Post number 1

I thought I'd start with a picture of last Thanksgiving's pie assortment. We usually have around 50 participants for Thanksgiving, Dinner, so lots of pies are called for.  Starting from the top, clockwise are Lemon Meringue, Maple Pecan Pie, Caramel Apple Crunch, Tio Stevo's Key Lime Pie, Black Bottom Banana Cream, Old Fashioned Pumpkin Pie and in the center is Door County Cherry Pie. All of them were made with a flaky, buttery pastry crust except the Key Lime which is made with a graham cracker crust.

All were well received and the leftovers were few. I was very pleased with the pies this year and there were zero glitches, except for when one of our chocolate labs ate one of my pumpkin pies. We normally bake 2 Pumpkin at Thanksgiving but this year only one made it unscathed.

Whisky & Ginger Ale  WHO DID IT???!!?!!

Here is my pastry crust recipe. You could use a food processor, but I do mine by hand with a pastry knife tool instead. I've used a processor many times but I find I prefer by hand, and for me, it is no more or less speedy and clean-up is faster. Plus, it feels more "old-timey" to make it without a gadget. Don't get me wrong, I love gadgets, just not for pie dough.

 

This recipe gives me enough for 4 single crust or 2 double crust pies. I start with 5 1/4 cups of flour and mix in 1 tablespoon of Kosher salt,  cut into the flour 17 ounces of fat (9 oz cold butter first, then 8 oz cold shortening,) after the flour and fat mixture looks like gravel and sand, add 1/2 cup cold vodka and 1/2 cup cold water and mix with your fingertips until it all sticks together, use a light touch and form it into a ball on a floured surface. Cut the ball  into four pieces, form into disks, wrap them in plastic and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes. Remember that everything but the flour and salt need be ICE COLD.  I cut the cold butter into the flour first, then the cold shortening. I've used Crisco, I've used margarine, I've used lard; they all work nicely.  These days I'm using Crisco, and I'm getting pretty good results  Did I mention everything ICE Cold?

So this is my first blog entry.  The problem is that the more I talk or write about food, the hungrier I get.. I know that now that I've started a food blog, my New Year's diet resolution is doomed....

Oh, and thanks also to Jeannie Burke www.Jeanniebs.blogspot.com who recently got me thinking about putting into writing my thoughts about cooking .