Elderflower Peach Pie

Peach pie. I can’t think of anything much more summery. Peaches are without a doubt, my favorite stone fruit. They’re just the best. When they’re at their peak, they’re so sweet they don’t need much sugar. They shine on their own. I kept this pie less sweet to do just that: let the fruit and its flavor be the center. I couldn’t help but add just a few splashes of floral, honeyed sweetness from a bit of Elderflower liqueur and the results are absolutely delicious. While you can certainly omit if you really want to and you’d still have a wonderful pie, that little splash really goes a long way in making it special.

On a side note, this recipe for pie crust is my new go-to. I first developed it for a pie in the fall last year and LOVED the results. It doesn’t really change the flavor too much that I noticed, but it helps rolling out the chilled dough A TON. It made the dough more malleable when cold which is so nice for rolling it out quickly right out of the fridge and overall I’ve found it cracks very little, if at all. Yes. Happy summer, everyone! Make a peach pie and enjoy it while it lasts!

makes 1 9 inch pie

crust
2 3/4 c all purpose flour
1 t salt
1 c unsalted butter (2 sticks), cold and cubed
6-8 T ice water
1 T apple cider vinegar
2 large egg yolks
1 large egg, for egg wash
raw turbinado sugar, for sprinkling on crust

filling
7 medium-large yellow peaches (look for freestone if you can!), peeled and sliced into 1/8ths
1/3 c granulated sugar
zest of 1 lemon
2 T elderflower liqueur (such as Fiorente or St. Germaine)
1 t vanilla bean paste
3 T arrowroot powder (or cornstarch)
pinch of salt

make the crust
In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt. Cut in the butter with the flour mixture using a pastry blender (or a food processor) until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Some larger pieces are totally ok. Add the egg yolks and 4 tablespoons of the ice water and stir (or pulse if using food processor) until the dough just comes together, adding the additional 2 tablespoons of water if necessary. The humidity of the day will determine how much you need to hydrate the dough. Divide dough in half and shape into disks about an inch or so thick. Cover in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge at least two hours or overnight, ideally.

make the pie
Preheat oven to 450 F. In a large bowl, combine the peaches, sugar, lemon juice, elderflower liqueur, arrowroot powder, and salt and toss to combine and all the peaches are coated in the sugar mixture. Set aside. On a well-floured surface, roll one of the discs of dough out into a large circle about 1/4 inch thick. It should be about 2 inches larger in diameter than your pie plate. Place into the bottom of the pie plate, gently fitting the dough into the sides. Pour in the filling. Roll out the second disc of dough to the same thickness as the first and place on top of the filling (or cut into strips and weave on top if you’re doing a lattice pattern). Fold up the bottom and top crust together and crimp them together using your fingers. Cut some slits in the top to allow steam to escape. Whisk the egg together with a splash of water to make the egg wash and brush the top of the crust. Sprinkle with the raw sugar and bake for about 45 minutes to an hour, until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbling. Allow to cool for at least an hour before serving with ice cream or whipped cream if you’d like.