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Former White House Pastry Chef Shows Off A Perfectly Presidential Holiday Pie

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - You've trimmed the tree, hung the stockings and wrapped the gifts, now it's time to sweeten up the holiday with some decadent desserts.

Former White House executive pastry chef Bill Yosses just opened Palais by Perfect Pie in Manhattan's Upper East Side and joined CBS2's Andrea Grymes and Cindy Hsu to show off his take on a "presidential pie."

According to his website, Yosses worked closely with Michelle Obama on her Let's Move initiative with the goal of reducing childhood health problems related to diet.

White House Pie

The Crust

  • 3 Cups of All-Purpose Flour
  • 1/2 Tsp. of Salt
  • 10 oz. of Unsalted Butter
  • 6-7 Tbsp. of Ice Water
  • 1 Egg
  • 1 Tsp. of Salt for Egg Wash on the pie crust

In a food processor, briefly pulse together the flour and salt. Add butter and pulse until mixture forms chickpea size pieces, (3- to 5-second pulses). Add ice water 1 tablespoon at a time and pulse until the mixture is just moist enough to hold together.

Divide the dough into two equal amounts and form dough into balls, then press down into a circle, wrap the circles with plastic, refrigerate at least one hour before rolling out and lining the pie pan.

To prepare the pie shell, roll out the chilled circles on a lightly floured flat surface to about 14" diameter, with one of the circles line a greased pie pan, leaving a 1-inch overhang. Chill the dough in the pie pan for at least 30 minutes and up to overnight.

Refrigerate the other circle until needed for the pie top.

Prepare the filling recipe below and fill the pie shell with it.

Pie Fillings

  • 6 Pints of Blueberriees, Washed
  • 1/2 Cup of Sugar
  • 1/3 Cup of Corn Starch
  • 1 Tsp. of Vanilla Extract
  • 1/4 Tsp. of Vanilla Extract
  • 1/4 Tsp. of Ground Cinnamon
  • Zest and juice of one Lemon
  • 1 Egg, beaten

Fill the pie shell with the fruit filling and then remove the second circle of chilled pie dough from the refrigerator.

Brush it with egg wash and lay it over the filling, press gently around the edges to mold the top and bottom pieces of dough together.

With a paring knife, puncture the top pie dough in a wide circle about 6 times with the tip of the knife to form steam vents. With a pastry brush, paint the top dough with the remaining egg wash and sprinkle with granulated sugar.

Bake the pie at 350 degrees F for 75 minutes or until the pie filling is starting to bubble out the vents and the top pie crust is golden brown. Remove to a cooling rack and allow to cool for 1-2 hours before serving.

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