Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Pie, Frost, Sun, Pumpkins

It's Pietober around here. If I have a signature dish, it's apple pie, and I've been refining my technique of late. Two apple pies in two weeks, the second one revolutionized by the use of this handy gadget:

How, exactly, did I get by all these years without one? Saves a million minutes of peeling, slicing and coring, and is so much fun to use! This one belongs to Bill, loaned to me in hopes of inspiring continued pie making, and of course that ploy succeeded. 


I won't share my recipe (there are many good apple pie recipes out there), but the other change to my pie-making style has been a tip passed from a friend of a friend. Instead of using a pastry blender to cut the butter into the crust, I now grate frozen butter using a cheese grater. Perfect texture, less work. 

Apple pie for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert keeps the doctor away, I say.


It's been such a gorgeous October, bright and sunny and warm, and now the last couple nights it's gotten truly cold- I rode to work this morning on roads coated in frost. The light has been amazing, slanting down with incredible color in the morning and evening as the days get shorter and we head toward the daylight savings change over. Wanders around the bluffs of my neighborhood in the early morning, and a trip to Sauvie Island of a Sunday evening for jack-o-lantern pumpkins have yielded lovely opportunities for soaking up those incredibly atmospheric times of day.




This October leaves me feeling incredibly satiated with sunshine and fall food, scarves, hats, sweaters and soapmaking (more about that another time), knitting and many cozy moments both inside and out. Bring it on, November!

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