Tag Archives: spices

Mixed Feelings

20 Wednesday May 2015

Posted by in Apple Pie

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It’s always a little bittersweet, baking pies for auction. I imagine it must feel like when painters sell their art; there is consolation in knowing that someone else will enjoy your creative work, but isn’t that joy sometimes mixed with the sentiment, “but…but…I want to keep it!”?

I’ll be honest, it’s borderline maddening when you’ve made your whole house smell like apples and caramel and cinnamon and know you aren’t getting a single bite.

It’s okay though. Really, it is. Not only did someone else (my super-fun 3rd grade student Sam’s uncle, Jeff) have the kindness to place the highest bid on this pie and support a wonderful school in the process, I got to bake it. And if that sounds like a paltry comfort, let me put it this way; if the only part of the pie-making process I cared about was the eating, I would have given up on this whole thing a long time ago. Baking and sharing are at least two-thirds the fun.

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Jeff requested an apple pie, and since he was open to a few tweaks on the old classic, I decided to start with a recipe I’d done once before in 2011 (it’s #56 in the gallery)…Liz Reiter’s All-Granny Slug-O-Bourbon Spiced Apple Pie. To that, I made a few more changes: a pink lady apple mixed in with the grannies, a pecan crumb topping, and a little bourbon pecan caramel sauce on top of THAT! (Caramel sauce made by the lovely Carmel, who you’ll meet in a post in the very near future.)

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I have a feeling you’ll be seeing a lot more of this beautiful craftsman cutting board that we recently bought from Karveware, our good friend Jamil’s company. All of their boards are fully made from end-grain wood pieces (scratch-resistant, as they’re self-healing), fitted together to create what almost looks like a wooden mosaic. I’m loving having enough space to chop everything I need for pie/dinner/etc. on my extra-large board. If you’re interested in getting one for yourself, scroll down to the bottom of the page and send me an email, and I’d be happy to get you more details. (Mental note: maybe I’ll post a Karve giveaway someday when I’m a full-time blogger and have more time to generate interest and amass followers and that sort of thing…)

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Here’s the finished product, and as I alluded to before, the smell coming out of the oven towards the end of the hour it baked was just mean. Cruel. 

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I heard tell that this boozy pie may have been destined for Jeff’s bachelor party (he’s getting married soon!) Here’s hoping it was a big hit. And thanks again, Jeff, for supporting a great group of kids.

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Pie-in-a-Jar!

27 Wednesday Mar 2013

Posted by in Apple Pie, Mixed Fruit Pie, Summer Fruit Pie

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Pie-in-a-Jar is as exciting as it sounds.

  • They’re pies. In JARS.
  • They’re so super cute.
  • I think they would hold up really well in the mail. Big question is whether they’ll hold up internationally. Now taking domestic and international volunteers to help me test this theory out.

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A year ago, I send some normal pie pies (as opposed to pie-in-a-jar pies) to a bake sale in Palm Springs benefitting the school I teach at. You can read that post here. This year, I was asked to contribute again to the same sale. I decided to make mini pies in jars this year after pondering the following key points.

  • What’s better than a slice of pie? A whole pie to yourself.
  • What’s more socially acceptable than eating a whole pie? Eating a whole mini pie.
  • What’s easier to transport than a jar with a lid?…Nothing.

(My points just seem to be rolling out in groups of three this evening.)

This post from Our Best Bites provided me with some inspiration, and even comes with some rather adorable labels to top your jars with. It’s worth checking out if you’re interested in making your own pies-in-a-jar. For my part, I did what I usually do…read some blog posts on the subject at hand, then decided not to follow any of the recipes after all. So, in all accuracy, I probably couldn’t replicate these exact mini pies ever again.

(Awkward silence as you ponder how unhelpful of a blog writer I really am…)

I made two types of pies-in-a-jar; a pretty basic apple pie with lots of spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, lemon and lemon zest) and a pear and mixed berry pie (strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, almond extract).

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I love how they look here, all packaged up and ready to travel!

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Have you ever tried baking pies (or anything else) in a jar? I would love to hear:

  • Stories about YOUR mini pie experiences, or questions about mine.
  • Interest in being a mail-tester for a pie-jar (depending on the number of comments I receive, I’ll put your name in a drawing.)
  • Which of the two above flavors you would have purchased had YOU attended the bake sale?

Once on this Island…

18 Monday Jun 2012

Posted by in Cream Pie

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…two very, very very mysterious pies were brought forth.

I facebooked: No one will ever guess the kinds of pie I am making right now.

Some of the guesses in response: Cow, dandelion, chicken, round, delicious, maple bacon, pizza, black bean and plantain, pancetta spearmint baby formula cream…

Creative thinkers, the lot of you.

Because I have friends who are good sports, and because I wanted to prolong the fun, I made a bunch of them come over to try both pies and keep making guesses.

Some of the guesses made: Turnip, sweet potato, zucchini, pumpkin, orange, Froot Loop…

After many attempts, the secret ingredients came to light.

Mystery Pie #1= Carrot Custard Pie

Light, subtle, surprisingly hard to identify the flavor.

Mystery Pie #2= Spiced Parsnip Pie

Very much like pumpkin pie, except for the lemony flavor (which led to the slight Froot Loop aftertaste).

Now on to rave about my new little island! Really it isn’t so much an island as it is a kitchen cart (Forhoja, from IKEA.) But whatever you call it, it definitely gives me a lot more room for pie-crust-rolling, and pie-things-storing.

When you only have two drawers in your kitchen, you really appreciate an extra two more. Here is my drawer of pie-making goodies! Pie weights (aka dry beans), crust protectors, measuring spoons and cups all stored together in one ultra-convenient location.

(Thanks, Wendy, for the totally adorable measuring spoons!)

And thanks everyone, for humoring me when I play these silly games of suspense.