S03.E05: Pies

[Mystery]

On 7/14/2018 at 5:39 AM, Kohola3 said:

Paul makes me stabby with that kind of crap. 

 

Ha, that's just how I'm going to think of him from now on. 

 

On 7/14/2018 at 6:49 AM, Rinaldo said:

A good time-travel novel, To Say Nothing of the Dog, features an American transporting back to Victorian times where he's invited for a weekend at a country estate. He's delighted at the thought of the lavish buffet breakfasts they'll have for guests -- until he discovers that in fact it's all items unpalatable to him, featuring eel pie.

 

 

One of my favorite books! I'm pretty sure the guy was British, though. Just from a future with, presumably, no disgusting breakfast food. A future I devoutly look forward to. 

I still think that that wonderful key lime-ish pie should have kept Ryan safe but not made him Star Baker. 

Edited July 16, 2018 by Mystery

[Athena]

20 hours ago, dargosmydaddy said:

Does anyone know what the order/ focus of the rests of the weeks are? My PBS station isn't doing sneak previews for the next week, and I don't want to go poking around too much because I'm still un-spoiled as to the winner and want to keep it that way.

All the episodes for S03 (this season S05 on PBS) is listed on this forum's main page. I have already made ep threads for all ten eps. You can tell the focus for each week and if you wish, you can read about the challenges in my first post. No one has commented on the episodes beyond this episode yet because I made all these threads a couple months ago and hid them.

 

19 hours ago, Rinaldo said:

I've never tasted hot water crust pastry, so I want to be fair: is it in fact pleasant to eat? It looks (as they said) as if it violates all the rules for making good piecrust.

It's a different texture. You expected more flakiness from normal pie crusts and more delicacy, but hot water crust pastry is made to be held up so it's more firm. The texture somewhat resembles Chinese mooncakes. The flavour can be mild because it's really acting like the carb and starch to wrap the meat. I've only had one a couple of times because a good one can be difficult to find in the UK and even rarer abroad.

 

10 hours ago, Kohola3 said:

It was confusing.  Is there only one kind of squash in Britain and that equals pumpkin?

Pumpkins, or what North Americans think of as the sweet pumpkin used in pies, are relatively recent trend in the UK. Squashes are a plenty and there are different varieties, but the traditional orange pumpkin didn't really become popular. So people use the term interchangeably because they know it's a type of squash. 

[sum]

You think eel pies are bad, there are also jellied eels, said to be sold with pies and mash in those shops. And then there's a thing called Stargazy pie that makes you murmur 'why...?'. I admit I'm not exactly an adventurous person when it comes to unfamiliar fish or meat food (no problem with any fruits or vegs) but those were some of the most bizarre looking foods I've learned recent years.

[Kohola3]

Oh. geez, I almost dropped the laptop when the Stargazy pictures popped up!

[rhys]

I'm now thinking, as a Murican, that the insert about eel pie was to balance portly Paul's nonsense about sweet American pies and how we might be offended. At least we don't eat pies that taste like rivers or that are made of bird or fish heads. Give me too sweet pies over those choices any day.

[dargosmydaddy]

2 hours ago, Athena said:

All the episodes for S03 (this season S05 on PBS) is listed on this forum's main page. I have already made ep threads for all ten eps. You can tell the focus for each week and if you wish, you can read about the challenges in my first post. No one has commented on the episodes beyond this episode yet because I made all these threads a couple months ago and hid them.

Thanks! I actually ended up looking on the PBS website schedule, and then was kind of sorry I did because the ep description for 3.07 was kind of spoilery for 3.06...

[mlp]

I was a bit surprised that Paul's comment was left in but then it occurred to me that, back when this season was edited, they probably never dreamed that the show would become so popular that people in the U.S. would be clamoring for it.  I must say that it's very strange to come to a GBBS thread and find negative comments of any kind.  Paul did himself no favors.

[Rinaldo]

1 minute ago, mlp said:

Paul did himself no favors.

True enough, and I've been piling on too. Still, this was 6 years ago, and on a couple of subsequent occasions he's given hints of being more receptive to peanut butter as an ingredient, etc. Maybe he has evolved over the years, as we all hope to do.

[dubbel zout]

When peanut butter isn't combined with pumpkin/squash and chocolate, it's pretty tasty.

[bugsmum]

2 hours ago, sum said:

You think eel pies are bad, there are also jellied eels, said to be sold with pies and mash in those shops. And then there's a thing called Stargazy pie that makes you murmur 'why...?'. I admit I'm not exactly an adventurous person when it comes to unfamiliar fish or meat food (no problem with any fruits or vegs) but those were some of the most bizarre looking foods I've learned recent years.

That Stargazy pie is quite a sight to behold.  I won't be looking for a recipe to try anytime soon.   I have put To Say Nothing of the Dog on reserve at the library, so thank you Rinaldo.  

[justmehere]

Just had a chance to watch this episode, and I'm with everyone here in being upset about their take on American pies, especially when they then rather showed their ignorance of them. Restricting it to no top crusts, making tarts rather than pies, all the insults -- sheesh. Agree that they probably didn't think it would never be shown here.

Except, I have to eat my words, because I was so grossed out by both the Wellingtons and the raised pies, I shouted "that's disgusting" more than once, particularly with the one whose crust fell off. I'm vegetarian, so I always hate the meat-pie bakes, but one thing definitely raised an eyebrow. Throughout the Wellington bakes, they kept showing sheep in the field. It's a regular thing they do on the show, but this time it felt like such a disconnect -- until they were talking about the lamb Wellington and then cut directly to one of the sheep. Deliberate, connection made, thank you. --Fast forwarded completely through the segment on eel pies. (Not to mention haggis, blood pudding -- love Scotland but yeesh.)

Lastly: Brendan's tart looked delicious, except for using gelatin in it. Many of the desserts have been spoiled for me with that addition. I'm usually quiet about my own choice not to eat animals, but those Wellingtons and wanting a gross layer of cold gelatin around the meat (plus lard in the crust), topped by all the American bashing... probably my least favorite episode of this show. (Shuddering.)

[mlp]

^^^^^^^^^^  I'm a far cry from vegetarian but I have to agree with those sentiments.  And I noticed the camera cuts to the sheep also.

[GaT]

Reading this thread is very interesting, you don't usually see this much "anger" in one of the threads for this show. I guess Americans are protective of our pies LOL

Edited July 15, 2018 by GaT

[Dewey Decimate]

17 hours ago, nowornever said:

Am I the only one who thought there was a hair in Katharine's pie?  When Paul lifted the slice, there was a small chunk that was mysteriously hanging in the air.  I can't tell if she saw it since she always looks so nervous, but I thought that maybe the dark-haired host (ahh! I can't remember her name!) saw it when she was picking at the pie after Paul and Mary's bites.

Yes! I saw that dangling crust bit and all I could think of was when my cat managed to ingest a long human hair. About 12 hours later.... well, if you're a cat owner, enough said. GAG!!

I know I'm not feeling angry about the show - still love watching it - but was just a little disappointed to see that bit of catty, negative nonsense from Paul and a contestant or two. And in the current geopolitical climate, dog knows there is very little I feel patriotic about. But pies - yes, THAT I can get behind. Make America BAKE Again!

[GoldaVining]

I'm a Canadian and I too felt oddly protective of the much-loved classic American pie during this episode.

I love to bake in general, but pies most of all, so I was excited to see this episode. I have watched enough of Paul Hollywood over the years to know that man loves banana so when Sarah Jane said she was baking a banana pie, I hoped Paul would be happy. There was a time when Paul was very unhappy regarding something baked with banana (it wasn't as good as he had hoped) and Sue called Paul an "angry baby". Now I always think "Angry Baby! Angry Baby!" when I see Paul Hollywood and it makes me happy.

After all that going on about eel pies, I was certainly expecting to see the bakers have to make one.

I prefer a tart pie myself, but I usually make rhubarb or blackberry pies, so there is little chance of them turning out too sweet anyway. That said, a couple years ago for Christmas dinner I decided to make the turducken of pies where you bake a pie within a cake and that was super fun. I made two different piecakens just for kicks.

Edited July 15, 2018 by GoldaVining
too much

[Adiba]

18 hours ago, meep.meep said:

Thanks!  I guess everyone in Britain knows how big a knob of stem ginger is.  I don't think they ever showed the tins of condensed milk on the show.

Was this filmed before or after Mr. Hollywood had his extra-marital adventure in the US?

But do they all know how big of a "knob" Paul Hollywood is? (Sorry, couldn't resist.)

I love key lime pie, but not with persian limes. Not a big fan of persian limes in sweets--like them in drinks and savory food, though.

Someone upthread mentioned that Paul's comments about so-called "American pies" were rich coming from a land where treacle tart and sticky toffee pudding are favorite desserts. Also, isn't their traditional Christmas cake a giant dried fruit-packed thing covered in marzipan? Maybe soaking it in booze takes it down a notch, but it still sounds very sweet, imo.

A typical "American" pie can be made less sweet--use tart apples and reduce the sugar (with cheddar cheese in the crust)--or use sour cherries, blackberries, and even blueberries with some lemon and less sugar.  

[Eliza422]

6 hours ago, GaT said:

Reading this thread is very interesting, you don't usually see this much "anger" in one of the threads for this show. I guess Americans are protective of our pies LOL

Interesting, isn’t it. 

 

It might seem silly, but they’ve done lots of things from other countries and never had the directions basically  be, “ make it not disgusting”. 

They might joke about the name ( like the wind torte), but they didn’t mock the country and it’s whole approach to a type of baked good.

it seemed a needlessly mean direction for such a charming and low key show.

[Ceindreadh]

On 14/7/2018 at 1:39 PM, Kohola3 said:

 

The contestants, as always, are so nice!  When Manisha was frantically trying to patch up her pie, one of the guys took time to come over and give suggestions.  Wouldn't see that on those horrible cut throat Food Network challenges.

It’s one of the things I love about Bake-Off and other UK shows like it. The contestants will help each other out if they can. 

(One of the British sewing bee finals, one of the three finalists was the only one who could figure out how to even get started on the pattern challenge and gave the other two a heads up so they’d be on a more level playing field)

[Athena]

2 hours ago, Adiba said:

Also, isn't their traditional Christmas cake a giant dried fruit-packed thing covered in marzipan? Maybe soaking it in booze takes it down a notch, but it still sounds very sweet, imo.

Do you mean a Christmas pudding? It is dried fruit soaked in alcohol,  but not usually covered in marzipan. Often times, they light it up. It is heavy and most Brits only eat it once a year. Marzipan is featured more in European bakes such as stollens.

[Adiba]

25 minutes ago, Athena said:

Do you mean a Christmas pudding? It is dried fruit soaked in alcohol,  but not usually covered in marzipan. Often times, they light it up. It is heavy and most Brits only eat it once a year. Marzipan is featured more in European bakes such as stollens.

No, I saw Mary Berry make one on a Christmas special—perhaps it was her own take? It was definitely a baked cake and she covered it in a pretty marzipan decoration.

At any rate, it’s not so much what Paul Hollywood said as how he said it. I can appreciate that there are different taste preferences in different cultures/cuisines—there was no need for him to be rude or insulting about it—ymmv.

Edited July 15, 2018 by Adiba
Clarity

[Athena]

4 minutes ago, Adiba said:

No, I saw Mary Berry make one on a Christmas special—perhaps it was her own take? It was definitely a baked cake and she covered it in a pretty marzipan decoration.

A Christmas cake . Mary's one is really rich especially with the marizpan which is not super common. Same idea as the Christmas pudding lots of heavy, sweet dried fruit.

I don't always value Paul's opinions about things. He has become more open about American tastes since this series aired.

[Jordan Baker]

10 hours ago, justmehere said:

I'm vegetarian, so I always hate the meat-pie bakes, but one thing definitely raised an eyebrow. Throughout the Wellington bakes, they kept showing sheep in the field. It's a regular thing they do on the show, but this time it felt like such a disconnect -- until they were talking about the lamb Wellington and then cut directly to one of the sheep. Deliberate, connection made, thank you. --Fast forwarded completely through the segment on eel pies. (Not to mention haggis, blood pudding -- love Scotland but yeesh.)

I had the same reaction. And didn't someone even say "Mary likes a little lamb" with her Wellington?

I'm relatively new to this show. I've seen a few random episodes, but I don't think I've seen a Pie episode before this one. Between the Wellingtons and the eel pie, I wondered when someone was going to make a Sweeney Todd reference!

[dubbel zout]

11 hours ago, mlp said:

And I noticed the camera cuts to the sheep also.

I'm a committed carnivore, and that didn't bother me. It's important to know where food comes from.

[Sharpie66]

I must be rather heartless, but I have no problems reconciling my feelings of, “Aww, look at the cute lambs!” and my love of tasty lamb meat (one of my favorite lamb dinners was in Dingle, Ireland—that leg was sooooo good!). Same thing with cows and beef.

Edited July 15, 2018 by Sharpie66

[Mystery]

5 hours ago, Eliza422 said:

It might seem silly, but they’ve done lots of things from other countries and never had the directions basically  be, “ make it not disgusting”. 

They might joke about the name ( like the wind torte), but they didn’t mock the country and it’s whole approach to a type of baked good.

it seemed a needlessly mean direction for such a charming and low key show.

The thing that made me most mad was that they sent the bakers in a "sweet" direction by insisting that the pie have no crust, which cut out most of the fruit and nut pies that Americans make. It was like "make our uneducated idea of an American pie and try not to make it disgusting!" 

Okay, I'm sure I'll be back to being pleased with the show next week!

Edited July 15, 2018 by Mystery

[Ceindreadh]

I loved the look on Ryan's face when they were doing the preamble to the star baker announcement and he realised they were talking about him! 

[Fireball]

6 hours ago, Eliza422 said:

Interesting, isn’t it. 

 

It might seem silly, but they’ve done lots of things from other countries and never had the directions basically  be, “ make it not disgusting”. 

They might joke about the name ( like the wind torte), but they didn’t mock the country and it’s whole approach to a type of baked good.

it seemed a needlessly mean direction for such a charming and low key show.

This^^^ I don't care that Paul thinks American food is gross/disgusting. But the show / Paul has never shown such distain for other countries foods and have the directions be Make It Not Disgusting!  Oh and then they don't even make a actual American Pie.

[jcbrown]

I thought the cut to the sheep when they were talking about lamb was funny. Like the sheep was disapproving of the whole conversation. Maybe just me.

[rhys]

Bunch of spotted dicks I dare say (said with my most British accent).

I watch G Ramsay's show Hell's Kitchen & beef Wellington is always on the menu. I don't understand why some posters above think it's disgusting. It looks & sounds scrummy to me. What is the objection? 

[Rinaldo]

1 hour ago, Ceindreadh said:

I loved the look on Ryan's face when they were doing the preamble to the star baker announcement and he realised they were talking about him! 

It's kind of fascinating -- I've watched the scene several times. It's as if, having done so badly on the Technical, he was braced for possibly being eliminated, and instead being awarded Star Baker was almost too much to process so quickly. He sort of got "the bends" from the total reversal of status, and was left too dazed to respond much.

[Irlandesa]

On 7/14/2018 at 10:05 AM, Rickster said:

Believe it or not, some of us Americans hate peanut butter desserts, too.

Sure.  And I hate pumpkin. And I don't particularly care for pecan pie unless it's in a really small cookie form with a crust that kind of cuts the sweetness (but then that's considered a cookie.) 

So I'm actually fine with Paul hating an ingredient, like peanut butter.  Or preferring not having too much alcohol in his dessert while Mary likes a kick. Or even preferring things that aren't too sweet.  That's a taste preference.

What irritated me about this episode, that I had heard about when it originally aired but seeing some of the details actually made it worse, was that it was this grand sweeping idea of hating "American Pies" when there is so much variety in what an American pie can be. And then they went ahead and put really restrictive rules on it-limiting the kind of American pie that could be made-as if they were universal rules to American pie.  Here it was no top crust.  Must be served outside of a tin, I guess. So no fruit.  And a sweeter, harder crust.

On 7/14/2018 at 10:52 AM, notcreative enough said:

I'm surprised that no one did an apple pie. But since no one did a top crust maybe that's why. Was it like an unspoken rule or something. 

That's another thing I'm wondering.  Were they told to focus on ingredients that you might normally find are only used in American desserts which is why there was so much pumpkin and peanut butter or the banana cream/key lime type concoctions?  (I'm surprised no one decorated theirs with a nice meringue on top.) And since things like apples, strawberries and raspberries are used elsewhere---

On 7/14/2018 at 11:46 AM, Kohola3 said:

It is annoying as hell that they raved about this as the "best dessert of all time" when it wasn't even made with the correct ingredients!

That's one of the things I don't mind about the show.  They will get comments if the name of the dessert doesn't match what is exactly presented but, as long as it follows the rules in general, if it tastes amazing--it tastes amazing.  Although I'm not sure how much I'd like the chocolate Ryan added to that.  I know people do like chocolate and citrus mixed but I'm not usually one of them.

On 7/14/2018 at 12:40 PM, meep.meep said:

Was this filmed before or after Mr. Hollywood had his extra-marital adventure in the US?

Before.  Their affair was in spring of 2013 with the show they filmed airing a few months later. This was filmed and aired in 2012.

23 hours ago, Mabinogia said:

I'm American and I really couldn't possibly care less that they were ragging on American Pies. They are too sweet for the British palate, generally. Big whoop? There's plenty of stuff they make we wouldn't like. This is a British baking show and they, as seen by the other two challenges, tend to have savory pies, so yeah, compared to a Wellington, apple pie is going to be considered pretty sweet. I did find it interesting that they weren't top crusted pies though, but that's fine since most of the pies they made don't really need top crusts.

I think it's jarring because they don't tend to make negative sweeping generalizations about--French patisserie for example.  So to see them ragging on a country's type of pie was odd.

And then they restricted the kind of pie that could be made by saying it couldn't have a top crust.  So no fruit pies or applies pies--all of whose sweetness can be adjusted.

14 hours ago, GaT said:

Reading this thread is very interesting, you don't usually see this much "anger" in one of the threads for this show. I guess Americans are protective of our pies LOL

 

Yes.  Of our "legit" pies.

13 hours ago, GoldaVining said:

I prefer a tart pie myself, but I usually make rhubarb or blackberry pies, so there is little chance of them turning out too sweet anyway.

 

I love rhubarb pies because I like a tart pie as well--and I have had them be too sweet because of how much sugar got added to temper the tartness.  But rhubarb and blackberry are great examples of pies that only end up being too sweet if that's how the baker chooses to make them. 

I think another thing about American pies is that so many of them, fruit pies especially, are created with the idea that some sort of fat could (IMO--should) be added to the plate in terms of ice cream or whipped cream.

Edited July 15, 2018 by Irlandesa

[springbarb]

It's funny, because I have a huge sweet tooth, and I'm not overly fond of pie for dessert because...it's not sweet enough for me. At least, fruit pies I generally find not terribly sweet and, of course, those were eliminated by the bizarre "no top crust" rule. I was very excited by Cathryn's pie description: "Chocolate..." Great! "And peanut butter..." Yay! "And pumpkin." Record scratch. Ew. No. Of course that was awful!

[Mabinogia]

1 hour ago, Rinaldo said:

It's kind of fascinating -- I've watched the scene several times. It's as if, having done so badly on the Technical, he was braced for possibly being eliminated, and instead being awarded Star Baker was almost too much to process so quickly. He sort of got "the bends" from the total reversal of status, and was left too dazed to respond much.

I think for a moment he was trying to figure out if they said Star Baker or who was leaving, like maybe he was wrong about what they said and they were kicking him off. But no, he got Star Baker. lol I love how very happy he was when he caught up. Even if he doesn't win, that is a huge win for him. He made a pie so good it made them completely overlook his last place technical challenge placing. That is a HUGE complement. Good on him! And still, I want that pie!!!!!

[Athena]

1 hour ago, Irlandesa said:

Although I'm not sure how much I'd like the chocolate Ryan added to that.  I know people do like chocolate and citrus mixed but I'm not usually one of them.

I think it was only a little bit of chocolate and more of a decor to taste. Here is the recipe.

 

1 hour ago, Irlandesa said:

I love rhubarb pies because I like a tart pie as well--and I have had them be too sweet because of how much sugar got added to temper the tartness.  But rhubarb and blackberry are great examples of pies that only end up being too sweet if that's how the baker chooses to make them. 

I love rhubarb as well. Brits like it a lot too and I made a rhubarb recently for my English partner. He said that he did remember his own mum making rhubarb crumples/crisps growing up. 

[Kohola3]

1 hour ago, Irlandesa said:

I know people do like chocolate and citrus mixed but I'm not usually one of them.

Dark chocolate and orange is great.  Other than that, I don't see any other citrus going with chocolate.  And while they mentioned it in the show, his recipe doesn't call for any.

I truly like Ryan and his daughter is beyond adorable but he's so inconsistent that i can't see him lasting much longer.

[Irlandesa]

3 minutes ago, Athena said:

Did he add chocolate really? The recipe for it doesn't have it.

This recipe for it was posted upthread and mentions it as part of the decoration. So easy to take off but still kind of unusual.

[Athena]

3 minutes ago, Kohola3 said:

Dark chocolate and orange is great.  Other than that, I don't see any other citrus going with chocolate.  And while they mentioned it in the show, his recipe doesn't call for any.

When replying to a post above, I did a search and there are two lime pie recipes associated with GBBO. One is from the companion book but the archived one below and my amended post is the original Ryan one.

 

1 minute ago, Irlandesa said:

This recipe for it was posted upthread and mentions it as part of the decoration. So easy to take off but still kind of unusual.

I edited my post as you were posting this. 1 tsp is not a lot and more used as garnished. I'm sure it's fine without it if that is your taste. Not really unusual as I do find chocolate bars with citrus often at gourmet stores.

I love chocolate always so I'd use it.

[Irlandesa]

1 minute ago, Athena said:

Not really unusual as I do find chocolate bars with citrus often at gourmet stores.

I find it too--although, fruit and chocolate isn't usually to my taste, although I do make some exceptions.  (Cherries and chocolate cake, raspberries and chocolate.)  Although I shouldn't have said unusual since citrus and chocolate can go together--although I don't see lime paired with chocolate as often.

[Toothbrush]

22 hours ago, bugsmum said:

  I have put To Say Nothing of the Dog on reserve at the library, so thank you Rinaldo.  

I bought it for my Kindle, so my thanks to @Rinaldo as well. 

[Rinaldo]

Gosh, now two people have ordered To Say Nothing of the Dog based on a quick mention by me, so I hope you all like it!

[mlp]

Quote

Gosh, now two people have ordered To Say Nothing of the Dog based on a quick mention by me, so I hope you all like it!

One more here.  I put it on hold at my library and will pick it up tomorrow.  I'm a British history buff so I'm looking forward to reading it.

[nowornever]

I know their workspaces are small, but one other thing I noticed was Ryan working on the floor at one point. I think he might have had his bowls of batter on the floor in another episode too.  They all sit on the ground to watch things bake- can we not get them some small chairs?  A footstool?  A cushion?  Anything? 

[rhys]

29 minutes ago, nowornever said:

I know their workspaces are small, but one other thing I noticed was Ryan working on the floor at one point. I think he might have had his bowls of batter on the floor in another episode too.  They all sit on the ground to watch things bake- can we not get them some small chairs?  A footstool?  A cushion?  Anything? 

I think you meant to ask for a tuffet.

[Mittengirl]

My favorite fruit pie is Dutch Apple, so no top crust.  I hoped someone would make one, assuming it would count as American, until I saw the tart pans.  Do they not use “regular” pie pans in the UK?

[Ceindreadh]

9 hours ago, Mabinogia said:

I think for a moment he was trying to figure out if they said Star Baker or who was leaving, like maybe he was wrong about what they said and they were kicking him off. But no, he got Star Baker. lol I love how very happy he was when he caught up. Even if he doesn't win, that is a huge win for him. He made a pie so good it made them completely overlook his last place technical challenge placing. That is a HUGE complement. Good on him! And still, I want that pie!!!!!

 

And he was having problems with the bake as well, having to redo his pastry and everything.  Amazing how he pulled it off  

 

3 hours ago, nowornever said:

I know their workspaces are small, but one other thing I noticed was Ryan working on the floor at one point. I think he might have had his bowls of batter on the floor in another episode too.  They all sit on the ground to watch things bake- can we not get them some small chairs?  A footstool?  A cushion?  Anything? 

I think Ryan was just in such a rush he didn’t have time to move back to the counter. 

[sum]

11 hours ago, Athena said:

When replying to a post above, I did a search and there are two lime pie recipes associated with GBBO. One is from the companion book but the archived one below and my amended post is the original Ryan one.

I edited my post as you were posting this. 1 tsp is not a lot and more used as garnished. I'm sure it's fine without it if that is your taste. Not really unusual as I do find chocolate bars with citrus often at gourmet stores.

I love chocolate always so I'd use it.

Yes and funnily enough Ryan's quite clear that you should follow the recipe from the book, not the BBC website version. People who used the BBC recipe all say theirs were delightful though.

Regarding Hollywood's attitude on American pies, I see how he was unfair or plainly wrong on some points. If I play devil's advocate, as said above, this was made many many years ago, when the show was still on a smaller channel, before becoming the ratings juggernaut, a cultural phenomenon. And he seemed to feel free to be unnecessarily flippant. I also agree that after a couple of stints as a judge on the US version plus traveling around the world for a few bake-themed shows he's gotten more open-minded or just wiser with age. (Incidentally the occasional 'never heard of [some foreign ingredients]' act, presumably for the audience, can be a bit jarring.)

[ShelleySue]

On July 15, 2018 at 12:15 AM, justmehere said:

Just had a chance to watch this episode, and I'm with everyone here in being upset about their take on American pies, especially when they then rather showed their ignorance of them. Restricting it to no top crusts, making tarts rather than pies, all the insults -- sheesh. Agree that they probably didn't think it would never be shown here.

 

I agree with everyone's comments.  Geesh.  Feel free insulting out government, but leave our pies alone!  I was imagining what they would say if they ate my family's favorite, Toll House Pie.

Did anyone wonder how bad Katherine's peanut butter pie was?  Was it just because they aren't familiar with candy like Reese's peanut butter cups or what it really that bad?

[dubbel zout]

18 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

On 7/14/2018 at 11:52 AM, notcreative enough said:

I'm surprised that no one did an apple pie. But since no one did a top crust maybe that's why. Was it like an unspoken rule or something. 

That's another thing I'm wondering.  Were they told to focus on ingredients that you might normally find are only used in American desserts which is why there was so much pumpkin and peanut butter or the banana cream/key lime type concoctions?  (I'm surprised no one decorated theirs with a nice meringue on top.) And since things like apples, strawberries and raspberries are used elsewhere---

It's likely no one did a fruit pie because of the time limit. They can take at least an hour to bake, and then they need two to three hours to cool and set properly. I think this bake was three hours? That's not enough time, especially if you're making an apple pie and have to core, peel, and slice the fruit. None of that is difficult, but it is time-consuming.

27 minutes ago, ShelleySue said:

Did anyone wonder how bad Katherine's peanut butter pie was?  Was it just because they aren't familiar with candy like Reese's peanut butter cups or what it really that bad?

IT HAD PUMPKIN IN IT. Sorry to yell, but you don't add squash to a peanut butter and chocolate pie.

[backgroundnoise]

Well, if, after last week, the worst thing England, er, sorry, Great Britain, thinks of us is that our pies are too sweet, I'll take it!

Speaking of sweet eats, I've often wondered exactly what those meringue desserts like the Spanish wind-torte(sp?) taste like.  Is all that meringue layered with creme not sweet?  It sounds like eating a bag of marshmallows dipped in icing.  Small voice:  Which doesn't sound that bad to me on occasion, hee.

Edited July 16, 2018 by backgroundnoise

[sempervivum]

On ‎7‎/‎14‎/‎2018 at 10:30 AM, dahling said:

And I can't even with the slimy eels pulled from the polluted Thames baked up in a pie. 

I think the voiceover in this piece specifically mentioned that eels are no longer obtainable/resident in the Thames. 

The whole 'disgustingly sweet American pies' stuff is hilarious, given the array of dental hideousity that identifies each and every British reality show I've watched. Yes, Paul and Mary's teeth are fine (although I always wince to see Mary's sideways gnawing on food, apparently she doesn't trust her dentures), but the blonde host has a mouthful of snaggled and discolored teeth. The UK doesn't have a reputation as a dental hell because of their restrained sugar consumption.