Elle's Kitchen: The Summer of Pie²

Cherry Pie

 

 

I have a confession...  I only made this

pie to test the decorative top crust.  I don't

like cooked fruit, I love to eat fresh fruit.

Except, in buckles, crumbles, cobblers, grunts

or, as I have learned from my friends in The

Social Table, sonkers (that was a new one to me).

Oh yeah, combine cooked fruits with some butter,

oats and brown sugar and I love it!

 

 

Back when I was known in my hometown as

The Girl Who Liked Old Stuff, I would scour

garage sales, rummage sales, church jumble

sales, often competing with my friend Melissa

to discover great finds.  This was one of those

finds, in a nondescript little tin were these

adorable cutters.  I used a few of these to make

the pattern in the top crust.

 

 

Ingredients:

 

2 pie crusts

1 beaten egg white

2 cans cherry pie filling

(I used one of dark cherries and

one of no sugar cherries)

Sugar

 

 

Preheat oven to 425º F.

 

Press one of the pie crusts in a 9'' glass

pie plate.  Brush bottom and sides with

egg white.

 

 

Combine the 2 cherry fillings if using

different types.

 

 

Fill the bottom crust with the 2 cans

of filling.

 

 

Cut the top crust with small decorative cutters

in the center of the crust.  Center cut crust over

pie plate and carefully place over cherries.  Fold

bottom crust over top and flute the edges with

your fingers.  I used my finger to add egg white

around the openings in the crust, you can't use

the brush or the cherry syrup will get on the crust.

You can use the brush to coat the edges with egg

white, sprinkle lightly with sugar.

 

 

Package the small pieces that you cut out and

place in the freezer, you can use them for another

pie.

 

 

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until crust

is golden brown.  I added a crust shield

after 20 minutes so the crust would not

burn.

 

 

As you can see the crust does not look as

great as it does in a magazine...  Some of

the filling bubbled up through the holes in

the top crust.  Let's hope it tastes good!

 

Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Honoring Women's Rights ~ Week 45

Aunt Mary's Favorite

 

 

We are quilting along with Barbara Brackman's

Block of the Week, Grandmother's Choice.

 

http://grandmotherschoice.blogspot.com

 

 

This is how I made my block.  It may

differ from the original instructions.

 

 

Fabric Requirements:

 

Fabric A: Fussy Cut

1 - 4 1/2'' square

 

Fabric B: Blue

4 - 2 1/2'' squares - Mark

a diagonal line on back.

 

Fabric C: White Print

4 - 2 1/2'' squares

 

Fabric D:  Red

3 - 2 1/2'' x 4 1/2'' rectangles

 

 

Make Center Unit:

Place a Fabric B square on opposite

sides of Fabric A square as shown and

sew on drawn line.  Press to the corner,

then trim seam to 1/4''.

 

 

Repeat to opposite corners and square

to 4 1/2''.

 

 

Sew a Fabric D rectangle to each side of

center unit and press seams to the Fabric D.

 

Sew a Fabric C square to each side of

a Fabric D rectangle as shown.  Make 2.

 

Sew long rectangle units to top and

bottom of center unit as shown.

Square to 8 1/2''.

 

Check out everyone's work on Dustin's Flickr site:

 

http://www.flickr.com/groups/grandmotherschoice/

 

American Homestead is

now on Facebook.  Please

"like" my page.

 

http://www.facebook.com/americanhomesteaddesign

 

Please "follow"  this blog and check

out my other blog:

 

http://chock-a-blockquiltblocks.blogspot.com

 



Happy Independence Day America!

 

July 4th is Independence Day in the

United States.  Since it falls during

the school summer break, we have

often celebrated the day elsewhere.

We were in Hong Kong on this day

2 years ago and we decorated our

hotel room with American flags.

This year we are at home in our

American Homestead.

 

Of course that means we will feast

on traditional US picnic foods.

 

Potato Salad

 

Pulled Pork BBQ Sandwiches

 

Israeli Couscous Salad

 

Okay, this one is not a traditional

US dish...

 

Cole Slaw

 

 

Tomato Mozzarella Salad

 

 

It's a great day for hanging around the backyard.

 

 

 

 

Elle's Kitchen: The Summer of Pie²

French Tart

 

 

Yes, I know it is the Summer of Pie,

but this tart is so pretty and so tasty

I had to include it.  You will need:

 

tart shell, see below

pastry cream, see below

strawberries, sliced

kiwi, sliced

blackberries

2 tabl. apricot jelly

 

 

Crust Ingredients:

 

1 1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup ground walnuts or pecans (pulse

nuts in food processor with a little powdered

sugar)

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/4 teas. salt

9 tabl. very cold butter, cut into small pieces

1 egg yolk

 

 

Place flour, nuts, sugar and salt in

processor and pulse until combined.

Scatter butter over mix and pulse until

butter is coarsely cut in.

 

 

Break up the yolk and add a little at

a time, pulsing with each addition.

Then process at 10 second intervals

until the dough clumps and curds.

 

 

Turn the dough out onto a flat surface

and knead just to make sure everything

is incorporated.

 

 

Butter a 9'' fluted tart pan with a removable

bottom.  Press dough along the sides and bottom

of pan, reserve a small piece in case you need to

patch the crust after baking.  Freeze the crust for

at least 30 minutes. 

 

Preheat oven to 350º F.

 

Butter the shiny side of a piece of aluminum foil

and place buttered side down on the crust, press

into crust to fit.  Place on a baking pan and bake

for 25 minutes.  Remove the foil, if the crust has

puffed, press it down with the back of a spoon.

Now bake for another 8 minutes without the foil.

Cool to room temperature.

 

 

Pastry Cream Ingredients:

 

2 1/2 cups milk

4 large egg yolks

1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup cornstarch

1 1/2 teas. vanilla

2 tabl. butter, cut into bits

 

 

In a small saucepan, bring the milk to a boil.

 

 

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, whisk the

egg yolks with the sugar and cornstarch.

 

While whisking, add 1/4 cup of the hot milk

to temper the eggs.  Slowly pour in the rest

of the milk while whisking.  Over medium heat,

whisk until mixture comes to a boil.  Keep whisking

for 1 to 2 minutes.  Remove the pan from the heat.

 

 

Whisk in the vanilla.  Let sit for 5 minutes, then

whisk in the bits of butter until incorporated and

the pastry cream is smooth. 

 

 

Scrape the cream into a bowl and place a

piece of plastic wrap on top of the custard

as shown.  Refrigerate until cold.

 

 

Pour pastry cream into the shell. 

 

 

Arrange fruit as shown.  Melt the jam

and brush over fruit. 

 

Enjoy!

 

Sorry I was so late with this post.  We have

houseguests and we have been having so

much fun!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Me Time ~ July 2, 2013

 

 

Spent some time with my friends at Me Time

today.  I was working on some samples for my

Quilt Market booth.

 

A Birthday Girl was making bracelets.

 

 

Someone was transferring a design.

 

 

Someone was binding a tablerunner.

 

 

July is a big birthday month.  I love my friends

but I worry I neglect them, my life gets so busy

and I run out of time to have fun...  I'm going

to work on that ~ my friends mean the world

to me!

 

 

...and then we had cupcakes.

Homekeeping: Cleaning The Mattress

Or, the Pinterest and the Pea...

 

 

People who know me, know I'm very

particular when it comes to my bed.

I like it to look good, I like it to smell

good and I take time to make it that way.

I iron my sheets, I use a lavender linen

spray and I tuck a lavender sachet under

my pillow.   I saw this pin on pinterest

about cleaning your mattress so I thought

I'd give it a try.

 

 

Take 1 cup of baking soda and

4 to 5 drops of lavender essential

oil (or any scent you like).

 

 

Place in a jar and shake to mix.

 

 

Place powder in a kitchen strainer and

dust all over the mattress.  I found this

part to be tricky.  It was best to place the

strainer on the mattress and put a small

portion in it and then gently tap the side

of the strainer.  You want it to come out

like you are dusting confectioner's sugar

over a dessert.  I found I still had to move

it around with my hand to get full

coverage on a queen size mattress.

 

 

Wait one hour and vacuum with the

upholstery attachment.

 

The pin says this will draw up any moisture

or dirt from your mattress including dust mites.

I'm not sure about that but it did smell good.

 

 

I decided to buy new sheets to

mark the occasion.

 

 

Ahh, a pinterest success!

Every night when I get in bed I feel

like I'm floating on a cloud...

Night, night.