The Neverland feast from Hook holds a special place in all our hearts, memories, and "You're a 90s Kid If..." lists on Buzzfeed. I've been resisting making the neon-colored pies, despite their being hotly requested, for some time - namely because I think they're just pie shells filled with whipped cream. But this week, more than most weeks, we're using our imaginations!
Ingredients
Pie Crust:
6 ¼ oz all purpose flour
1 Tbsp (15 grams) granulated sugar
Kosher Salt
1 Stick (8 Tbsp) unsalted butter
4 Tbsp ice water
Cream Filling:
1 ¼ cup heavy cream, plus an additional ¼ cup set aside
1 package gelatin
⅔ cup granulated sugar
1 lb cream cheese
½ large lemon (juiced and zested)
½ tsp vanilla extract
50 drops red food coloring
Kosher salt
Whipped Cream:
1 cup heavy cream
1 Tbsp granulated sugar
15 drops blue food coloring (in separate batch)
15 drops green food coloring (in separate batch)
Method
No Bake Cheesecake
Start by combining 6 ¼ oz of all purpose flour, 1 Tbsp (15 grams) of granulated sugar, pinch of kosher salt, 1 stick of unsalted butter (cubed) in the bowl of a food processor. Slowly pulse until the butter pieces are no larger than a coffee bean.
Pour the mixture into a large bowl and sprinkle 4 Tbsp of ice water over the top. Coax together until the dough holds its shape. If it’s not coming together, add 1 Tbsp of additional ice water at a time until the mixture forms a nice dough ball.
Then plop the dough out onto a non-floured surface and press into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and let rest in a fridge for at least 2 hours.
After the 2 hours are up, place the dough on a well floured surface and begin “whacking” with a rolling pin, rotating occasionally for even whacking. This will help soften the dough before you roll it out 2 inches wider than the width of your pie plate. Make sure your surface is generously floured so the dough doesn’t stick.
Once the dough has reached the desired diameter, use the rolling pin as a scroll to furl and unfurl the pie dough over the pie plate. Then lift and drop (not press) the dough into the corners of the pie plate. You don’t want to stretch the dough, as that will make it shrink in the oven.
Trim off excess edges of crust around the pie plate and place in the fridge for at least 1 hour. After 1 hour, dock your crust by poking gently with a fork. Line with aluminum foil and fill with your pie weight of choice (I used rice) and place in a preheated 350°F oven for about 25 minutes.
After 25 minutes, remove the aluminum foil sheet from the pie and place the crust back into the oven for another 20-25 minutes, until evenly brown all over. Let cool while you create your filling.
In a small saucepan, bring a ¼ cup of heavy cream to a simmer before adding 1 packet of gelatin and whisk together until fully dissolved. Set aside to cool completely.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine 1 ¼ cup of heavy cream and ⅔ cup of granulated sugar and then beat it together on medium high speed it reaches soft peaks.
Once cream has reached soft peaks, add 1 pound of cream cheese. Make sure the cream cheese is cut into cubes and warmed to room temperature. Beat for 1 minute on medium speed until smooth and creamy with just a few errant lumps.
Scrape down the sides of your bowl, add the juice and zest of ½ a lemon, a generous pinch of kosher salt and ½ tsp of vanilla extract. Also add about 50 drops of red food coloring.
Beat that together on medium speed for another minute before adding in the heavy cream and gelatin mixture. Beat together for 3 minutes on medium-high speed until smooth, creamy, and light.
At this point, pour the cream into the cooled off pie shell and smooth it with an off-set spatula, or rough it up to make it seem more like the one in the movie. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 6 hours or until completely set.
For the colorful globs of whip cream, in a stand mixer bowl mix together 1 cup of heavy cream, 1 Tbsp of granulated sugar, and 15 drops of your desired food coloring (blue or green). Beat together until they form stiff peaks.
Load the whipped cream into a pair of pastry bags, cut the end and decorate your pie. 6 globs of blue around the perimeter and 1 glob of green in the center, if you want to be true to the movie.