Grandma's Peach-Almond Pie

In my ABC's of me post, I told y'all that I can make a pretty mean peach pie. It's true, I can. But it's only because I inherited a great peach pie recipe from my mom's mom. The beauty of this recipe is that you can do it up totally from scratch, or you can supplement with some pre-made ingredients to make a super quick and easy pie. I will admit that I often use a refrigerated pie crust and canned peaches. But right now, fresh peaches are in season, and would be delish. Still, I usually favor canned peaches, because I haven't quite mastered the art of picking a fresh peach, and nothing ruins a peach pie more than a non-ripe peach.


Pie Crust (or "Board" as my grandpa called it)
-3/4 C flour
-dash of salt
-1/3 C. shortening
-3 or 4 tablespoons Ice Water

Cut shortening into flour and salt using two knives to resemble a scissor motion until small beads form. Add about 3T ice water. Mix to form dough ball. Use flour to roll out the size of a pie pan. Prick well with a fork.

Peach Filling
-3 to 5 fresh peaches or a 29oz can of peaches
-1 cup of sugar
-1/2 cup butter, softened
-2 eggs
-2 and a half Tablespoons flour
-1 tsp almond extract

First, preheat the oven to 450 degrees. If using fresh peaches, peel them and slice. If using canned peaches, drain them. Place peaches cut side up in the pie crust. Make a mixture of the remaining agreements. Whisk together until well combined. Pour mixture over the peaches. Try to stop yourself from licking the bowl.

Bake the pie at 450 degrees for 15 minutes. Lower the temp to 350 degrees, and bake for 45 minutes longer. Raise a peach to ensure that the pie isn't runny. If so, return to over and bake until done. Remove from oven and cool. Serve warm, or cold. I prefer cold.

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The original recipe calls for some almond flavoring/extract. I absolutely LOVE the pie this way. However, my weird husband hates almond flavoring. So, I've also made the pie using vanilla extract/flavoring with good results. I've also used vanilla flavoring, and added some cinnamon to the top of the pie in the last 20 minutes or so. I've also not had peaches and used blueberries or blackberries instead. Both are good, but as in most instances, the original is king. Are you getting the point that one of the things I love about this recipe is how flexible it is?