Aunt Pat's Cranberry Pie

At the intersection of pie, cake, and the abundance of fall harvest in New England is Aunt Pat's Cranberry Pie. This is not really a pie and not really a cake but a dessert that fully celebrates our state berry. Combining tart cranberries, flavorful walnuts and a luscious moist cake, this simple pie is the perfect antidote to the array of sweets and chocolate of the season.

Combine 2 cups of cranberries, 1/2 cup roughly chopped walnuts with 1/2 cup sugar. Put this in a generously greased pie plate or round cake pan depending on which side of the pie and cake debate your preferences lie.

In a separate bowl, combine 2 eggs, a pinch of salt, 1 cup unbleached flour, and 1 stick of melted margarine. A note from Aunt Pat reminds us to learn from her mistakes and not to substitute butter. Oh the mystery....

Pour the batter a top the cranberries and nuts. I like to mix things up, as you well know, and tend to stir this batter into the berries a bit to better combine. Sprinkle the top with a touch of sugar to make a crispier top.

Bake in a 350' oven for 40-50 minutes or until a cake tester, or a toothpick in my hands, comes out clean. This dessert needs to cool before serving. If you absolutely cannot wait, you will find that there is a sugar syrup on the bottom. This will reabsorb into the cake as it cools.

Serve with good friends and a really good vanilla ice cream.

For the swap, I would slide the frozen pie in to a preheated oven and plan to wait about an hour or even a bit longer before it is done baking.