Boy have I been busy
You’d think I would have learned by now… I seem to have the persistent delusion that once Christmas is over, once the decorations are put away and all of the pine needles have been swept up, I will be in for a nice quiet time. I dreamed I will hunker down in front of the fire and catch up on reading the pile of books I have been stocking up. In my fantasy, the cat will be in my lap, and Sophie Dog will be curled up on her bed at my feet. Maybe I’ll finish knitting that sweater I started a couple of years ago. ...
read moreShare the Love
Mine is a very small town. There’s the “village” part, and then there are all of the houses scattered in the surrounding area. There really aren’t neighborhoods as there are in cities. A few years back, I decided that so spread out, many of the town’s elderly probably needed a little stimulation off and on. They needed a little contact, a little something out of the ordinary to perk their minds, a little love. Valentine’s Day would provide a real opportunity. With the collusion of our post-mistress, I gathered the...
read moreNew for 2012 – Meadow Flowers Shortbread Pan
We have a new shortbread pan over on our Shortbread Pan Website. It is a pretty shortbread pan that bakes up 8 heart-shaped cookies. Each cookie decorated with a different Meadow Flower. Your shortbread pan will bake shortbreads that are perfect for Valentine’s Day, Weddings, Mother’s Day, or any time you want to let someone know that they are dear to you. Check it out: Shortbread Pan...
read moreJanuary – Crumb Top Apple Pie
Warm and comforting – the perfect dessert for a cold winter night. ½ recipe Basic Pie Crust 7 or 8 large, tart apples. Cortlands, Northern Spy, MacIntosh, Jonathans, Granny Smith are all good. Juice of ½ lemon ½ cup (1 stick) cold butter, cut in small pieces ½ cup packed light brown sugar ½ cup all purpose flour ½ cup rolled oats ½ teaspoon cinnamon Pinch of salt Roll out the pie crust in a 13” circle and line the bottom of a 10” pie plate with it. Fold up the edges and crimp them decoratively. Peel and core the apples. Slice...
read moreBasic Pie Crust
The secret to a tender, flaky crust is handling the dough as little as possible. When you knead bread dough for a long period of time, you are developing the stretchy gluten fibers. This is exactly what you don’t want to do with pie crust. That would result in a tough, bread-like crust. You can make a great crust by hand using a pastry blender or two knives, or with a food processor. The basic technique is very much the same. Recipe for a 10” double crust pie: 2 cups all purpose flour ½ cup cold butter PLUS 4 Tablespoons cold solid...
read moreA Pie For All Seasons
A Pie For All Seasons is a calendar of pies, with a new recipe posted for each month. It’s sort of a time-release cookbook. I hope you enjoy it. I love pies. I make them all the time, but it wasn’t until quite recently that I noticed that my pie baking had definite patterns; Rhubarb in May, Apple in September, Maple Pecan in the long days of December. Never mind the fact that I always freeze quantities of rhubarb; somehow I don’t think to use it until the new crop is just starting to poke through the soil. Never mind the fact that I...
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