The Pie Recipes

Ingredients

• 6 ounces cold, unsalted butter cut into ½" pieces, placed in the freezer for 30 min.
• 4½ ounces Philadelphia brand cream cheese, cold cut into cubes and placed in the freezer for 30 min.
• 1 cup pastry flour
• ½ cup rye flour
• ½ cup cornmeal
• 1½ teaspoons sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder
• 2 tablespoons ice water combined with 1 teaspoon cider vinegar
• 3½ pounds ripe/firm pears (preferably Bosc or Anjou) rinsed, peeled, halved, cored
• 2 tablespoons pear eau-de-vie, orange liqueur, or fresh orange juice
• 3-4 tablespoons pure maple syrup, depending on the sweetness of the pears
• 2 teaspoons orange zest
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
• ⅔ cup walnut pieces
• 3 tablespoons candied ginger, diced
• ⅓ cup golden raisins (optional, but they are a lovely addition)
• 1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped with tip of a paring knife
• 2 tablespoons Minute tapioca, finely ground in a food processor
• pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• egg wash made from 1 egg beaten with 1 teaspoon milk or cream
• coarse sanding sugar for sprinkling