice it to say it can be made with either. In some parts of the country where the pastry topping is preferred, a biscuit topping just won't do.The key to a good cobbler is to pat (or roll)

Around the housePrepare old cake pans for holiday baking. Fill with warm water and 1 teaspoon vinegar and let stand overnight. Corrosion will wash off. New baking pans should be greased and heated in oven for about 15 minutes before using to prevent rust.* Soak heavily soiled oven racks in tub with very hot water. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of automatic dishwashing detergent into tub. Let sit until grease spots dissolve.* Avoid tears from chopping onions. Place unpeeled onions in refrigerator for at least half an hour.

Go ahead, ask Dad what he wants as a special treat for Father's Day. But I bet I know what he'll say.Pie.Cherry pie. Or apple pie. Or lemon meringue pie. Or chocolate pie. Or peanut butter pie. His favorite, whatever it is.And probably a la mode.You have two choices here. You can wimp out and head for the nearest bakery to put in your order.Or you get out the flour and crank up the oven and dig in.Actually, there is a third choice. You can start at the grocery, in the dairy case or frozen food case, with a prepared pie crust.