Fauxberry Pie

I tried to be sneaky and make this Fauxberry Pie, from Spoonful for April Fools Day.  Blockette knows better now to pay attention when I'm making dinner and caught on to what I was doing. 

Although, I did have her going that fauxberries were a real thing. 

For about a minute.

Mrblocko and I tease her so much that she catches on quickly these days.

Joke or no joke, this dinner pie turned out amazing.

I used a half recipe of Sylvia's Perfect Pie Crust, from Tasty Kitchen as the base. I'm not a big fan of this crust in desserts, but in a savory dish like this, it really works.  This crust is super flaky.  So much so that Mrblocko thought it was store bought.  Blockette loved the crust as well.  She wanted me to make her a sheet of crust to slice up and put in her lunch.  I said no, because I have a reputation of a mean mom to live up to.

Since this dish is essentially a meatloaf baked in a pie crust, I was a bit worried that it was going to make the crust soggy or be really oily and greasy.  To counter this, I dabbed the meat with paper towels as it was cooking.  I think I did this 2 or 3 times before I put the potato topping on.  I didn't think the pie was soggy or greasy.

I'm thinking this pie needs to be an April 1st tradition from now on!

Fauxberry Pie adapted from Spoonfull
1 pie shell, uncooked (your own or store bought)

"CHOCOLATE" MEAT LOAF FILLING
1/3 c barbecue sauce
1/4 c milk
1 T molasses
1 t cocoa
1/2 t chili powder
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 T veg oil
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper
2/3 c bread crumbs
1 lb gr beef
1 egg, lightly beaten

"STRAWBERRY" POTATO TOPPING
2 lbs russet potatoes, peeled and cubed (I weighed my potatoes after they had been peeled and had slightly more than 2 lbs)
1/2 c canned sliced beets (not pickled)
1/4 c  milk
4 T butter, cut into pieces

Place pie crust in pie pan and chill in the freezer.  Heat oven to 350º. In sm pan, sautee onions in oil.  Cook 7 min until translucent. Add BBQ sauce, milk, molasses, cocoa, and chili powder. Cook until lukewarm and cocoa dissolved.  In lg bowl, mix all ingredients with hands. Remove the pie shell from the freezer.  Transfer meat to shell, spreading evenly with spoon. Bake about 60 min, until meat is cooked through.

While pie's baking, prepare potato topping. Place potatoes in a large pot.  Add enough water to completely cover spuds and bring to boil. Reduce heat  and at a low boil until tender, about 12 min. While potatoes cook, puree beets and 1/4 c milk in a blender until smooth. Set aside. Drain potatoes and place back into pot.   Add butter and pureed beets.  Whip with hand mixer until smooth and fluffy, adding more milk as needed. Spread whipped potatoes over top of cooked meat pie with an offset spatula. Slice and serve pie while potatoes are still hot. Makes 8-10 servings.  To reheat leftovers cover with foil and bake at 350F for 30 min.