One of the things I love about the holidays is the desserts, especially the pies.  As good as they are, though, they can be very expensive at the store.  You can, however,  make your own pies at home, have fun making them,  and save  of money at the same time.  I have found most stores pies to be anywhere from $6-$10, and most of the time they don’t taste nearly as good as homemade.  Pie crust really is not as hard to make as you may think.  One tip is to make sure everything you are going to use is chilled well before using, your pan, your pastry cutter, etc.  Here is an easy money saving recipe for the crust as well as a few pie recipes for you to enjoy this holiday season that should fit into just about any budget.

Homemade Pie Crust

2 cups flour, sifted ($0.34)

1 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup butter or shortening  ($1.10. ) ( I used butter)

5-7 tablespoons cold water

Put flour into mixing bowl with butter or shortening.  Using a pastry cutter, cut butter or shortening into the flour.   Add salt and water and mix until dough is formed.  Roll out on flat surface.  Place in pie pan and fluke the edges.  This is a great video to explain how to do the fluking. Bake at 375 degrees until brown or bake after adding filling.

Note: I made mine in my Kitchen Aid Mixer.

 Total Cost of Crust: $1.44

Pinto Bean Pie

This pie may not sound very good, but it taste so much like pecan pie and you can make it for so much cheaper.  Consider serving this at your holiday dinners.  Some people love it. You might not want to tell them the name of this pie until after you serve it.

 Ingredients

1 cup pinto beans, drained and mashed ($0.59) (I mashed my beans in my food processor)

1 cup dark corn syrup  ($1.12) (I used light corn syrup)

1 cup white sugar ($0.15)

1 tablespoon cornstarch  ($0.05)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract ($0.05)

3 eggs, beaten ($0.30)

1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust ($1.44)

 Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  In a large bowl, combine beans, corn syrup , sugar, cornstarch, and vanilla.  Beat in the eggs and pour mixture into the pie crust.  Bake in the preheat oven for 25 minutes,  and then lower the oven to 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean.

Note: I like to serve this with a dollop of whip topping.

Total Cost of Pinto Bean Pie : $3.70

Mock Apple Pie

This pie has no apples in it but taste just like an apple pie.  A lot of science classes use this recipe to understand the reaction that makes this have an apple like texture.

 Ingredients

Pie Filling

2 cups water

1 cup white sugar ($0.15)

2 teaspoons cream of tarter ($0.30)

30 buttery round crackers ($2.39 for a box and will be enough for topping too)

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon ($0.05)

1 tablespoon lemon juice ($.10)

 Topping

1 cup crushed buttery round crackers (see above)

½ cup packed brown sugar ($0.40)

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon ($0.05)

1/3 cup butter, melted ($0.55)

1 (9 inch) pie crust ($1.44)

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  In a saucepan over medium high heat, combine the water, sugar, and cream of tarter; bring to a boil.  Drop in whole crackers and boil for 5 minutes.  Pour mixture into pie crust; sprinkle with cinnamon and lemon juice.  Mix together the topping ingredients and sprinkle over the filling.  Bake for 15 minutes and reduce heat to 375 degrees and continue to bake for 15 to 20 minutes longer. Serve warm.

 Total Cost of Mock Apple Pie: $5.43