Prevent A Soggy Bottom On Your Fruit Pie With One Simple Step

As a baker, seeing how your fruit pie turned out can be such a gut-wrenching moment. It's so disappointing to cut into a beautifully baked fruit pie just for the bottom to be a soggy mess. It's even harder to accept when you went out of your way to make a homemade pie crust to avoid this mishap and it still happened anyway. Luckily, it's easy to prevent this from becoming a recurring issue.

A soggy fruit pie bottom crust usually occurs when too much moisture gets into the crust. This is why it's important to use the right amount of fruit filling. If you want to use a lot of filling, you need to make sure your fruit pie bottom crust is stable. To do that, you should use an egg white wash. This will create a seal-tight barrier between the pie dough and the filling. The barrier is created during the baking process. As the proteins in the egg start to cook, a shiny leak-proof layer forms on the bottom crust. This added layer prevents liquids from seeping into the crust and ruining its buttery, flaky texture.

Once your pie dough is formed and placed into a pie pan or dish, it's time to use the wash. To make this wash, you need one egg. Gently separate the egg white from the yolk over a bowl and use a fork to whisk it for a few seconds. You want the egg whites to be lightly beaten. Some bakers also mix them with a small amount of water. 

With a pastry brush, lightly brush an even layer of the wash onto the uncooked fruit pie bottom crust. You can also do this after you have blind-baked the dough with pie weights. It's totally up to you. Some people prefer to add the egg white wash to an uncooked fruit pie bottom crust while others prefer to add it to pre-baked dough. Both methods will give you the desired effect. 

You can get the same results when you brush a thin layer of corn syrup onto the fruit pie bottom crust. Like the egg white wash, it adds an extra layer of protection. The key is adding just enough to cover the entirety of the bottom pie crust, so nothing leaks through.

Using the right wash will save you from serving your friends and family a soupy, soggy mess. Now you can present them with the perfect fruit pie from scratch this holiday season. And don't forget to pair it with an ice cream that best suits your fruit pies flavor profile.