Ways To Make Your Thanksgiving Pies Picture-Perfect

Meringue-topped pies look prettiest when they're toasted. If you have a kitchen blowtorch, the job will be even easier. Simply swirl the meringue onto your baked pie with an offset spatula and then toast it with the flame. If you don't have a torch, a few minutes under the broiler will do the trick.

Cut your top pie crust into 10 strips. Evenly space five across an uncooked pie, rotate the pie 45 degrees, and then space the last five strips evenly across the pie for a simple, no-weave lattice design.

A few chocolate curls can make a simple cream pie look extremely elegant. You can buy them at a baking supply store or make your own by softening a block of chocolate in the microwave on half power and then using a vegetable peeler to shave curls from it. Just be sure to store your chocolate curls in the refrigerator if you're not using them right away.

Instead of topping your fruit pie with a full top crust, cut out shapes of dough with a cookie cutter, bake them on a sheet pan to 90 percent doneness, then arrange them in a pretty pattern on top of your pie during the final minutes of baking.

Rather than just add dallops of whipped cream to a fully-baked pie, put the whipped cream into a pastry bag fitted with a star tip. Pipe stars over the top of the pie, then sprinkle cinnamon or nutmeg on top. 

You don't have to be a great artist to make a pretty design on a pie; in fact, sometimes a simple design is best. Put melted chocolate (or white chocolate) into a small piping bag fitted with a very small round tip and pipe the desired design onto your finished custard pie. If you're not good at piping designs, you can also drizzle the chocolate back and forth in straight lines; that will look great too.

Slices of fruit arranged in a symmetrical pattern or in concentric circles create a visually stunning pie. Add fruit like sliced apples or pears before you bake the pie.