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The Well-Equipped Cook: Celebrate Pi Day with Perfect Pies

The Well-Equipped Cook
A Curated Collection of Equipment with Tips, Videos, and Recipes
Volume 140
Celebrate Pi Day with Perfect Pies
In the test kitchen, we like to think of Pi Day, March 14, as Pie Day. After all, pies aren’t just for the holidays, especially when you have the right equipment to make baking one easy as, well, pie. Over the years, our team has tested every tool you could possibly need to make your pies look and taste perfect and this week, we’ve collected our winners into one handy guide. From the best pie plates to our new winning measuring cups, these are the tools any pie lover needs in their kitchen.
If you enjoy baking, another must-have is our Cook’s Illustrated Baking Book . This definitive guide includes 450 foolproof recipes covering everything from easy drop cookies and no-knead bread to ambitious projects such as lattice pies and croissants. And with an illustrated “Baking Basics” chapter and test kitchen expertise throughout, this book will help you become a more confident baker, whether you’re using the recipes inside or one passed down through the generations.
Don’t miss these guides
Our buying guides contain recommended equipment from our rigorous equipment testings. We post new guides every week, but they’re available for only a limited time. As we often say, we do the testing so you don’t have to.
KITCHEN MUST-HAVE
OXO Steel Pie Server
When you spend the time to make a pie from scratch, you certainly don’t want to ruin its good looks the moment you slice into it. That’s why our favorite pie server is essential for all home bakers. This inexpensive server has an offset, double-edged serrated blade that slices cleanly and lifts intact slices easily, no matter the filling or crust.
HOW TO MAKE
Chocolate Cream Pie
This recipe has been a reader favorite for years and it’s no wonder why; it produces a creamy pie with balanced flavor that lands somewhere between a milkshake and a melted candy bar. We achieved this rich flavor by using a combination of semisweet and unsweetened chocolate. For the ideal custardy texture, we combined egg yolks with cornstarch and sugar and then carefully poured the mixture into simmering half-and-half. And to give our pie the chocolaty, sliceable crust it deserved, we used a combination of pulverized Oreos and melted butter.
Get the recipe ›
More Foolproof Pie Recipes ›
WATCH AND LEARN
Foolproof Pie Dough
The words “foolproof” and “pie dough” aren’t usually combined—unless you follow our kitchen-tested method.
Watch the video ›
test kitchen quick tip
Preventing Soggy Pie Crusts with “Crust Dust”
According to the Hoosier Mama Book of Pie , a layer of “crust dust” (a mixture of equal parts granulated sugar and flour) can form a barrier that prevents pie crusts from turning soggy. We wanted to know if this trick really worked, so we tried it out with three of our own pie recipes: apple, blueberry, and pumpkin. For the experiment, we made one set of pies with crust dust and a second set without and compared the results. In the end, both were equally crisp because our recipes already include steps to remove excess moisture from fillings. But if you’re using a recipe that doesn’t include such steps, then adding a sprinkling of crust dust is a good precautionary measure.
Read more ›
bonus guide
The Pizza Lover’s Wish List
You don’t have to limit yourself to dessert pies this Pi Day; you can also indulge in homemade pizza pie. With our foolproof recipes (Thin-Crust Pizza is a good place to start) and a few key pieces of equipment, you’ll be cooking like a professional pizzaiolo in no time. From the best food processor for making dough to the ultimate pizza stone, these tools will help you craft the perfect pie.
View the guide ›
Welcome to our
Online Cooking School
Discover even more guided courses, videos, and step-by-step imagery.
Matfer Bourgeat Black Steel Paella Pan
Heavy and thick, with easy-grip vertical handles, this sturdy, handsome carbon-steel pan makes it easy to produce evenly cooked paella. It can be yours! All you have to do is click here and you’re done.
One lucky winner will be chosen at random each week, so keep reading The Well-Equipped Cook for your chance to win!
America’s Test Kitchen is the home of Cook’s Illustrated and Cook’s Country magazines, America’s Test Kitchen and Cook’s Country from America’s Test Kitchen public television shows, dozens of best-selling cookbooks, member websites, the America’s Test Kitchen Cooking School, and Cook’s Science, a new digital experiment with cooks, scientists and journalists reporting from the world of food and science. We have a single mission: to help you succeed every time you cook.
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