Rolling in the Dough

Sometimes I feel like my life revolves around merely shuffling from one event to the next. I was rushing through the hallway today trying to get to my car fast enough to get to CosmoProf fast enough that I could get to the Monon Center fast enough to lift and run before going to a short class. I'm not going to lie, I kinda like routine, at least to a certain degree. I like knowing what I'm going to be doing in advance and planning accordingly and if that sounds boring then so be it. But, routine or no routine, life just isn't life without a little spontaneity. Thanks to not having a car for more than two months, my ability to be spontaneous has been sucked dry. Sucks.

What I do have to fall back on that breaks up the fast paced nature of life these days is the occasional blessing of some time to cook. I enjoy being in the kitchen, obviously, I think I've said that about a hundred dozen times, but I don't like cooking when I'm rushed. Being on a time crunch takes the love out of cooking and replaces it, at least for me, with overwhelming waves of stress. The other day I made some soup that I failed to take any pictures of and therefore neglected to blog about. But I had about a hundred other things to do that evening and had expected the stupid soup to take about half as long as it did so by midway through that the only reason I cared to finish was so I would have something to eat. Dad was out of town, which Mom declared to mean a cooking vacation for herself.

For this reason I try to avoid cooking or baking unless I know I'll have about twice as much time as I think I'll need to complete my endeavor. There are some foods you just can't rush, or it takes all the love out of it, and the love is what makes it worth while. One of my absolute favorite things to make is a baked good component you simply cannot hurry through. Pie crust!

What makes pie crust so unbelievably wonderful? It's so simple, yet at the same time so complex. The one that I made, that I highly recommend, is only flour, a little sugar, a little salt, and water. But it's so perfect! The recipe is so easy, too, but at the same time a little complicated. You have to be willing to take the time to make it perfect, which takes only about 15 minutes if you don't try and rush it, and you have to get the hang of a pastry blender which is only a minor detail... cutting butter can be a bit of guesswork if you don't know what you're doing, but I have faith in all of you.





All pie crusts lead to something else, though. Serving just pie crust is a little odd. So mine lead to Dutch Apple Pie, or I guess Dutch Apple Pie is really what caused me to make pie crust, which I chose as a thank you gift for someone in particular and ended up making not once... not twice... but three times. For Taylor's dad, for my family, and for a neighbor. I'm not a huge fan of apple pie, so maybe that's why this didn't make my list of favorites. Personally, no chocolate, no peanut butter, no fun really, but I like to appease others more than myself and it's Lent so I decided to give this one a shot.

Overall I'd say it was a success, everybody who had some seemed to enjoy it. I did run into a couple problems along the way though... First off, did you know pie crust can "shrink?" Me neither. Every time, never fail, the pie crust retreated into the pan at least a little bit, crushing my hopes of a gorgeously browned trim around the edges of my cinnamon crumble creations. Taylor and I did use one of the many pie crusts I kneaded out over the course of the past week to make a lemon meringue pie (unfortunately no photos were snapped) and I tried folding the dough OVER the edges of the pan and that helped a little... but only a little. I think the key, though, is the fresher the dough, the better it bakes. The recipe I used said it would keep in the fridge for up to a week, but I would try to make it the day of if at all possible.

Pecan Pie and ...Brownies?

Fortunately I spent quite some time in the kitchen today, it seemed pretty sad that I have started this blog and had so far failed to actually make mention of a specific recipe. Better yet, (for me at least, maybe not for you) each endeavor was a success!

I'm not very fond of recipes that call for pre-baked, store bought pie crusts. Where is the fun in that? "Yes, I made this pie for you. Homemade? Well, the pecan filling was all me, but you'll have to thank the darling elves at Nabisco for the flaky bits around it." Not my style. Besides, one of the most charming things to make is pastry dough. I wouldn't say cutting in butter is exciting by any means, but something about the rustic simplicity of a rolled out pie crust is just gorgeous. The smooth, flour dusted, golden brown surface and somewhat unevenly folded edges of a homemade crust has so ridiculously much more appeal than the shrink-wrapped and sticker labeled crap in Meijer's baking aisle. I took a picture and was disapointed in my digital camera's complete failure at capturing the charm of it all. I suppose I'll post it anyway, but you'll have to promise me you'll roll out one of these yourself!



And that was perhaps my favorite part. I must admit, I don't care for pecan pie. Were it the last sugar filled substance on Earth, I'm sure I would happily serve myself a slice, but I would never choose to eat pecan pie over other desserts. The pie is a gift, however, to someone who claims it is their favorite, so I happily set out to provide an indulgence. In the end I can only assume it was a success. Because it's a pie present, I wouldn't dare cut into it, and probably wouldn't care to try a bite anyway, but I think it's pretty and that's good enough for me!



Later this evening, without really trying, I definitely satisfied my own sweet tooth by much more interesting means. A pan of brownies was requested and, because I simply cannot bake anything in the standard way, set out to find an interesting brownie recipe. Taylor gave me a baking book for Christmas that if I didn't adore already, I've certainly fallen in love with now! What the book calls "Brownie Fantasy Bars" won me over for good. Where my mom would've chosen a brownie box mix, I embarked on a two batter recipe that was well worth the work. I'm not sure I would even call them brownies really... but whatever they are, they are AWESOME. The first batter was basically a thick chocolate brownie batter, with cheerios, miniature marshmellows, chocolate chips, raisins, dates, crushed oreos, and chopped pecans mixed in. Sound like a lot? It is. But that is topped by a batter the recipe referred to as a "caramel batter" that is swirled in. As if that's not enough, when the whole pan of batter is done baking, chocolate and butterscotch chips are melted on top as a frosting type garnish that makes you realize that if you eat any of this you will probably instantly have a heart attack. Oh well! I have to admit, I cheated on the taste testing... it's supposed to chill for at least two hours, but if you cut into this monster of a "brownie" when it's just out of the oven, it's a melty gooey goodness that taste so delicious it's worth ruining the bar aspect.



I suppose I should take more pictures along the way, I'll have to do that next time. In a few days I'm planning on making a four layer cake, my birthday cake, and since Taylor will be lending a hand I'll have to make sure we do that. I might even have to post a few recipes on here, in case somebody decides they'd like to make them, too. Especially this darned brownie recipe, if you're mouth isn't watering by now you're completely nuts.