I take inspiration anywhere my eye catches—from gritty public bathrooms to shirts on unsuspecting passersby to jaunty shadow angles at certain times of the day. I’ve made pies and tarts modeled after floor tile, storm drains, clumps of tangled foliage, and in this case, a trendy bamboo purse that made the rounds on all the fashion blogs one season.
I rarely carry purses, as I irrationally prefer to cram everything into pockets that are never deep enough. But if I had to choose an everyday bag, it would definitely be a colorful geometric satchel with capacity for pounds of strawberries and mangos in one snug go like this playful pie pouch. With a radiant solar design and punchy colors, your pie will shine like one in a million even after everyone jumps on the trend.
1 disk Carrot Pie Dough
2 disks Dragon Fruit Pie Dough
STRAWBERRY MANGO PASSION FRUIT FILLING
1 pound (454 grams) strawberries, hulled and cut into ¼-inch slices (about 3 cups)
1¼ pounds (567 grams) mangos, cut into ½-inch chunks (about 3 large mangos)
¼ cup (2 ounces/56 grams) fresh or frozen passion fruit pulp
1 cup (198 grams) granulated sugar
⅓ cup (38 grams) tapioca starch
1 teaspoon kosher salt
SUN OVERLAY DESIGN NEEDS
Parchment paper
Ruler
Pastry wheel
1-inch circle cutter
Small bowl of water
Pastry brush
Paring knife
1. On a floured surface, roll the disk of carrot pie dough into a 12-inch square. Roll the dough onto the rolling pin and unfurl it onto a sheet of parchment paper. Using a ruler as a straight edge, trim off the rough edges and then cut the square into ⅛-inch strips with a rolling pastry wheel (run the pastry wheel through a small mound of flour if it begins to stick while slicing).
2. Slide a flat baking sheet under the parchment and place the dough in the refrigerator to keep cold while proceeding with the design process.
3. Roll one disk of the dragon fruit dough into a 13-inch circle. Roll the dough onto the rolling pin and unfurl it onto a sheet of parchment paper. Using a 1-inch circle cutter, punch out a hole in the center of the dough.
4. Remove the carrot dough strips from the refrigerator and slide the sheet of parchment onto your work surface. Lightly brush 9 evenly spaced stripes of water on the dragon fruit dough, radiating like spokes around the circle cutout. Place 9 carrot strips where the water has been brushed, lining one end of each strip against the edge of the center circle.
5. Brush a stripe of water in between each carrot strip and place another ring of carrot strips. The ends of this second ring should be offset from the center circle, forming a ring of their own.
6. Place a third and final ring of carrot strips in between each established strip, brushing the dragon fruit dough with water beforehand to secure the strips. Slide a flat baking sheet under the parchment and place the pie top in the freezer until frozen solid, about 20 minutes.
7. Roll the second disk of dragon fruit dough into a 14-inch circle. Roll the dough onto the rolling pin and unfurl it over a 9-inch pie pan. Taking the edges of the dough, gently ease the dough into the pan, nestling it into the inner elbows of the pie pan. Trim the excess dough with kitchen shears to create a 1-inch overhang. Fold the overhang back under, creating an elevated edge.
8. To prepare the strawberry mango passion fruit filling, combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and gently fold with a spatula to coat the fruit in sugar and tapioca starch.
9. Pour the filling into the pie shell. Use a pastry brush to lightly dab water around the edge of the pie.
10. Remove the frozen pie top from the freezer, pick it up as one solid piece, and lay it centered on the surface of your filled pie. Let it sit for a few minutes to thaw slightly and settle. Press to seal the edges, then run a paring knife around the edge to trim the excess.
11. Chill the entire pie in the freezer while the oven comes to temperture. The pie can be frozen until solid before baking or simply chilled through, about 20 minutes.
12. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment.
13. When the oven comes to temperature, remove the pie from the freezer and place on the prepared baking sheet. Bake the pie for 25 minutes, then rotate the pie 180 degrees and lower the oven temperature to 350°F. If the edges are already brown, cover with a shield. If the top begins to brown excessively, rest a sheet of foil lightly on top. Continue baking until the filling is bubbling in the center, checking every 30 minutes to rotate the pie and adjust the shields as necessary, 80 to 100 total minutes. (If baking from frozen, add 30 to 45 minutes to the bake time.)
14. Cool the pie completely on a rack before slicing and serving.
SUGGESTED SUBSTITUTIONS
Dough alternatives: Basic, Beet, Blueberry, Butterfly Pea Flower, Cornflower, Spinach
NOTE
You can use small shape cutters to punch out shapes from the extra dough scraps to bake as pie cookies or to use in other pie designs, such as Block and Awe. The dough can also be gently pressed into a ball (do not knead), wrapped tightly in plastic, and chilled before re-rolling once as marbled dough for a pie like Caught Off Shard.