Thanksgiving Pies

Every Thanksgiving we spend in San Diego we make the pies. The required pies at the Smith Thanksgiving are pumpkin and apple. However, Joey likes to experiment and make other pies too. This year, we decided to make mini pies so we could make a lot of different things. And as an added bonus, Joey's Aunt & Cousin made the pumpkin and chocolate pies.

We didn't really deviate too much from the recipes so in this post, I am going to review the recipes, note the pie types and leave the picture awkwardly sideways.

Dutch Apple Pie - I secretly think Joey makes up this recipe but he says he uses Betty Crocker. This year, he messed up the crumb topping so that there was less crumb and it didn't cover the pie completely. Although the pie didn't look super appetizing it was delicious.

Cranberry Ribbon Apple Pie - This was my favorite. It is a traditional apple pie with a layer of cranberry sauce in the bottom.  The cranberry sauce by itself is also very delicious and would've been great on our Thanksgiving table. These little pies looked pretty adorable. We used some leftover maple glaze on the top to make them brown but you could use an egg wash.

Cranberry Maple Pecan Pie - This is a pecan pie that has a little maple kick and then a bit of tartness from the cranberries. It calls for walnuts but we were using pecans so we stuck to one nut. I think this is a really good pie too. It tones down the sweetness of traditional pecan.

Bittersweet Chocolate Pecan Pie - Last time we made this pie I loved the combination of chocolate and pecan, but this time, I didn't notice it as much. The chocolate has the same effect as the cranberry in the previous pie, toning down the sweet-sweet of pecan pie.

We didn't make the chocolate pie (but a whipped cream topping is added and it is delicious). We also didn't make the pumpkin pie but it was your standard pumpkin and the perfect one time per year treat!