Peach Pie with a coconut almond crunch topping

 

February's second pie race winner requested a peach pie.  I read conflicting reports on peaches in February.  One authority told me that frozen peaches are the way to go, that the time between harvest and freezing is so short that you're better off than you are with fresh, sometimes.  The produce manager at my grocery store tells me that whenever you freeze something juicy, like a peach, the cell walls of the fruit burst during the freeze and thaw, and you wind up with a more mushy pie than you want.  I ignored recipes that called for canned peaches, 'cause that just sounded nasty.  I found some fresh peaches from imported from Chile, ripened them for a day in a closed paper bag in sunlight, and juiced them a little longer than normal, because I'd have preferred to use ripe peaches in season.  But it turned out awfully good, anyway.  This is a pie best eaten warm, IMO.  And don't over mix the crumb topping - it gets powdery, which is never good.

I took Ken Haedrich's All Peach Pie with Coconut Almond Crumb Topping recipe and messed with the quantities very slightly, and used fresh instead of canned peaches.

Ingredients

Extra Flaky Crust (credit to Ken Haedrich from his book Pie)
1 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cake flour
1 tbs sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter
5 tbs cold Crisco
1/4 cup cold water

Filling
5 cups peeled, pitted and sliced ripe peaches
1 1/2 tabs fresh lemon juice
finely grated zest of one lemon
1/3 cup plus 3 tbs sugar
2 tbs cornstarch
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

Coconut Almond Topping
1 cup all purpose flour
2/3 cups sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
1 tbs milk

Prepare pastry and refrigerate for 1 hour.

On a sheet of lightly floured waxed paper, roll the larger portion of the pastry into a 13 inch circle.  Invert pastry over a 9 1/2 inch deep dish pie pan, center, and peel off the paper.  Gently tuck the pastry into the pan, without stretching it, and sculpt the overhang into an upstanding ridge.  Place in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Combine peaches, lemon juice, lemon zest, and 1/3 cup of the sugar in a large bowl and toss well to mix.  Set aside for 10 minutes to juice.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch with the remaining 3 tbs sugar.  Sprinkle this mixture over the fruit and mix well.  Stir in the vanilla and nutmeg.  Turn the filling into the chilled pie shell and smooth the filling with your hands to even it out.  Place the pie on the center oven rack and bake for 35 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the topping.  Combine the flour, sugar, salt, almonds and coconut in a food processor and pulse several times to mix.  Do not over mix.  Scatter the butter over the top and pulse until the mixture resembles fine crumbs.  Add the milk and process again until the crumbs are gravelly.  Transfer to a large bowl and rub gently between your fingers to make the crumbs uniform in texture.  REgrigerate until ready to use.

Remove the pie from the oven and reduce the temperature to 375 degrees.  Carefully dump the crumbs in the center of the pie and spread them evenly with your hands.  Press on the crumbs gently to compact them.  Return the pie to the oven, placing it so that the part that faced the back of the oven now faces forward.  Just in case, slide a large aluminum foil lined baking sheet onto the rack below to catch any spills.  Bake until the juices bubble thickly around the edge, about 30 minutes.

Transfer the pie to a wire rack and let cool for at least 1 hour.