She makes apple pie.

I've been self-conscious of posting crap I make for too long now. But not anymore! I'm throwing all pride and dignity to the wind because, let's face it, I've really never had that much anyway. Plus, oftentimes before I make things I research them a lot so I figure I'd start sharing all the info I gather and whatnot. Sigh, that's just who I am, a giver.

MOVING ON.

This summer I have gotten into making pie. Pie can be an intimidating thing to make if you've never made it. It's not super easy, but really it's not THAT hard. Luckily my MIL (mother-in-law) is a pie-master and she had me over one time and taught me how to make the crust. It's all about the crust people. After seeing the consistency and texture I needed from a pro I took on my first apple pie when we moved to Philly. Why? Because baking a pie takes time, and when we moved the Philly I suddenly had PLENTY of time.

Here is a picture of my first pie. It's an apple pie, and yeah, I totally double-crusted that beotch.


I used the pie crust recipe from my FAVORITE baking book. I'll post more on why this is the best book in the world later.

Here is a picture of my second pie. Look how much cuter this one is. That apple cookie cutter is from Bed Bath and Beyond, it was in the $10 set of 30+ cookie cutters.


It just goes to show, my fellow perfectionists who quit after the first time if something isn't 100% perfect...that it's always worth at least a second round. And THEN if it's not perfect I totally give you permission to quit. KIDDING! Anyway these pies were delicious.

I used the Apple Pie recipe again from my favorite book, with one small twist that I learned from the MIL, lemon zest and a few squeezes of fresh lemon in the apple mixture. It really adds a lot. The recipe in the book also calls for a tablespoon of bourbon, but since I don't drink it seemed expensive to buy a whole bottle just for the pie. That plus I don't really trust myself with a whole bottle of bourbon to be used strictly for "baking" purposes.

Today, right now! I'm in the middle of making a cherry pie for my hubby's b-day tomorrow. I've never made a cherry pie but one time I wrote a poem about one. I'll share that later.

As for the dough, for my first two pies I mixed it by hand. I don't have a pastry cutter so I used two knifes. But today I bought a food processor, and I made my dough that way. I have seen some debate from the foodies as to making dough in a processor. Some say it makes the dough rubbery. They may be right, I think my batter may have been too smooth so I will let you know what happens!

Anyway if you have any tips or questions please, do share.

In the meantime here's a good video I found that combines answers to all the questions I had when I made first pie by myself. Such as transferring the dough to the pan, cutting down the edges (I just use a butter knife), fluting the edges, and then if you want to, she also shows you about pie weights. It covers it all, albeit intensely. This completely removes the sweet feelings of tradition you could have felt from learning from your grandma, your MIL, or a neighbor. Yet another blessing of the Internet!

I'm gonna go pit my cherries.

xoxo