As the days of summer whiz by, I realized I needed to take more advantage of the beautiful Northern California produce, especially stone fruit. I really like the combination of peach and ginger, so I developed this pie recipe. I chose a cream cheese crust to provide more structure for the bits of crystallized ginger I folded in. The filling for this pie was inspired by the peach pie recipe in Cook’s Illustrated.

Peach Ginger Pie with Cream Cheese Crust

Crust:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter, cold and cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1 cup cream cheese, cold
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons vodka, cold
• 1/4 cup crystallized ginger, minced

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven 400 degrees. Use a pizza stone, if you have one. The pizza stone helps to cook the bottom of the pie while the top crust is also browning.
2. Cut together the butter, cream cheese, sugar and salt with a pastry knife until butter and cream cheese are blended.
3. Cut in flour, 1/2 cup at a time. Stir until flour is incorporated.
4. Add vodka and mix until blended. Try not to over mix. Dough should be gathering into a ball.
5. Stir in 1/4 cup minced crystallized ginger.
6. Divide dough in half.
7. Roll out dough until 1/4 inch thick.
8. Gently transfer to a 9 inch pie plate. Trim excess dough.

Filling:

Ingredients:

• 6 cups yellow peaches, washed, peeled and sliced
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 small lemon, zested to yield 1 teaspoon plus juiced
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup crystallized ginger, minced
• 4 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
• 2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/8 cup white sugar

Instructions:

1. Prepare peaches.
2. Stir peaches and all ingredients (except butter) together in a bowl.
3. Add filling to pie crust.
4. Cover pie with second crust. Pinch sides together. Cut four vents in the center of the pie.
5. Using a pastry brush, brush the top of the pie with beaten egg and sprinkle with sugar.
6. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
7. Reduce heat to 350 degrees and continue baking for 30-40 minutes longer, or until crust is golden brown.
8. Remove from oven and let rest on a wire rack.
9. Enjoy!