strawberry pie from strawberries and gelatin leaves!

Having an American recipe for strawberry pie calling for (strawberry) Jell-O which they do not have here, I´m posting this if it helps anyone. There´s lots of online recipes and variations of the American strawberry pie with Jell-O, so go to any of those recipes for an idea of what the easy way is:).

Today is one of our daughters is having a birthday, and in a few hours we´re having a family party with all of us, as it´s summer vacation here in Norway and many from Oslo are here too. Saturday we´re having a kids party with the barnehage. So if I´m this again, I will remember! sigh,).

1. I had about 5 pints of local Norwegian strawberries. Half I´d frozen quickly, leaves on, so had to soak them in cold water a few minutes, taking a sharp apple carving knife to get off the leaves, stems, and a bit of grass. The fresh ones, I washed and cleaned as usual. Strawberries done.

2. I had both powdered gelatin and gelatin leaves, but as I´ve actually used the gelatin leaves in other recipes (my sour cream panna cotta, below somewhere), I decided I had enough to figure out! I soaked TWO plates of gelatin in cold water, for about half an hour.

3. Meanwhile, I made a pie crust. It´s so hot today, we don´t have AC here as usually it never gets 85F! The kitchen was hot even before I turned on the oven, so this step took a while. In between every step, I had to chill. I chilled the butter, then cut it. Chilled the butter and flour, then cut in the butter, chilled again. Finished the recipe, chilled again, rolled out, put in pan, chilled again, then finally fluted the edges prettily. The recipe I used is Martha Stewart pate brisee, but made with fresh juice of an orange and a little water for the liquid. I also added a little salt, and a bit more sugar, Tate and Lyles superfine sugar, as I wanted the crust a wee bit more sweet for the strawberry pie.

4. I´ve been chilling the crust, and will bake in a minute, once I figure out what C degree, as the recipe calls for F. So, once I convert the temperature to my oven, I´ll know which gasmark to use.

(just follow what suits what you have).

The chill the pie crust til it is cold! I know some recipes say just use it hot, and pour in the boiling liquid, but I don´t have time for that!

5. Meanwhile, on another burner, into a large pan, I put in some of the frozen partially thawed strawberries, the water from the gelatin bowl (about 2 cups) and a bit more (eyed it), some sugar mixed with corn starch. Again eyed everything, from how many berries and the size pie crust I´m making. For this pan ( I decided to make one large rectangular pan, rather than two actual round pies as it´s easier to carry), I used about 1 1/2 cups regular white sugar not superfine, and 3 TBS (yes, tablespoons) corn starch. Before adding, I sifted them together. I brought this to a boil, stirring constantly with a flat whisk, then boiled for 3-4 minutes, stirring. Took off the heat, let the boiling stop, but then added the soaked, softened gelatin leaves, while the liquid was still hot (do NOT boil gelatin leaves), and mixed til the gelatin melted into the liquid. Then I stirred a bit more to make sure the gelatin was completely incorporated, then poured this over all the strawberries, both partially-frozen and fresh, which were in a large bowl.

Set this aside to cool. Again, many recipes call for all the boiling hot liquid to be poured directly into the pie crust, but I don´t have time for this, and my crust was not cooked and cooled yet.

6. Bake crust for about 8 minutes til lightly browned, and not raw. Let cool.

7. Pour the strawberry mixture carefully into the cooked, cooled crust.

I used a rectangular pan, instead of 2 round pie tins.

8. Chill til cold.

9.Meanwhile, whip some fresh cream til the right consistency, or use clotted cream, with a tiny bit of sugar. Set aside to cool. Then when the pie is cold, top with the whipped cream or clotted cream. Italian mascarpone works well too, as not everyone likes whipped cream.

10. Chill til the party.

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To flute the edges.

1. Cut the pie crust about half an inch more than the pan. Chill. Then take it between your left thumb, and your right thumb and right forefinger, all around, to make pointed fluted edge. I have long fingernails, so I had to be careful not to tear the crust as I went round. Chill again, then fix any bits you need to fix. Chill.

YES, this did take a while, but strawberry pie seems perfect for a birthday when it´s so hot. The idea of making a cake, when it´s 85F out and in, wasn´t fun or appealing. And luckily the birthday girl is very excited to have a pie rather than a cake, and a STRAWBERRY pie. :)

Pie isn´t done much here. I may have started a new tradition. I hope the Norwegian family like the American pie. The Thanksgiving pumpkin pie wasn´t such a winner....but my lemon meringue pie is a huge favourite.

Happy birthday to all those having a birthday today!