pastry party!

There has been an overwhelming lack of pie updates on this here blog. Fear not! There has still been plenty-o-baking going on in this household. This week my adoptive brother, Dylan (brother of the lovely Caitlyn) and I had a pie makin date. The pastry product: a sweet potato pie. Dylan loves to cook/bake but this pie held a special purpose; to woo his lady friend neighbor. He is already an expert- the pie was a success in both being delicious and impressing the neighbor lady.

 

(After several attempts of getting this to be right side up, I'm temporarily giving up before I get frustrated. Thanks, blogspot.)

 

I also gave a savory tart a go. This is a cranberry, blue cheese and walnut tart. It turned out great! I want to try it with chevre next time.

 

I'm not sure what's up next on the baking docket, but it will certainly be putting to use this handy little tool,

a lattice cutter, Lindsey gave me for Christmas.  With it's help I may just make the prettiest little pie there ever was.

 _______________________________________________

Cranberry Walnut Tart Recipe

Crust

• 1 cup flour
• 2/3 cup walnuts, ground
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 3 ounces butter, chilled and cubed 
• 1 tablespoon milk

pulse dry ingredients in a food processor, add milk to form a ball, then press into pastry pan. Poke with fork. The recipe says a 9 inch pan, I did several smaller pans. Freeze for 30 minutes, then bake for 15 minutes @ 375

Filling

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup cranberries 

1 tablespoon sugar

1 1/3 cups walnuts, coarsely chopped

2 teaspoons fresh thyme, minced fine

2 eggs

1 cup heavy cream

2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled  ( I used a bit more....) 

 

Saute onion and salt in olive oil (I added a little garlic to be a little crazy) until soft and carmalized. Add cranberries and sugar and cook until berries pop. Stir in walnuts and thyme. 

Spoon mixture onto tart, crumble cheese on top and pour cream and eggs (which you've whisked together) over top. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes. It will be set up nicely when it's ready to be pulled out.

Random Order

 Truth be told, it doesn't take much to make me happy. Today was one of the simple things in life I adore. A pastry date with Cait! Dylan and Lizzy joined us at Random Order, and not only had great pie (banana cream, vanilla salted caramel apple, and brandied pears with dark chocolate and candied ginger streusel- Pie to the People, indeed!) but many-a-laughs and good conversation. Which is part of the reason I love pie, the company that usually comes with it.  Random Order was amazing- these are big words, but... I think I have a new favorite bakery.

I am incredibly amused by the fact I know the city by where pastry shops are located. I often get turned around in parts of NE Portland, but bakery locations can always help me connect the dots. Pie: helping me get around the big city. Thanks pie. 

Another simple thing that makes me happy-- these three good lookin boys. 

 

playing a bit of blogging catch up

Laughter and tears are both responses to frustration and exhaustion. I myself prefer to laugh, since there is less cleaning up to do afterward.
-Kurt Vonnegut

____________________________________

     Would you look at that, December has up and left, and it took 2010 with it. I have accumulated a lot of wonderful memories from this last year, but have eagerly embraced Twenty Eleven with open arms. All the usual talk of New Year resolutions and goals and starting anews got me to evaluating where I ended up and who I've become after a years time. There were a lot of personal growth experiences from the year I will always cherish, and am proud of myself for. I am thankful I've somehow managed to gain alongside this growth, a level of maturity which allows me to recognize it as such.  One of my favorite accomplishments of the last year was one of the more silly of my endeavors, teaching myself to bake pies. Having not only a visual sense of growth from the beginning to present, but also one I can eat, is really exciting. I'm certainly planning on continuing with the pie making, but am excited to pick another uncharted (culinary?) adventure to explore and conquer!

     December went something like this for me: Finals. Trip to Utah. Work. Sick.  Being able to have that second bit was a saving grace.  Visiting my parents is always such a wonderful time for me. I love living in Portland very much, but being away from family can be so very difficult.  The best times spent at Deer Hollow are always the low key moments spent around the table playing cards, or in the living room visiting while watching bits of an old movie; delicious food involved always. The car ride with Dad from the airport to Logan came complete with an introduction of Ben to the experience that is Smith and Edwards and a chicken lunch at the famous Maddox.  Seeing extended family at the Flinders Fam Christmas party, and visiting with Grandma & Grandpa Firth was wonderful. One of the highlights of the trip was the art project Mom put together. We each had a blank canvas to create a multimedia collage. It was quite the spectacle as we all tore into old magazines and paints and glue. I really enjoyed watching everyone's personality came out in their pieces as they evolved layer after layer.

 Some of the finished pieces:


Camber's Nest

 Brady's awesome take on the Evolution of Man

Dad's Cycling Yeomen

 

 My Captian of the Queen 

 Danielle's garden inspired piece

 

 Lindsey and Jake's abstract color fantastico

 Emily's Crowned Bluebird

There is never a shortage of good times with my family.

 Liam hard at work as a snow plow.

 Miss Elsie is the happiest little turtledove to ever be.

 Ben sporting what may be the best Christmas gift ever.

 Missing Lindsey and Jake, the siblings took a trip to the creperie.

 I miss having Poot around in Portland. Hearing him play is an all around family favorite.

 Two of my favorite face makin goons.

Liam demonstrates the cookie eating process for maximum enjoyment.

 Nana and Papa creating another generation of bookworms.

Being able to play with my nieces and nephew was another highlight for me. My siblings make for some pretty great parents.

     _______________________________________________

And now for a little random awesomeness:

 During my brief battle with the plague, I became a slight hypochondriac. I diagnosed myself with many-a-ailments, if for no other reason to keep myself occupied. One of these diagnoses was the passing of a kidney stone. During my research (after a lack of sufficient evidence I dropped my suspicions)  I found this:

Pretty awesome, right? Turns out this jagged rainbow is nothing more than a kidney stone as seen through an electron microscope. Wow-ow-ie! That's amazing! It almost made me disappointed to not have one of the buggars myself. ...but not quite.

Now that my health has returned I'm keeping it on a short leash, determined to not catch another bug for the remainder of the flu/cold season. So far I'm feeling pretty good about it.