For me the change would be to become spherical. That would simplify some calculations.

magneticnorth 4 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Yes, me too. Reading the caveat "– and she would give each pie away" made a lot more sense.

It's a social commitment at least as much as a creative/culinary one, and since there aren't a lot of people you'd want to give a pie minus a slice to, that keeps the extra calories under control.

	▲	bell-cot 2 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Yep. And if one gives away the "QC Passed" pies - then as your skill improves, you're eating an ever-shrinking fraction of your output. And you feel like you're growing ever-thinner, as all your friends & neighbors eat more and more pies. ;)

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noboostforyou 5 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Do I exercise and eat healthy?

"Yes, I am in shape (round is a shape)"

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CrazyStat 5 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

A friend of mine tries to bake a spherical pie for pi day (March 14) each year, with varying approaches (and levels of success).

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fmbb 4 hours ago | parent | next [-]

I heard circles are also related to pi but have not had the time to confirm yet.

	▲	NegativeLatency an hour ago \| parent \| next [-]
		Pies are more of a Tau day thing https://www.tauday.com
	▲	inigyou an hour ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		That's a pi-ty

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AngryData 2 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

There are some old 18th century pies they cooked in boiling water inside a bag which could be quite spherical. Townsends on youtube has some videos on it.

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MrJohz 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

The first two things that spring to mind are pasties from the UK (which are not usually spherical but can get quite hemispherical), and the "UFO-Döner" from Germany (which are more oblate spheroids). Maybe by combining these ideas, your friend can get closer to their dream?

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Fluorescence 3 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Beef Wellington could be spherical if you so chose.

I suspect that deep-fried-battered haggis might exist which could be very spherical.

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walthamstow 4 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

British steak and kidney pudding (a steamed pie of suet pastry) is a truncated cone shape, could go spherical with the right pastry case.

	▲	raddan an hour ago \| parent [-]
		A truncated cone is called a "frustrum" which always seemed fitting to me.

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harimau777 3 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I wonder if they could look to dim sum for inspiration? A apple dumbling is basically just a round apple pie right?

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ant6n 3 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> A friend of mine tries to bake a spherical pie for pi day (March 14) each year, with varying approaches (and levels of success).

Could also do it on pi approximation day (July 22), then one doesn't have to be so exact about it.

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cmehdy 2 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Now I'm considering making a Matt Parker pie: a spherical pie made from a normal pie + calling it close enough in 2 out of 3 dimensions.

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fsagx 3 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

I didn't get it, so I looked it up.

22/7 ~= 3.14

	▲	emmelaich an hour ago \| parent [-]
		Actually closer to π and matches the more sensible date format. (Yes this is worth fighting over!)

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hinkley 5 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

Heating the middle has to be a pain. And cutting it…

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_aavaa_ 5 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Well if you insert metal rods through it you can help with the heat transfer, then you can lattice over the holes. If you pumpkin pie it, you might even be able to have it hold up under its own weight. Plus a bit of stiff whipped cream in the holes would help.

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mordechai9000 5 hours ago | parent | next [-]

I would make them fairly small (personal pie-sized) and use a filling that doesn't need to be cooked in the oven to set. The main limiting factors, I think, would be structural integrity and heating the filling to the center. You could set it on a ring (like the rim of a spring-form pan) to support it better during cooking. Now, a four dimensional hyper pie, on the other hand...

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_aavaa_ 4 hours ago | parent | next [-]

If you’re not cooking the filling, then do a teflon ballon that you put the crust on. Cook. Remove balloon. Then pipe in ready to ready to set chocolate cream.

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hinkley 3 hours ago | parent [-]

One of those spherical ice cube makers but made of cast iron, a little like those little waffle makers.

	▲	_aavaa_ an hour ago \| parent [-]
		I don’t think those will work, you want the outer surface to be crispy. The dough’s gotta go on the outside of the sphere.

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reactordev 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I would bake it on a pizza stone to ensure an even bake.

Has nobody here ever done this? It comes out perfectly cooked.