Fresh Blueberry Pie

1 pastry shells, baked
3/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup water
3 cups blueberries, fresh only
2 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Combine sugar, cornstarch and salt in a saucepan. Blend in water and 1 cup blueberries. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until very thick. Stir in butter and lemon juice. Cool slightly. Fold in remaining berries. Chill about 1 hour.

Beat heavy cream until thick, add powdered sugar and vanilla. Spread whipped cream over the bottom of baked pie shell. Top with blueberry filling.

Chill 1-2 hours before serving.

Serves 8

Happy Cooking!

1 Very Cute Lighting Fixtures

2 Old Fashioned Chocolate Cake

3 Apple Crumble Pie, ala mode (Vanilla Ice Cream)

4 Banoffee Pie

5 The Banapple Logo

* Pictures 1 and 2 taken by Jany. Picture 3, taken by moi, and Pictures 4 and 5, taken by Marie.

I haven't had the time I'd like to devote to cooking, especially baking, this past week, but I'll get to it one day. Epicurious.com's website reminded me of a post I've been meaning to make on baking pies. I've never understood the love affair with pies. I appreciate all of the varieties that are out there, especially the ones featured in the movie Waitress!

I just don't see the thrill of eating a pudding-filled or fruit-filled pie. It doesn't make my tastebuds sing like the idea of a soft, buttery cake. Nevertheless, I was motivated to give pie making a try when I found a really great ceramic pie pan and a Calphalon ultimate pastry set at a store closing sale a few weeks ago.

How could I not try it when I'd just bought a pie in a box set, lol. I haven't had time to follow through, but at least I have all my tools in place.

Do you bake pies?

Estaba probándome unas chanclas, cosa que odio por cierto, y mirándome los pies, me pregunté porqué seguimos teniendo dedos en los pies, un vestigio de la evolución que aún nos esta puteando, creo que lo que realmente hace tan sumamente feos a los pies, son los dedos, que en venganza por vivir apiñados en las punteras de zapatos, botas, zapatillas...  nos lo pagan con las protuberancias mas horribles jamás imaginadas como callos, juanetes, ampollas, por no hablar de las uñas encarnadas, los pelos que tapizan el meridiano de los dedos, el olor de algunos pies, el dedo pequeño; receptor de golpes con esquinas, que produce un dolor tan intenso que durante un par de segundos entras en enajenación mental transitoria.

La evolución nos quitó la mayoría del pelo del cuerpo,  redujo la cola hasta convertirla en el coxis, agrando nuestro Cerebro, pero con los pies se lució, teníamos que haber evolucionado a pies sin dedos, como si fueran manoplas, pero con la posibilidad de mover la puntera para facilitar el caminar, los dedos sobran, y ya que estamos jugando a ser dios, porque no tenemos almohadillas como los gatos, podríamos eliminar todo el calzado de la vida y por supuesto desterrar para siempre las chanclas. La gente no tendría que elegir zapatos, nunca echarían a nadie de una discoteca por no llevar el calzado adecuado, nos ahorraríamos tener que cortarnos las uñas, limpiarnos la roña de entre los dedos... son tantas las ventajas que estoy deseando que la evolución nos alcance.

Izq: Pie Feo actual - Der: Pie evolucionado con su esqueleto y almohadillas

Anyways, I thought I would give you some recommendations of places and things to do while there.  Since we lived there, and hubby grew up there, you can bet these are great places:

- Science Works in Ashland is a lot of fun.  It's not a big city Science Center, but I think it does a great job and has different themes each time we have gone.

- The Breadboard Restaurant is yummy.  It's been a favorite of mine for years!  They are open for  breakfast and lunch so be sure to stop on by.

- Four and Twenty Blackbirds Bakery.  YUMMY!!!!  And please try Marionberry!!!

-Paddington Station is a terrific shop in downtown Ashland.  They have everything from kitchen to clothing items and a lot in-between.  It's a terrific shop!

- All of downtown Ashland is fun to walk around.  It is a little on the hippie side but fun.

- Lithia Parkis a beautiful park just up from downtown Ashland.  You can see the ducks, have a picnic, hike, take the kids to pay in the creek or the playground, and in the winter ice skate.  Really there is too much to mention. 

- Big Town Hero is a nice sandwich shop.  The bread is fresh baked and it's all ready to be taken to the park for a picnic like we did.

I could go on and on in regards to Southern Oregon.  So...there will be more to come!

Have a "BEAUTIFUL" day!

Just as many people love cheesecake. Baked cheesecake, refrigerator cheese cake, chocolate, pumpkin, New York Style. Rich, creamy, slightly tart, slightly sweet. What's not to love.

I've had key lime pie hundreds of times as well as key lime cheesecake and key lime bars. All of them have been delicious. But I found the creme de la creme, the most exalted, the mightiest of the mighty. The Gold Medal winner in the Olympics of lime desserts.  It 's a Double Layer Key Lime Pie, two layers of tart, citrusy goodness with a layer of lime cheesecake on top. It will double your pleasure for sure.

Now to be fair, I must admit that I use the term "key lime" loosely. I don't use key limes in the preparation of any dessert. I use regular old green, grocery store limes. I did buy a bag of key limes once and got about 1 tablespoon of juice from each. Also, in my part of Ohio, key limes can be hard to find. I never use the jars of juice or the little plastic fake limes or lemons which have to be "enhanced" with preservatives. 

So without further ado, here is the recipe. By the way, it's from Bon Appetit, March, 2004, issue.

TWO LAYER KEY LIME PIE

(May make one day ahead, if desired. Also, no need to use "key limes"; regular ones will do just fine.

1 1/2 c. graham cracker crumbs

1/4 c. (1/2 stick) butter, melted

3 T. sugar

18 oz. canned sweetened condensed milk (divided, 14 oz. and 4 oz.)

3/4 c. lime juice (divided, 1/2 c. and 1/4 cup)

3 large egg yolks

2 T. sugar

1 t. vanilla

8 oz. cream cheese (may use 1/3 less fat variety), room temperature

cool whip or whipped cream for garnish, optional

Crust:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degree. Mix crumbs, butter and sugar, and press into bottome and up sides of a deep-dish glass pie pan.

2. Bake 8 minutes. Cool completely. Lower heat to 300 degrees.

Baked Layer:

1. Whisk 14 oz. sweetened condensed milk, 1/2 c. lime juice and the 3 egg yolks. Pour into cooled pie shell.

2. Bake 300 degrees for 25 minutes. Cool to room temperature.

Chilled Layer:

1. Beat the cream cheese, 1/2 c. sweetened condensed milk, 1/4 c. lime juice, 2 T. sugar and 1 t. vanilla together.

2. Pour over the cooled baked layer. Smooth top.

3. Cover with plastic wrap and chill 4 hours.

4. Garnish with whipped cream or cool whip before serving. Store in the frig.

Anoche encontré -vagando incómodo de página en página- al imprevisto Miguel de Unamuno: "nocturno el río de las horas fluye / desde su manantial que es el mañana eterno".

Que el tiempo va en sentido contrario es un discurso casi ético que nuestros pies han ejercido. Del porvenir llega el impulso, del futuro corren las horas hacia atrás. Lo sabemos.

La primera vez que caminamos juntos sobre el mundo, en una tarde de intenso calor húmedo, te llevé a beber cerveza al British Bar de Lisboa, el único lugar del mundo donde el reloj corre hacia atrás y el tiempo se recompone plegándose sobre sí mismo.

Dijiste al teléfono que las uñas de tus pies son ahora azules.

Bien, creceremos hacia atrás con el color de la luna, el silencio y los collares.

Más allá del color, más allá de la dirección que siga el tiempo -desde atrás o desde adelante-, añoro nuestros pies juntos.

Czy znajdzie się ktoś kto odmówi?

[05:44] El Doctoro Randomo the Tsar of smooth jazz: Good morning.
[05:44] Josh: That's an unusually new name.
[05:45] El Doctoro Randomo the Tsar of smooth jazz: Smooth jazz surgeon, just with surgeon switched with tsar and an "of" to make sense
[05:46] Josh: I see.
[05:46] (Name change to Dr. Random)
[05:46] Dr. Random: You like simple terms don't you?
[05:47] Josh: Yes, yes I do.
[05:47] Dr. Random: Or how about super-complexified-mambo-foxtrot terms?
[05:48] Josh: That sounds more like a foreign nickname bestowed upon you by a foreign Jazz expert.
[05:48] Josh: Those terms are highly classified.
[05:48] Dr. Random: Your right. Along with the Salsa-tango-mambo-foxtrot martial arts skills.
[05:50] Josh: And the Mega-Ultra-Delicious-Pie skills.

[05:54] Josh: You like Blueberry Pies?
[05:55] Dr. Random: Perhaps
[05:55] Josh: I'm sending the recipe file to you.
[05:55] Dr. Random: No I haven't had one in forever
[05:55] You are sending Dr. Random a file.
blueberry-pie.txt (1003 B)
[05:55] Josh: Did you get it?
[05:57] Dr. Random: Your sending a file through meebo?
[05:57] Dr. Random: :O
[05:57] Josh: Yep.
[05:57] Josh: And it works!

Anyway, I bought a small vial of camphor at the pharmacy and returned to find my cohort. We were drained by this time by the heat and humidity, so we called it an afternoon. But it was great fun!

Today, more Dan Rice Days-civil war re-enactors, art show, open houses at the Battles farm and catching the Jazz-and-Blues Fest down at Frontier Park.

How Can I Find My Voice and Speak Up? | Ask Lucy from the Financial Times.

Home Renovations Should Work For You Not Against You. | From the Chron.

Pies Baked in Tiny Jars | Hat tip to Kirtsy. Cute, easy pies!

Fifty Tips for Frugal Living | Hat tip to Kirtsy. I'm all about saving money!

Bare is Better Than Bearing Pantyhose | From one of my favorite columnists, Mary Schmich, Chicago Tribune.

These were the chocolate pretzel cookies that I attempted for Operation Baking GALS. Unfortunately, they were dry and tasteless. But rather than throw them out, I put them in the processor, mixed them with melted butter, and came up with this:

After a 15 minute bake, I let the crust cool and then got busy making Dorie's recipe for Chocolate Cream Tart filling. I contemplated making the chocolate pudding again, but decided to take a different route this time.

I was NOT disappointed! It's everything chocolate cream pie should be - rich, ultra smooth, with a big chocolate flavor.

It tastes as great as it looks.

Guess who else thought so? He found me taking pictures and proceeded to polish off the whole piece.

I took it over to a friends house last night, where the entire pie was gone in a matter of minutes.

You can find the recipe on page 352 of the book.

Strawberry / Pie Fight @ NCI Kuula, originally uploaded by ßlackie.

Taken by Blackie Dagger @ NCI-Kuula.

"What happens goodwill beer, is the unessential bubbles sag, the clumsy bubbles flower," Professor Srolovitz told BBC Story.

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The taste could not partially dispense tips from converted domestic science, except that could and so tamper with applications inward metallurgy, suffrage the authors.

Basis: BBC
Ringer: Neocorsten / Flickr
Tags: Beer | Beer Ash| Maths

w szeleczkach  !

Formaat 1024x768, andere formaten zijn beschikbaar op aanvraag :)

If you are a regular visitor to Rob's Megaphone, you know I'm a huge Andy Griffith Show fan. I even started an Andy Griffith Show group on Stumble.

Well, you can imagine my surprize when I stumbled upon this sign.

Since moving to Mount Pilot, Bea dropped the "Aunt"

an now goes by Madam.

Para todas aquellas personas que gustan de la variedad; hoy les traigo, algo así, como para entretener las manos y los pies. Pues andando por estas páginas de dios, me he encontrado con algunas webs que han  posteado sobre varias formas originales y creativas de atarse los cordones de cualquiera de los calzados que usted prefiera o tenga. Vamos a amarrarse bien los chanclos tenis mis amigos.

MailDumper / eleZeta / CrealoTuMismo

... pero  lo fueron :(

Son lejos las mas lindas q conoci.

I didn't want to enter the county fair pie contest at all.  My experience with pie baking consisted of old-fashioned pies for Sundays and holidays - nothing that was worthy of a contest.  But my oldest daughter insisted and so I got up early on a hot August morning in 1983 to bake a pie for the Hamilton County Fair (Cincinnati, Ohio).  I had a lot of fresh blackberries we had picked in the wild bramble area behind the house and some green apples from the trees in the front yard.  It sounded like a good combination and I baked the pie.  I felt a little dismayed when I saw the juices had bubbled out of the top crust as usual, but cooled the pie, wrapped it in foil and started out for the fairgrounds.

Contest entries were flowing in by the time we got there.  It was an open class contest so there was every conceivable kind of pie - apple, strawberry rhubarb, blueberry, lemon meringue, chocolate cream, a fancy strawberry pie with mint leaf garnish - I was starting to get a little worried.  I didn't want to embarrass myself with such a low-key entry.  I was only hoping for one of the runner-up baskets of apples with no thought of winning a ribbon.  The pies were being arranged on large tables set end-to-end and at one point I almost went over and removed my entry but my daughter insisted on going through with the ordeal.

It was an interesting experience watching the entrants and their supporters, the judges, the passers by - all in intense heat in an antique building with windows open and an occasional swishing electric fan.  There were 34 entries in all, each one lovely and surrounding my very ordinary-looking pie.  Finally, after about an hour and a half, the winners were announced, beginning with the runners-up - no basket of apples for me.  Then the third place was announced and the second - I was almost relieved that it was finally over - when I heard the blue-ribbon, Best of Show winner called - BLACKBERRY APPLE PIE!  I was astounded and went to the contest director to ask if there could be a mistake.  I couldn't believe that a Sunday dinner pie had won this contest.

I had my picture taken for the newspaper holding my pie and blue ribbon in one hand and the Best of Show rosette and an engraved brass tray in the other. 

Then, my daughter and I got to carry all this plus a half-bushel of apples through a very crowded Saturday afternoon fairgrounds midway to the parking lot.

I entered this pie in a lot of other contests after that and it always won for me, but I never again had the thrill that I had that hot August day when I WON THE PIE CONTEST!

BLACKBERRY APPLE PIE

• Pastry for two-crust 9" pie (See recipe here)
• 3 cups blackberries
• 1 cup peeled & thinly sliced green apple
• 3 Tblsp. quick-cooking tapioca
• pinch of salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 Tblsp. butter
• 1 Tblsp. milk
• 1 Tblsp. sugar mixed with 1/8 tsp. cinnamon for topping

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

In large bowl combine berries, apples, tapioca, 1 cup sugar, and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon.  Mix well and allow to set while preparing pastry.

Turn berry mixture in a pastry-lined 9" pan.  Dot with butter, adjust top crust, cut vents and flute edges.  Brush top with milk and lightly sprinkle with sugar/cinnamon mixture.  Set pie pan on a larger flat pan to catch spills.

Bake @ 375 degrees F for 45-50 minutes.  Cool on a wire rack.

A remake of the pie some years later with the coveted rosette.

Here are some highlights of the dinner for your viewing pleasure (recipes to follow):

Special thanks to Melinda for the tomato pie recipe and modifications. It was so good!  (Mel recommends only a 1/2 cup of mayo and 4-5 large seeded tomatoes, instead of what's listed.)

The blueberry-peach pie recipe was courtesy of the July 2007 Parade Magazine, via Epicurious.

Thanks to Maggie for the awesome asparagus-zucchini salad from the Giada De Laurentiis cookbook. What a refreshing, crisp, tangy accompaniment to this rich meal!

It's Tuesday again! This time, Michelle of Michelle in Colorado Springs chose Summer Fruit Galette for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie. I'll admit that I let out a little whimper on this choice because I knew it called for pie crust. And me and pie crust don't get along that well. It doesn't seem to matter how many tips and tricks I study up on, I just don't have the magic touch for it yet. But I'll keep trying.

The Summer Fruit Galette consisted of a free form pie crust, jam/preserves, fruit and a custard that's added towards the end of baking. This recipe gave the group many choices of what fruit and jams to use. I ended up going with peaches and Dorie's suggestion of ginger preserves. This was a good flavor combination as the ginger preserves added a nice contrast.

I didn't use as much fruit as the recipe called for (I only used five peaches) but there was a huge pile in the center anyway. I folded up the crust edges as best as I could but I did have some trouble and it didn't fold up all nice and neat. I made the custard, then poured it over the galette towards the end of baking. It smelled great the whole time it was baking. It did leak a lot in the oven though, the leakage burned and things got a little smoky in the house. :shock: Oh well, what can you do?

I couldn't wait for it to cool down to try a piece. It may not win any beauty pageants but damn this was good.

Thanks to Michelle for picking out this wonderful recipe, stop by Michelle in Colorado Springs and check out her version of Summer Fruit Galette. Then, like I always say, make your way to the Tuesdays with Dorie site to see everyone else's.

For next week, Ashlee of A Year in the Kitchen has picked The Black and White Banana Loaf.