Sugar Butter Flour by Daniel Gercke, Sheri Castle and Evan Sung
Published by Pam Krauss Books/Avery ISBN 9780735216334
Hardcover, $25, 160 pages
A few months ago I had the great joy to see Jessie Mueller in the Broadway musical Waitress, based on the movie of the same name written by Adrienne Shelly. It tells the story of Jenna Hunterson, an unhappily married waitress in a small town with an amazing ability to create delicious pies based on what she is feeling at the moment.
It is a teriffic show, filled with wonderful songs by singer Sara Barielles, with a good book and a great ensemble. As I was watching the show, I was thinking, wow, these pies sound so great, I'd love to be able to make them myself. (They sell mini pies in a small jar at the theater.)
Cue the new cookbook from Pam Krauss Books/Avery- Sugar Butter Flour- The Waitress Pie Book. The book is credited to the character Jenna Hunterson, but the recipes are actually by Sheri Castle, with the text by Daniel Gercke and photographs by Evan Sung.
The book begins with Jenna's Rules for Baking (and Life), with helpful tips for those of us to whom pie crusts are a puzzle (guilty). Then we get right into the pies, starting with Fruit Pies like Sweet Victory Pie (a cherry pie), Banish the Glum Plum Galettes, and Big Guy Strawberry Pie, topped with a basil whipped cream.
The photos are gorgeous, and I like the layout. It begins with an explanation, then lists the ingredients in bold in the middle of the page, making it easy for you to write your grocery list from this. The instructions follow, along with tips and a color photo of each pie.
The Savory Pie section has some fabulous pies, like Betrayed by My Eggs Pie (chorizo, eggs and butter), My Husband's a Jerk Chicken Potpie (chicken with peppers and onions- my husband will love this one) and Old Joe's Horny Past Pie (a traditional Southern tomato pie).
The Chocolate and Nut Pies section has the most creative-named pies- I Wanna Play Doctor With My Gynocologist Chocolate Mousse Pie, and I Can't Have An Affair Because It's Wrong (and I Don't Want Earl To Kill Me) Marbled Chocolate Cheesecake Pie- among them.
The last section is titled Lulus: Blue-Ribbon Winners. Lulus are are showstopper pies, and here you'll find Deep-Dish Blueberry-Bacon Pie (described as a "perfect diner breakfast all cozied up in a slice of pie"), Mermaid Mashmallow Pie (like an ambrosia salad in a pie) and Thanks For Taking Me To The Moon Peanut Butter MoonPie Pie (peanut butter cream topped with marshmallow whipped cream and MoonPies).
If you are a pie baker or you want to be, Sugar Butter Flour is a book you will want to have on your shelf. I'm pretty sure my brand spanking-new copy will soon be covered in sugar, flour and butter very soon as I attempt to make my husband these luscious dessert treats. And if you are a fan of the film or Broadway show Waitress or know someone who is, this is a must-have.
The website for Broadway's Waitress is here.
Oh my gosh, I love this movie. I would love to see it on stage. I will definitely have to check out this book! I'm so jealous you bought a house on the gulf! Our favorite place is Pensacola Beach. I would be thrilled to live there someday!
ReplyDeleteYour descriptions of the pies are very appealing. Now, I hope you'll follow up and tell us whether the recipes really work when you try to actually follow them.
ReplyDeletebest... mae at maefood.blogspot.com
This sounds like too much fun to be a serious cookbook, but I want to try some of those lulus myself.
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