Men Praise This Fruit Pie

Cherry PieMaybe it's the warm comfort of summer, or the fact that the fruit in the farm market looks so good so that I buy too much and then have to cook it before it rots, or simply that I love pie, but I've been baking a lot lately and I'm not a baker.  I recently made my favorite pie, cherry.  I know from experience that men (and women) do praise this fruit pie, but I have to share a few more baking tips from my 1965 edition of the Farm Journal's pie cookbook:

• Take a thimble from your sewing basket.  Wash and use it for a pattern to cut steam vents."
• Today's farm homemakers usually bake at least a couple of extra pies while they have the rolling pin out and the ingredients handy.
• Every neighborhood has a few women experienced in cooking who are locally famous for their crusts and pies.  Some beginners (often brides) believe these homemakers are born with special talents.  They don't realize how many of them learned by the discouraging "trial and error" method no longer necessary with up-to-date recipes and directions.

Apricot, Peach, Maple MuffinsBesides pie, muffins are great for summer.  They are easy to make, and tasty.  I hate really heavy muffins.  I prefer the breading to be a conduit for the fruit.  It's July and local peaches and apricots are already plentiful, so I created a delicious recipe based off a King Arthur Flour Muffin Recipe, using maple syrup and lots of spices.

I'll conclude with some more entertaining advice from the Farm Journal.  "Remember that Pies please men.  Since men are the great pie eaters and promoters, let's give a rancher friend the last word--his definition of his favorite dessert: "A triangle of pie is the best way ever discovered to round out a square meal."  Now to find my sewing basket...

A bit of Cobbler

I had the best bbq of my life today.  Actually, I don't know if it was truly the best bbq, but we were so hungry that smoked crap would have tasted delicious.  We decided to go for a bike ride which turned into a 54 mile bike ride. We were tracking our journey based on how much further we had to peddle to get to the BBQ shack (mile 44). But seriously, Carolina Brothers Pit BBQ on the WO&D trail is wonderful!

Its Memorial day and my original plan was to bake a rhubarb pie.  I was too tired and we didn't have enough time when I got home, so the pie turned into a cobbler.  The beauty of cobber is that it is easy to make, you can use virtually any fruit, and its yummy!  I like my cobbler tart with a nice biscuit crust on top.  Since it has a relatively low sugar content, it also doubles as breakfast!

Amazingly, I did not burn myself tonight.  The last time I made cobbler I placed it on my counter to cool and then reached up and over to get plate out of the cabinet.  My belly grazed the side of the extremely hot pan and unfortunately for me, my shirt pulled up when I lifted my arms up to reach into the cabinet, leaving a nice welt on my stomach.  Word of advice...don't burn your stomach.  it hurts.