Pam Blom was trained as an architect but learned the art
of baking from her grandmother. Photos by Tim Stepien
the Lake Worth Farmers Market and Andy's Juice Bar.
By Jan Norris
Being an architect and baking pies are a lot alike, Pam Blom says. “You have to think about the same things: structure and ratios of ingredients to create a good filling. Then you create the crust to hold up to the filling, and crimp the crust just so. You’re building a pie.”
Blom is an architect specializing in historic preservation who was affected by the economic downturn. “When the economy went south, I was wondering what to do. I thought, the other thing I know how to do well is bake pies. So, here I am.”
She opened Pamela’s Pies in Lantana, where she shares space with baking entrepreneur Cakes by Lara. She sells pies at the bakery, the Lake Worth Farmers Market on Saturdays and at Andy’s Juice Bar in Lake Worth.
Baker Pam Blom
It’s a handed-down skill. “I learned to make pies from my grandmother, Hattie Mae. She would come to visit from Arkansas at the holidays and would always bake pies. She didn’t measure; I had to sit down with her and actually measure out what she put in to get the recipes,” Blom said.
Her favorites are fruit pies. “Back then, you used the fruit that was available — apples, cherries, plums, blueberry. But when I moved down here I thought there is no one doing pies — other than Key lime — that represent Florida’s fruits. I wasn’t seeing orange pies or grapefruit pie.”
She visited the Fort Lauderdale Historical Society, where she found hundreds of recipe collections and cookbooks. “That’s where I got the grapefruit pie and sour orange pie.”
But she puts modern twists on them. “I do a grapefruit-rose-petal cream pie. I make a tamarind-lime pie, using the base of a pecan pie.”
She makes the traditional — apple, cherry, pecan, pumpkin, chocolate — and will make pies by request. “I’ll even make your pie recipe for you if you like,” she said.
But for sales, she likes to mix it up. “I don’t want people coming to me and saying, ‘I can get that at Publix.’ ’’ Hence, the bombshell of a seller — an apple-lemon-poppyseed that was popular her first week at the Farmers Market.
“I do a Nutella chocolate pie, too. It’s really good.”
Ironically, she can’t eat her own pies — she’s allergic to wheat gluten. While she has some pies that are gluten-free, she’s not baking in a gluten-free environment.
“All my pies can be made gluten-free, using a tapioca or cornstarch instead of flour for the filling.” The crusts are specially ordered; she can’t make ones as good as she can buy, she said. “I tried making my own, but it just wasn’t worth the effort when I can get a great commercially made one. I’m not into that much production yet, either.”
Right now, she’s still at the point where she’s doing it almost all by hand: peeling the apples, rolling the dough, and making only a few at a time. “I just learned to use the food processor to mix the pie crust. Sure, I hope to get to the point where I can hire a helper, but I’m just starting out. People are slowly finding out about me.”
She’d like to open her own bakery with a place to sit and enjoy a slice of pie. To her, pie is the ultimate feel-good food.
“Nothing says comfort like a slice of pie right out of the oven with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.”
Roll chilled dough on a lightly floured surface, working from the center of the dough outward. Photos by Tim Stepien
Combine sugar, cornstarch, nutmeg, cinnamon and
salt in a small bowl, then peel, core and slice apples.
Place the apples in the bottom crust and dot with butter.
Leave no gaps in the filling. Gently lay top crust over pie.
After baking 15 minutes, cover the rim of the pie crust
with a strip of aluminum foil to prevent over-browning.
Pamela’s Pie Tips
• Chill pie dough ingredients, even the flour and sugar.
• Freeze the butter.
• Do not work the butter into the flour completely. Leave pea-sized pieces as these create the desirable flaky layers.
• Handle the pie dough gently and as little as possible; the heat from your hands melts the butter, making the dough tough.
• When filling with sliced fruit, such as apples or peaches, make thin, even slices so the fruit cooks evenly. Avoid gaps in the filling, which can create an air pocket.
• Bake the pie on a baking sheet and bake it until completely done. Err on the side of over-baking with pies.
• Cool the pie on an elevated rack to allow air to cool the bottom evenly. This prevents soggy crusts.
Pamela Blom’s
Two-Crust Apple Pie
For the crust:
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, cut in ½-inch cubes
4 to 6 tablespoons ice water
For the filling:
¾ cup sugar
¼ cup cornstarch (or flour)
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
dash salt
4 to 6 firm baking apples (like Granny Smith or Golden Delicious), peeled, cored, sliced into ½ inch-thick slices
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into cubes
Make dough: Measure flour, sugar and salt and place in a small metal or glass bowl. Put bowl in refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes. Put cubed butter into freezer for 15 minutes.
Put dry ingredients into bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Attach and lock lid and process. Add butter cubes a few at a time. Once all butter is in, stop machine. Pulse the ingredients until the butter in the mixture is the size of green peas. Do not overmix. Put machine on steady power again, adding 1 tablespoon ice water at time until the dough pulls away from the side. Stop immediately when this happens.
Remove dough to a work surface. Divide in two, and form each half into a firm, thick disk.
Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes or until needed.
Roll dough for bottom crust on a lightly floured surface, working from center of dough outward in a spoke fashion, to a 12-inch circle. Fold dough in half and drape over rolling pin to lift into 9-inch pie plate. Fit dough gently into plate, pressing into edges of pan and pressing out any air bubbles.
Make filling: Combine sugar, cornstarch, nutmeg, cinnamon and salt in a small bowl. Peel, core and slice apples and layer into bottom crust, taking care to leave no gaps. Sprinkle with spice mixture and dot cubed butter over top.
Roll out dough for top crust as for bottom, but rolling to an 11-inch circle. Gently lay top crust over pie, and tuck top edges over bottom firmly then crimp; trim excess as needed. Cut several vents in top of pie.
Bake pie on a baking sheet at 425 degrees for 15 minutes; cover rim of pie crust with a strip of aluminum foil to prevent over-browning. Continue to bake for 30 to 35 minutes more or until crust is evenly browned.
Carefully remove pie to cooling rack to cool. Serve hot with ice cream as desired.
Makes one 9-inch pie; 6 servings.
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