‘Anke pie’: A favorite dessert in the family of Russian writer Leo Tolstoy (RECIPE)

“Anke pie” (or Ankovsky pie) became popular in the late 19th century thanks to the family of Russian writer Leo Tolstoy. However, for some reason, we don’t call it “Tolstoy pie”. Firstly, this can be explained by the fact that the recipe came from the Bers family, the parents of the writer's wife Sofia. Their family doctor Nikolai Anke was fond of cooking, and he shared the recipe with Sofia’s mother. The tender taste of the citrus dessert delighted Sofia and she asked the cook at the Tolstoy family's estate to bake it as well. 

From that day on, every celebration in the Tolstoy family was held with this pie as the main dessert. According to the Tolstoys' son, Ilya, "a birthday party without Anke pie is like Christmas without a tree...".

The pie became a symbol of warmth, comfort and hospitality in the writer's home. However, eventually it was prepared so frequently that in the end, according to his son’s memories, Leo Tolstoy became bored with it. And not just with this pie. While he had always been a great connoisseur of food, at age 57 Leo Tolstoy became a vegetarian and adopted more restrained eating habits.

The recipe for Anke pie has survived to this day because Tolstoy's wife Sofia noted it in her culinary home almanac that counted 162 family recipes.

Anke pie is most often made from two shortbread crusts with lemon cream. The pie turns out aromatic and tender. The sweet taste of the buttery crumbly crusts are enhanced by the sour lemon cream. 

This pie is easy to bake, and after you try it I'm sure you'll often serve it on your table for special occasions and holidays. Indeed, this pie is so delicious that it’s difficult to stop at one piece. This pie should come with a warning: “Potentially addictive; eat in moderation”. If you fail to heed the warning, you might also end up like the great Tolstoy – jaded from too much of a good thing.

Ingredients for a 16 cm pie:

Dough: 

• Flour - 200 g
• Butter - 100 g
• Sugar - 50 g
• Egg (yolks) - 2 pcs
• Vanilla sugar - 10 g
• Salt - a pinch

Cream:

• Egg - 1 pc
• Butter - 50 g
• Sugar - 100g
• Lemon (zest and juice) - 1 pc 

Preparation:

1. Separate the yolks from the whites. We will use only the yolks. In the processor, combine the ingredients for the dough. 

2. You will get a dense homogeneous mass.

3. Divide the dough into 2 parts.

4. Draw 16 cm circles on the back of the parchment with a pencil and place each of the balls in the middle of the circles.

5. Roll out the dough to the size of the drawings.

6. Bake for about 15 minutes in a preheated oven at 190℃.

7. Use the template to cut out flat layers.

8. Let the layers cool down. Leave the trimmings to decorate and sprinkle on the pie. You can leave the layers uncut as well - this will make the pie bake even faster.

9. Place an egg, butter and sugar for the cream in a heatproof bowl and place in a water bath.

10. Grate the zest of half a lemon. Add to the bowl.

11. Squeeze the juice from a whole lemon. Strain the lemon juice through a sieve and add to the lemon mass.

12. Stir constantly and keep cooking for about 15 minutes. The mixture should become almost like thick honey. I spread the cream on the layers while it was still warm.

13. To keep the pie from shifting, first apply a drop of cream in the center of the dish.

14. Smear the first layer.

15. Place the second on top.

16. Then cover the second layer.

17. I used part of the cream to coat the edges of the pie.

18. Make crumbles out of the shortcake scraps. 

19. I sprinkled the leftover crumbs on the edges of the pie. 

20. I decorated the top of the pie with lemon slices and crumbs.

21. In order to allow the cream to stabilize, let your Anke pie sit for a couple of hours before serving. 

22. Enjoy with tea or coffee!

READ MORE: Leo Tolstoy adored these Russian gingerbread with almonds (RECIPE)