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I would imagine that some or many of you have attempted a flakey pie crust at one time or another and have experienced the same level of frustration that I have.

I wish that I could tell you that I had some kind of rosetta stone or magical trick that will make the pie crust process painless for you. Unfortunately the reality is that frustration will likely be the essential hoop through which you will have to jump in order to get to your goal. Your dough will be hard to work with. It will tear. Your fruit fillings will bubble out of the crust in ways you don't want.

The best I can do is ask you to believe me that over time, the process will get easier and less stressful. Try to minimize your frustration and anger with yourself. I know that it's dissapointing when you work hard on something to have it come out badly. Just remember that often, even if a pie doesn't look as pretty as you may wish, it will still taste delicious. The more you do it, the more you will learn from your mistakes and figure out the method that works best for you. After a number of different trials, this is the method so far that seems to be the least painless for me.

• 2 ¼ cups all purpose flour
• ¾ cups pastry flour
• 1 ¼ teaspoons salt
• 2 ½ tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup vegetable shortening
• 14 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter
• 6 to 8 tablespoons ice cold water

If you cannot find pastry flour, you can make the dough with 3 cups of all purpose flour. The addition of the pastry flour does however lend a nicely flakey texture to the crust. Start by sifting your flour into a large sized bowl. Add the sugar and salt and stir until combined.

Next, add the shortening to the flour, cutting it into the flour with the use of a hand held pastry blender. Mix the flour, cutting the shortening into smaller pieces until it is thoroughly incorporated and the flour is of somewhat consistent size and texture. Once the shortening has been thoroughly mixed, the butter is added. I hae found the best method to be grating the butter with a box cheese grater. Be extremely careful as the butter will make it easy for your fingers to slip and cut yourself. Add the butter to the flour mixture and (as with the shortening) cut the butter into the flour using the pastry blender. Mix until the butter is well incorporated into the flour. You want to make sure there aren't any large pockets of butter. Mix until the flour has the appearance of very coarse crumbs. Be careful not to work the flour too aggresively - or the heat from the friction could melt the butter.

Now start with six tablespoons of ice water. Pour it into the mixture and by hand, work the flour until a dough starts to form. If the dough does not form completely, add some of the remaining two tablespoons of water until it does. Once your dough is formed, seperate it into two seperate pieces. Shape each piece into a flat disc and wrap each in plastic wrap. Place them in the fridge. They will need to be refrigerated for at least an hour or two. You can also store them until the next day but keep in mind that if you do this, you may need to let them sit out for a little while so you can work with them.

When you are ready to assemble your pie, work with one disc of dough and leave the other in the fridge. It is important that your dough is cold as you are working with it. As the process unfolds, if your dough starts to feel soft and sticky and hard to work with, try putting it in the fridge for a little while to bring the temperature back down.

It helps to know what size you will need your dough to be in order to fit properly into your pan. Measure your pan with a flexible measuring tape. Start at the edge of your pan, measure down the side, across the bottom and up to the other side. This number will represent the diameter which the dough will need to be in order to cover the pie pan completely. In order for the dough to drape properly, the dough will need to be rolled out two inches past this number. For example, if you have a standard nine inch pie pan, the ideal size for your crust will be a circle with a diameter of 12 inches. Using cardboard, you can cut out a form to cut around. Roll the dough out larger than your cardboard form, and then with a sharp knife, cut around the edge.

If the dough is cool and smooth enough, you should be able to slip one hand underneath the dough and lift it into your pie pan. If not, use this method; dust the dough liberally with flour and carefully fold it in half. Dust the dough a second time with flour and again fold it in half. Carefully transfer the dough to the pan and then unfold it in reverse.

The second portion of dough will end up being the top crust of your pie. Roll it out to the same size and after you have added your filling, carefully place it on top of the pie. Work around the edge of the pie, working the top and bottom crusts together to form a seal. You can also go around the pie, pressing the edge of the crust down with the tines of a fork to help create a better seal. With some experience you will get more creative about how you shape your crust. Don't get too discouraged if your seal isn't perfect and some of the filling leaks down the sides of your pie. You aren't working a professional pastry shop so there's no need to put that kind of pressure on yourself. In the end, when it tastes delicious you will be able to find it possible to forgive yourself.

You will need to cut some slits in the top of the crust to allow escape routes for steam. Again, you can make this step as simple or as artistic as you like. This is the basic pie crust process. Follow on down for specific fruit pie recipes. Again, I strongly encourage you to be parient with yourself and roll with your mistakes. Cooking and baking is something that you should be able to enjoy. Allow that for yourself and don't beat yourself up. If your food tastes great, nothing else should factor in. The more you do this and the more you work, the better the food will look visually. That can improve over time. For now, just focus on how your final product tastes. I wish you the best of luck and I hope you find as much enjoyment in this process as I have. 

• 1 basic pie crust recipe
• 1 pound frozen bluberries
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 4 tablespoons corn starch

1.  Prepare the pie dough as described above.

2.  Measure the blueberries out into a large mixing bowl. Let them sit out for about 30 minutes so that they soften and start to release some fluids.

3.  Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees

4.  To the blueberries, add the sugar, lemon juice, zest, and corn starch. Stir the berries thoroughly so that everything is well mixed. Let the berries sit for another 30 minutes or so.

5.  As described above, start with one portion of dough, leaving the other in the fridge. Roll the dough out to the size needed for your pan and carefully transfer the dough. If at any point, the dough gets too sticky to work with, put it in the fridge to cool it down again.

6.  Pour the berry mixture into the pie, ensuring that as much of what is in the bowl ends up in the pie

7.  Remove the second portion of dough from the fridge and roll it out to the same size as the base layer. Carefully drape the dough over your pan. Working around the edge, roll the two layers of dough together, trying to form as tight a seal as possible. You can also pinch the dough together in such a way as to give the crust a more artistic fluted appearance.

8.  Cut several slits in the crust to allow steam to escape during baking. I would reccomend the use of a pie crust shield to help prevent against burning.  I would also suggest putting a cookie sheet or aluminum foil on the rack beneath your pie pan to catch any juices that bubble up and out during baking.

9.  Bake for about 25 minutes. At this point the crust should be starting to show signs of color and browning. Rotate the pie 180 degrees and reduce the temperature to 375 degrees. Bake for another 30 to 35 minutes. The crust should be a deep golden brown and you want the filling to be bubbling within - this will encourage the starch to act more effectively as a thickener.

10.  Allow the pie to cool completely to room temperature. At this point, I reccomend putting the pie into the fridge and allowing it to cool even further - ieally until the next day. This will further the thickening process and ensure that everything stays together when you serve it up.

Don't get too frustrated when you try to remove slices from the pan. The first slice is always the hardest to get out cleanly. One trick that seems to work is making the cut for two slices before you try and remove one. All that's left is to enjoy!

Peach pie is an excellent summer treat. You can make this pie with frozen fruit, but it is ideal to use fresh fruit at peak growing season. The frozen variety will still be good - but it will require some extra thickener as the fruit has more juices. If you use fresh peaches, you will need to prepare the fruit ahead of time. You will likely need about 7 peaches, more if they are smaller.

Fill a large pot with water and bring it to a rolling boil. Have a large bowl of ice water ready as well. As the water is heating up, cut into the base of each peach with a sharp paring knife, etching an "x" into the skin. Once the water starts boiling, carefully lower the peaches into the pot. Turn them carefully as they simmer in the water until the skin starts to soften and loosen. It shouldn't take much more than a minute. With a slotted spoon, transfer the peaches to the bowl of cold water. Let them sit for a few minutes. At this point the skins should cleanly slide off of the peaches.

• 1 basic pie dough recipe
• 6 to 7 medium sized peaches prepared as stated above - or one pound of frozen, pre-sliced peaches
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• pinch ground cinnamon
• pinch ground nutmeg
• pinch salt
• 6 tablespoons potato starch

1.  Prepare the pie dough as described above.

2.  Measure the peaches out into a large mixing bowl. Let them sit out for about 30 minutes so that they soften and start to release some fluids.

3.  Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees

4.  To the peaches, add the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and corn starch. Stir the fruit thoroughly so that everything is well mixed. Let the peaches sit for another 30 minutes or so.

5.  As described above, start with one portion of dough, leaving the other in the fridge. Roll the dough out to the size needed for your pan and carefully transfer the dough. If at any point, the dough gets too sticky to work with, put it in the fridge to cool it down again.

6.  Pour the fruit mixture into the pie, ensuring that as much of what is in the bowl ends up in the pie

7.  Remove the second portion of dough from the fridge and roll it out to the same size as the base layer. Carefully drape the dough over your pan. Working around the edge, roll the two layers of dough together, trying to form as tight a seal as possible. You can also pinch the dough together in such a way as to give the crust a fluted appearance.

8.  Cut several slits in the crust to allow steam to escape during baking.  Prepare a simple egg wash - start with one egg yolk and thin it out with a small amount of either milk or water.  Brush the crust liberally with the egg wash and sprinkle a generous layer of sugar onto the crust.  I would reccomend the use of a pie crust shield to help prevent against burning.  I would also suggest putting a cookie sheet or aluminum foil on the rack beneath your pie pan to catch any juices that bubble up and out during baking.

9.  Bake for about 25 minutes. At this point the crust should be starting to show signs of color and browning. Rotate the pie 180 degrees and reduce the temperature to 375 degrees. Bake for another 30 to 35 minutes. The crust should be a deep golden brown and you want the filling to be bubbling within - this will encourage the starch to act more effectively as a thickener.

10.  Allow the pie to cool completely to room temperature. At this point, I reccomend putting the pie into the fridge and allowing it to cool even further - ieally until the next day.

1.  Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

2.  The crust will need to be completely baked before you introduce the "filling". Start by putting the pecans into a gallon sized ziplock bag and break them into smaller pieces.

3.  Add the graham crackers to the bag and this time by hand, break up the crackers into smaller pieces. Shake the bag to combine everything. With a heavy rolling pin, work the mixture down to an even finer texture.

4.  Mix the confectioners sugar into the cracker mix, combining thoroughly.  Set aside 2 tablespoons of the butter to be used later.  Cut the remaining six tablespoons and cut into smaller pieces.  This butter will need to be melted - Add it to the crushed crackers and combine, leaving behind no dry patches. The crackers should all be equally saturated with the butter.

5.  Give your pie pan a coating of non-stick spray and add the cracker, pressing it firmly into the bottom and sides of the pan.

6.  Put the pie pan into the oven and bake for about 20 minutes. The crust will be fragrant when it is ready and the edges will be starting to brown. Don't worry if the crust seems soft - it will harden as it cools.

7.  You can turn your oven off at this point. While the crust is cooling you can start to prepare the filling. This step is a bit tricky and you may need to try it a few times before you are comfortable with the process. It is similar to making a roux. In a saucepan, combine the milk with the sugar, potato starch and salt. In a seperate small bowl, whisk the egg yolks until they are broken and smooth, then add it to the milk mixture. Stir everything with a whisk until it is all thoroughly incorporated.

8.  Turn the heat on the burner up to medium. The milk will need to be gently heated up to a rolling boil. Once the milk is properly heated, the starch will start to bond and the milk will thicken. As the milk is heating, you will need to be stirring it regularly. As the heat of the milk rises, you will eventually need to be stirring it constantly to keep it from burning. Do not leave the milk alone on the stovetop. Once the mixture starts to heat up, the thickening process will move along very quickly. Once the milk starts to bubble, leave it on the heat for a minute, stirring constantly. After a minute remove it from the heat. Add the vanilla extract along with the two tablespoons of unsalted butter. Stir until incorporated.

9.  Pour the filling into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. This will allow it to cool down without drying out. Let the filling cool for about an hour. Periodically, remove the plastic wrap and stir the filling.

10.  Bring your oven back up to 350 degrees

11.  After your custard is ready, cut the bananas into slices. Place them in a layer on the graham crust. Then pour the filling over the bananas, spreading it to make sure everything is covered as much as possible. Bake the pie for another 12 minutes. When you remove it from the oven, a skin should have formed on the surface and the filling will jiggle when shaken slightly.

12.  Cool the pie on a wire cooling rack until it is at room temperature. Then place the pie in the fridge and leave it for at least a few hours, ideally until the next day.  For the whipped cream, combine 1 cup of heavy whipping cream, 2 tablespoons of vanilla extract and 2 tablespoons of confectioner's sugar.  Combine the three in a chilled bowl of an electric mixer.  Turn the speed up to high and whip the cream until it is light and fluffy, forming stiff peaks.  Spread the whipped cream evenly over the pie.  Sprinkle grated semi-sweet chocolate onto the whipped cream.  De-pan the slices carefully as the crust will break apart easily.  Enjoy!