AUSTIN, Texas — I love baking pies. Unlike many of the Year of Baking projects we’ve tackled this year, pie is a dessert I bake often enough to know how to make the dough and fillings from scratch.

I buy those fluted Pyrex pie plates anytime I see them in a thrift store so I can bake pies to give away to friends or dinner party hosts. I have a pie crust shield to keep the edges from burning, a new pastry cloth and rolling pin cover so the dough doesn’t stick and an aluminum foil ball filled with beans that I reuse for blind baking, in which you partially bake the crust before adding filling.

I have the confidence to show up to a foodie party with a homemade peach pie and store-bought whipped cream because I know what a soft spot most of us have for Cool Whip.

You know there will be Cool Whip at my Thanksgiving dinner later this month to go with the pecan, pumpkin and apple pies that my family loves so much. My cousin, Carlee, has taken the lead on baking them for our official dinner, but I love finding new pies to make for Friendsgiving or to take to work to brighten a Monday.

One easy way I’ve found to spruce up an otherwise everyday pie involves cookie cutters. A few years ago, I started seeing more and more pies with cut-out dough on top. Placing leaves, hearts, stars or even goofy shapes, such as a squirrel or a mustache, on top of a pie is a modern alternative to a traditional lattice or that top layer of dough with a few holes poked into it.

The smaller shapes will bake atop an open-faced pie, such as pumpkin or buttermilk, without any adjustment in time. For pies that take longer in the oven, you might consider placing the cutouts on top about 10-15 minutes after the pie has started baking. No matter if you’re using cutouts or a whole sheet of dough on top, brush it with an egg wash or a little milk to keep the dough shiny and golden as it bakes.

As good as homemade crust is, I like to keep sheets of rolled-up pie dough in the freezer just in case I get the hankering to make a sweet or savory pie and don’t want to break out the food processor, pastry cutter and rolling pin.

The rolled-up pie dough, which is sold in the refrigerated section but can be stored in the freezer and then thawed in the fridge, is much more versatile than the pie dough sold in aluminum pans in the freezer. You can still bake the pie in your own pie plate, which is nicer for serving and sturdier for transporting the pie in and out of the oven (or car).

A few other thoughts to keep in mind this pie-baking season:

• Foil is your friend. As soon as you see the edges of the crust start to get brown, put a sheet of foil or one of those pie shields on top. It’s so easy to accidentally burn a pie crust, in part because recipes often call for lowering the heat at a certain time and cooks forget to do that, or because your oven burns a little hotter than you might realize.

• Use a pizza cutter when slicing strips for a lattice, and don’t feel confined to the 1⁄2-inch strip. You could vary the widths of the pieces, make them all somewhat thick or crisscross them at less than 90 degrees. If you’ve never woven a lattice before, practice with strips of paper, just like you might have done in elementary school art class.

Rather than create the lattice directly on top of the pie, you can practice on a pastry cloth or piece of parchment paper and then gently lay the completed lattice on top of the pie.

• If you’re worried that your fruit pie filling is too runny, pour off some of the liquid and combine it with a few tablespoons of cornstarch. Some bakers always toss their fruit with cornstarch alongside the sugar and spices before baking.

• No need to toast nuts before adding them to your dessert. They’ll get that rich, roasted taste as they bake with the rest of the pie.

• To transport the dough from your floured counter or pastry cloth, gently roll it up so that it folds over the rolling pin.

• A pie will keep on a countertop for a day or so, but cover and refrigerate after that.