User:Rozziew/piefunnels

=Pie Funnels (or Pie Birds)=



Pie Funnels (or Pie Birds as they are called in the USA) are "steam vents" that have been used in the baking of fruit and meat pies since the early 1800s.

Pie Funnels prevent the contents of the pie from boiling over in the oven, by allowing the steam to escape from inside the pie. They also support the pastry crust in the center of the pie, preventing it from sagging in the middle.

Tired of having a gooey mess on the bottom of your oven after baking a pie? So were people in England way back in the early 19th century. In fact, they were so sick of it that they developed the pie bird. Also known as a pie vent, pie funnel or pie chimney, the pie bird is a hollow, glazed ceramic figure with one hole in the side of its base and a smaller one at the top to allow steam to get out. Just put one on the bottom crust of your pie, pour in the filling and then put the top crust over it, allowing the "head" to poke out the top. The heat of the filling escapes through the pie bird and your oven stays clean.

Although they’re terrifically useful things to have around, the real joy of these little guys is their beauty. A golden-crusted cherry pie is lovely, but one with a pretty pie bird / figure gracing the middle of it is even better!. The most common pie bird is (naturally) a blackbird with its head stretched up to the sky, whistling away the heat from the baking pie’s juices. Also seen today though, are the dragons, horses, pigs, owls, elephants and other unusual varieties.

Sing a song of sixpence A pocket full of rye Four-and-twenty Blackbirds baked in a pie And when the pie was opened The birds begin to sing Wasn't that a dainty dish to set before the King

Back in days of old, little clay whistles were baked into the pastry on the top of pies. These whistles were shaped like the heads of blackbirds with the beak wide open. The theory was that when the pie was cut, and the crust was broken, the cold air outside would meet the hot contents inside creating lots of steam. The steam would then rise up through the whistles, making the birds' heads indeed appear to sing.

And if you imagine 24 birds' heads, you can imagine the size of the pie - fit enough, indeed, for the king's table.

pie funnels are in fact devices designed to improve the top crust of a pie as it bakes. When you put a crust on top of your pie filling, you’re creating a sealed vessel containing a lot of moisture. As the pie bakes, some of that moisture turns to steam—and if the crust is completely sealed, the steam pressure can blow a hole through it, covering the inside of your oven. This is why lattice piecrusts were invented: not only do they look impressive, they leave plenty of holes for the steam to escape. But there’s more than one way to skin a pie.

Four and Twenty Ceramic Birds Baked in a Pie A pie funnel is a hollow ceramic doohickey (to use a highly technical pie term) that stands a few inches high, with one or more openings near the bottom and a vent at the top—thus approximating the design of an upside-down funnel. In fact, the exact shape of a pie funnel is irrelevant; they are often made in the shape of birds (and called “pie birds”), but you can also find gnomes, chess pieces, and a variety of other designs that serve the same purpose. To use a pie funnel, you cover the bottom of the pie pan with dough as usual, place the funnel in the middle, and pour the filling around it. Then you lay on the top crust, with the pie funnel poking through and its top vent exposed; for best results, pinch the crust around the outside of the pie funnel to seal it.

As the pie bakes, the pie funnel vents steam from inside the pie, which helps to keep the crust from splitting, prevents the filling from boiling over, and serves to reduce and concentrate the juices. It also supports the top pie crust, keeping it from sagging into the filling and getting soggy. Depending on the shape of the pie funnel, you may or may not be able to remove it before slicing the pie. Either way, your pie will be a little goofy-looking, but that’s a small price to pay for an otherwise perfect crust