Nectarine Vanilla Pie

My sister recently told me about a nectarine pie she bought at our favorite local produce stand. I realized that, though I've baked with nectarines many times, I've never baked, nor had, a nectarine pie!  It was time to rectify that. It had to be just like making a peach pie, right? Off to my kitchen I went!  My favorite peach pie has a touch of almond extract in it, I think that really brings out the flavor of the peaches. I wanted to do something a little different with the nectarines so I decided vanilla would be the flavoring of choice.  The pie was so very yummy! We had a slice after dinner and I shared with my next-door neighbors. We also enjoyed a piece for breakfast the next day. My justification for this is it can't be any more calories than a few pieces of toast and jam. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

 

 

As I've mentioned before, I keep a jar of vanilla sugar on my countertop.  Whenever I use a vanilla bean I throw the scraped bean in my jar.  I add sugar when it gets low. The vanilla infuses the sugar with the most luscious flavor.  And it smells heavenly, too.  Sometimes I'll walk by and lift the lid just so I can smell it! I use this vanilla sugar all the time; in baking and homemade whipped cream. If you don't have vanilla sugar you can easily make enough for this recipe.  In a food processor, combine the 2/3 cup sugar with 1/2 vanilla bean, which has been cut crosswise in three or four pieces. Blend until the vanilla bean is finely minced.  Sift the vanilla sugar mixture over a bowl, discarding any large chunks of bean.

Nectarine Vanilla Pie

Pie dough disks for 2-crust pie (homemade or from the deli section)
2/3 cup vanilla sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 1/2 to 4 pounds firm, but ripe nectarines, pitted and sliced (about 10 cups)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine vanilla sugar and flour.  Add the nectarines and toss gently to coat. Let sit 5 minutes, stirring occasionally (this helps get the juices flowing!)

Roll out 1 pie crust disk on floured surface and transfer to a 9-inch pie pan. Trim dough overhang to 1/2 inch. Spoon nectarine mixture into crust; dot with butter. Roll out second pie crust disk on floured surface to a 12-inch round.  Drape over fruit mixture, trim overhang to 1 1/2 inches. Fold top and bottom edges under, pressing together to seal.  Crimp edges decoratively and cut small slits in the crust for steam to escape (or make a lattice or other decorative crust). If desired, brush crust lightly with whipping cream and sprinkle with sugar. Place pie on rimmed aluminum foil-lined baking sheet (trust me on this, you don't want it overflowing on your oven floor!) Bake until crust is golden, nectarines are tender, and juices bubble thickly, about 1 hour. Transfer pie to rack and cool until lukewarm.  Of course, it's best when served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!