Reflections on a (Baking) Season

Winter Cardinal  via strawberryluna

The children were nustled all snug in their beds/

While visions of sugarplums danced in their heads

To this day, I do not know what the hell sugarplums are. (Oh wait, I just googled them; those look delicious.) Nonetheless, that line in "The Night Before Christmas" has always brought warmth to me. I can't tell you how many nights I fall into an exhausted sleep while images of lattice pie crust and biscuits and crumble topping and cinnamon-sugar sprinkles float in and out of my mind. Last night's reflections got me thinking that this season is unique in that way. 

Never before have I been able to so freely express myself with food. I feel like I'm now able to translate my passion into something concrete - more concrete than poetry or music or feelings shared after a few cocktails - and it feels so liberating. I feel like I have something that is all my own. When I want to promote it, I promote it. When I feel burned out, I let myself reflect and create without judgment. Then I just come back with better stuff.

But, this year, the holiday season has just about chased me down. It feels like I've been stuck in a race with someone just a step faster than me, running on sand to try to keep up. Then I fall asleep and recharge, wake up, do yoga for 90 minutes, drink lots of coffee, work non-stop all day at the publishing company, drive home, and bake until I can't bake anymore. And I kind of love it. 

I enjoy sharing what the holidays have always meant to me: my mother's cooking, long stories shared over long meals, and spending time with my family, who I simultaneously see too often and not enough (what a contradiction). This year, the holidays also mean variations on the traditional baking my mother has always executed so well. Instead, I'm making  the southern food that comes from my family's heart and transforming it into something oh so San Francisco. Some examples: salt-honey pecan pie, persimmon custard tarts, salted dark chocolate almond toffee, ginger-nutmeg southern tea cakes, sweet potato cupcakes, and heavy cream on top of all of the above. 

I may not have the time to relish every second of this season, but I'm basking in the warmth through the food I'm making for others, through the samples I save for myself, and through the endless flow of new ideas that dance through my head as I fall asleep at night, exhausted, ready to start all over again in the morning.

Peanut Butter Cookies: The Cookie of My Heart

I've been spending a lot of time lately thinking about peanut butter cookies. I recently made an order for a friend, and it sent me on a mission through my mom's old recipe box for the perfect combination of ingredients. I made my first test batch a few months ago, and they've only gotten better since then. Now, I use all-natural peanut butter (I literally go to the store where I can press my own peanuts into peanut butter... it's kind of badass), all-butter, White Lily flour, and roll each cookie individually in coarse sugar. It's a bit of a step above what my mom had in mind when she wrote the recipe in her recipe box, but it still has the heart and soul of the cookie of my heart: the classic peanut butter cookie. 

I'm not sure why, but every time I bite into a peanut butter cookie, I think of Atlanta and my childhood. I'm not even sure if my mom made these cookies much when I was little. All I know is that when she did make these cookies, I went crazy. I felt like I was being rewarded for existing. That's what peanut butter cookies are to me: a reward for living on this planet, where peanut butter exists. Because peanut butter is one of the best things on this earth. Really.

Next up is perfecting my peanut butter and jelly cookie recipe. It's a peanut butter and jelly sandwich but one hundred times more decadent, only it's about 1/8 of the size, so it's not so bad for you.

The holidays have been so good to me so far. Even though a certain someone *coughcough* left for Los Angeles right as all the stress hit, I've still been taking lots of time to myself. My recipe for success as I'm going through all my recipes for other people: yoga at 5 in the morning, meditation, shopping only during lunch hours at work and avoiding the shopping mall, handmade gift certificates, eating lots of avocados and vegetables, and spending time with friends whenever possible. 

This year has been so much different than any year before it. I've found it hard to believe that it's Christmas already, but it's here whether I'm ready for it or not. I feel so much more whole, so much more determined, so much more accomplished, and like I have so much farther to go. I'm looking forward to Thailand and Paris and weekends with Rob and yoga each morning and baking new things every week and making people smile with butter, sugar, flour, and bacon. Lots and lots of bacon.

My Very Own Virtual Home

After weeks - no, let's be real, months - of procastination and worrying, I have finally gotten my South by San Francisco Facebook page up and running. It is modest yet. But I have big plans: deals, videos, better photos, polls, all that good stuff.

If you haven't, please "like" the page. There is much more to come, as small as it may seem right now.

Go to the page at: Facebook.com/southbysanfrancisco

And that's because, if this holiday season has taught me anything, it is that I am ready for the next step. I thrive on the energy and planning and the love and care that go into each of my orders, especially when things get hectic. So I am taking several large gulps of air, sighing, and closing my eyes as I jump off the deep end. No, no, I'm more like wading into the mid-deep end, feeling my way around there, and then possibly doggie paddling towards the deep end. I'm taking calculated risks here, people. And I am calculating the exponential deliciousness of pie as we hit the bottom of winter and make our way back towards spring sometime soon. Just like the Greeks did at some point. Or something.

Sorry for the dumb joke. Like the page!

My San Francisco Quest for the Perfect Southern Pralines

In case you couldn't tell by my terrible lack of updates, I have been running around like a madwoman this holiday season. I've been expanding my selection to fit some custom orders (peanut butter and jelly cookies anyone? Or how about ginger-nutmeg tea cakes? With handmade candied ginger. BAM! You got it!) as well as trying out my hand at making some southern candy for my own gifts to loved ones.

Take, for instance, these southern pralines:

They're aaalmost where I want them to be. I just have to get them a bit thicker, which means moving a bit faster.

What are southern pralines, you ask? I don't know if they have a comparison to California candies... They taste like caramel-drenched, toasted pecans and are a bit chewy, but more crumbly when you bite into them. Then as you chew them, the sugar melts on your tongue. After you've eaten them, the caramel flavors linger, leaving your mouth warm and full of nutty-syrupy sweetness. Oh my, I'm terribly sorry, I got carried away there... The point is: they're worth trying.

But making them at home is another story. Candy is, after all, serious business. It requires speed, dexterity, and a lot of intuition. Candy thermometers are only so accurate. Sometimes you just have to know. Which is much easier said than done, especially in my case.

Each year, I order a praline gift basket for my mom for Christmas. I always order from Savannah Sweets, a waterfront store that we stepped into one day on a trip to Savannah. They look like this:

So, yes, they are much prettier than mine. But I have faith that I will work up to this in approximately three more tries. In the meantime, all my friends are eating up the leftovers. I also happen to be putting the crumbles on top of my yogurt in the morning. Shhhh...

The recipe I am using is the traditional praline recipe from The Ultimate Southern Living Cookbook. It's deceptively simple. Just make sure you have a candy thermometer. And if you don't, they're like five bucks.

Southern Pralines

Recipe Adapted from The Ultimate Southern Living Cookbook

Makes about 24 pralines (just enough for gift-giving!)

Ingredients
2 cups sugar (I'm thinking of experimenting with other types of sugar, but the verdict is not yet out)
2 cups pecan halves
3/4 cup buttermilk (or use a substitute with whole milk and cream of tartar, vinegar, or lemon juice; just Google it)
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1/8 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda

Directions
1. Combine all ingredients except the baking soda in a large saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring gently with a wooden spoon until sugar dissolves.
2. Cover and cook over medium heat 2-3 minutes to wash down sugar from the sides of the pan.
3. Uncover and cook to 234F (aka the "soft ball stage"), stirring constantly.
4. Remove from heat and stir in the baking soda quickly.
5. Beat with a wooden spoon just until it begins to thicken. It will lose its gloss.
6. This is where you have to work quickly: Drop by tablespoons onto greased wax paper; let stand until firm. That'll take at least 30 minutes.

New Treat: Double Chocolate-Pecan Toffee

This stuff is no joke. It starts with a thick toffee center, then has a layer of dark chocolate and toasted pecans on one side. I let that set, and then I pour another layer on the other side. So, yes, this is the real deal.

Now being offered for $5.00 by the box, which is five big chunks (that's a whole lotta toffee for you and your friends).

And I'd give the recipe out for this one, but some things are better kept secret. Hmmm...

That's some hot toffee right there.

New Menu Page is Up!

I just set up a new menu page, so you can see what all the seasonal offerings are as well as prices!

Just in time for the holidays! You can see it here: MENU.

Also to come: a Facebook page, complete with an online store, where you can order by credit card. 

Under Construction

This blog is under construction. I'm actually working on a full-fledged website right now, but for the time being, I will update the menu on this here blog until this are up and running.

Thanks for your patience!

Break

I'm sort of on a forced break here now that my computer no longer exists. Nonetheless, I have a few things in the works: photos to come and a photo-coordinated menu tab on the site, a Facebook fan page where you can order pies and other sweets, and I'm selling my tea cakes through the Oakland Farmer's Market.

I've been doing yoga each morning as well, so I haven't felt much like eating butter. Not that butter is bad. It's very, very good. I just feel like cleansing myself of all that for a bit.

The Purloined Laptop, Pies in Jars, Pretty Tea Cakes

Want to know what I've been working on? Normally, I'd say you wouldn't care because, like, why would you? But this is really beyond adorable.

Well, to preface this, I've been without a computer for several days. My car was broken into, and poor, forgetful me had left my brand new Macbook in the trunk. Needless to say, whoever broke into my car just popped open the trunk and purloined my precious computer.

So I've been using my phone to take photos and updating remotely. It isn't easy. Excuse the graininess.

Nonetheless, here is the exciting development: I am now doing the cutest ever pies in jars! Last week, I tried out my chess pie, sweet potato pie, and bourbon apple pie, and they worked like a charm. The jars I found are just the right volume and depth to hold up to my normal pie recipes as well.

I sent some out to customers this week, leaving one on a doorstep and mailing one package all the way to Montana. These will cost $6, and, as with all my pies, the sky is the limit. Bacon-maple custard pie in a jar could be yours.

The final package

My apple pie in a jar

I've also been hard at work creating a customized cookie to match my friend Jeni's amazing House Breakfast Tea No. 2. She runs a truly delicious tea company, called SKY Tea. All of her tea is handmade, and her chai is the best I've ever tasted.

So these cookies I'm making are honoring all of the time and care she puts into her masterpieces. The result: a nutmeg-ginger southern tea cake. These are delicate with a spicy aftertaste that wakes up your tastebuds and cleanses your palette for the next sip. They might just be my cookie masterpiece.

The package for the tea cakes, all covered in gold sugar and chunks of my homemade candied ginger 

The cookies are sold in her holiday gift baskets, but you'll also be able to buy them at her market stall in Oakland! This is huge for me! Yay!

Finally, I will be participating in a blogger meetup later this month, which is really exciting for me because I feel like I will finally get a chance to meet some of the people I follow religiously on Twitter, and I will also get to talk about what I truly love: food. Oh, there's free wine too. Forgot to mention that.

Hello, Fall

It's November, and it's finally starting to feel like autumn here in San Francisco. That is, the mornings are a bit foggy but the sun is shining by mid-afternoon. Still, there's a bite in the air at night that is crisper than it was in the summer, cleaner somehow.

Here's a small glimpse into my kitchen and life this fall, and all that I am grateful for as I embark on several new baking projects and adventures in the coming weeks.

The view from my kitchen in the evening as the fog rolls in. I look out over this as I mix together some cookie dough by hand.

Some of the loot and a shopping list from my birthday in October. I got a whole Sur La Table gift basket. 

And my friend Marie handmade me this adorable apron.

Some of my favorite cookbooks that I keep on hand at all times: White Lily's classic, The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook, Southern Cooking by Nathalie Dupree, a vintage pie cookbook or two from the 60s, and Ken Haedrich's Pie (I don't know if a better pie cookbook exists)

Apple-Cinnamon and Pecan Pie Pops

Two weeks ago, I made some tiny little pie pops for the speakeasy. I sold them separately for people who wanted to bring some home for loved ones, and they were quite a hit. When I do these again, I will probably do only super-sweet pies because the ratio of crust to filling is strongly in the crust's favor. You need a filling that would normally smack you in the face, like cherry pie or pumpkin pie. The pecan pie worked very nicely as well, and I highly recommend that.

Here are the supplies you need to pursue a similar project:

• Ingredients for regular pie filling (or you can do store-bought, but you're hella cheating), cut into one quarter the amount
• Pre-rolled pie crust
• Lollipop sticks (you can buy these at Michael's)
• Rolling pin
• Patience. Worlds of patience.
• A cookie cutter, about the size of caramel apple pop

This is how they'll look before they go in the oven.

Some of the filling may spill out. It's okay.

And here is me making sure to secure the sticks in place.

The final product! Well worth the effort!

Pecan was by far my favorite, so I'll give instructions for that.

Pecan Pie Pops

inspired by bakerella

Ingredients: 

What is listed above (pie crust, lollipop sticks, rolling pin, etc.)

For filling:

1/3 cup dark corn syrup (I use half corn syrup and half molasses)

1 egg, beaten

1/3 cup sugar

2/3 tbsp butter, melted and cooled

1/3 tsp vanilla

3/4 cup chopped pecans (dice these if possible)

For brushing: 

1 egg white

brown sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Mix all filling ingredients together in one bowl (I love how easy pecan pie is).

2. Roll out the crust and use a cookie cutter or biscuit cutter to cut out circles in the dough. Make sure you have enough for the top and bottom of the pie pops. 

3. Place one circle down and press the lollipop stick into the middle of the circle to secure it in place. Place about 1/2 tbsp of filling into the CENTER of the circle. 

4. Take another circle and place it on top of the bottom circle, pressing into onto the lollipop stick. Then press the top onto the bottom with the end of the lollipop stick to make a pretty design. 

5. Use a pastry brush to cover the top crust with an egg white and then sprinkle with brown sugar.

6. Place back in the fridge for a few minutes before baking to set up. 

NOTE: You may need to place the dough back in the fridge before putting the top circle on. This is because the crust is much easier to deal with when it is cold. 

7. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until lightly browned, just before the juices start to bubble (this timing is an art that takes practice).

Plum-Pear Port Mini Pies and Sweet Potato Mini Pies

On Monday night, after a long day at work, I decided to work through some recipes I'd been meaning to try and send them to my friend Mike in Los Angeles for his review (and enjoyment too). My friend Will also came by, and I owed him a pie from the raffle, so I threw together a bourbon apple pie crumble pie for him. He was eating it before it came out of the oven, and brought it to his friend's house, where it promptly disappeared.

For me, fall is all about thanking the summer for all that delicious, vibrant fruit, and turning to warmer flavors like sweet potatoes (or yams), pumpkin, squash, pecans, bourbon and port, and lots of butter. With that in mind, I decided to try out two new recipes, and they were an absolute success: Sweet Potato Pie and Plum-Pear Port.

Placing the Bourbon Apple Pie beside the baby pies and the momma sweet potato pie

Plum-Pear Port in the foreground, and sweet potato just in front of it

Sweet Potato Pie gets its time in the spotlight

And here are the recipes!

Sweet Potato Pies (recipe modified from Paula Deen's)

Mine has less sugar, and you can totally get away with it!

Ingredients

2 cups of whipped sweet potatoes (you'll need about 2 large sweet potatoes or 3 medium-sized ones, and I'll explain how to whip them below)

3/4 - 1 cup sugar (depending on how sweet you like it; brown sugar could also work nicely)

1/2 stick melted and cooled butter

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ginger

1 cup milk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Roll out the pastry and transfer either to a 9-inch pie plate or cut with circle cookie cutters and press lightly into buttered muffin tins. Trim and decorate pastry, and then place it back in the fridge to set up. 

2. Peel the potatoes and cut them into evenly sized cubes. Then steam them for about 20 minutes, or until soft. Transfer to a bowl to cool. Once cool, mash with a potato masher (or a wooden spoon or some other mashing implement), then transfer to a mixer and whip them up. You can do this by hand, but I got a KitchenAid for my birthday, and it is the single-best gift of all time.

3. Scoop out 2 cups of whipped potatoes and put into a bowl. Combine with the sugar, butter, eggs, vanilla, salt, and spices. Mix thoroughly. Add the milk and continue to mix. 

4. Pour the filling into the cooled pie crust and bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool to room temperature. 

You can add a meringue to this, but I love how it tastes by itself. 

Plum-Pear Port Pies (recipe modified from BHG)

Mine is heavier on the plums because I love their tartness

Ingredients

1-1/4 cups sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch

Squeeze of a lemon

1/2 tsp cinnamon

4 cups chopped plums (I leave skins on)

2 cups cored and chopped pears

2 tbsp port (you can omit this if you feel like it, but add in some more lemon)

1/4 tsp vanilla

Pie crust for either a double-crust pie (you can do a large lattice, or tiny muffin-tin pies like I do)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Roll out the pastry and transfer either to a 9-inch pie plate or cut with circle cookie cutters and press lightly into buttered muffin tins. Trim and decorate pastry, and then place it back in the fridge to set up. 

2. Combine sugar, lemon, cinnamon, a pinch of salt with all of the fruit and allow it to juice for about 30 minutes. Then pour off the excess. Add lemon juice or port and vanilla. Transfer the mixture into the pie tin(s).

3. Roll out the remaining pastry for the lattice crust, or do whatever you want really with the top a crust. A crumble would be a good choice since this pie is REALLY juicy. It could soak up some of the excess.

4. Bake 1 hour-20 minutes if you are baking a large pie, or 1 hour if baking in muffin tins.  

Mini Chicken Pot Pies

For my birthday, my friend Kelley got me a set of adorable ramekins that I've been using nonstop. I've been feeling rather lazy about cooking lately, so I'll just throw some leftover pie crust into the ramekin and put in some of my pre-made chicken pot pie filling that I keep in the freezer and defrost when needed, preheat the oven to 400F, press on a top crust and give it some air vents, put a milk glaze on top, and wait 40 minutes to chow down.

A very lucky boy was extremely fortunate that I have a whole set of these so I could make one just for him at 10 PM after a long day of work.

These are best when served warm with a glass of bourbon-gingerbeer-lemonade. That's right, I said bourbon-gingerbeer-lemonade. Sip on that for a minute.

Enjoy!

More Speakeasy Photos

Here are yet some more photos of the Speakeasy. These photos were taken by my friend, Will Rittenhouse, who happens to have impeccable taste in cameras and an impeccable photographic eye. I love how warm these came out. They really captured the lighting we created with the candles and white lights everywhere. 

The DJ

That's me serving banana cream pie!

My beautiful friends, Marie and Maureen

Some more of my beautiful friends, Kelley and Amy

A close-up of the gorgeous Maureen

Settling Down

Things are finally starting to settle down after a long and eventful weekend. The Speakeasy as Pie event was a success beyond my imagination. Everything was beautiful and just as it should have been. And then all my friends and co-workers and even my family made it out to celebrate. It was just lovely.

Some stats:
$220: Money raised for Urban Sprouts
<1/2: Bag of garbage
9: Pies eaten
9: Hours the party lasted
50: Attendees, about half in costume

Here are some of the photos we took before the night began:

 The famous pie pops

 The pie of the evening: bourbon apple, just in time for fall

The table setup before dark

Some of our lovely accents: floating candles in mason jars (where I normally store lemon curd and pie filling), flowers, recycled crates

The two drink choices at the bar: The Newsboy and The Exotic Lady

The aerial view of the bar

Maria's zine stand

That's me awaiting guests at the pie stand. I'm not crazy about being in photos.

Speakeasy This Friday: Take Your Pie to the Face

The time has nearly come for the house party of the year: Speakeasy as Pie.

I am so incredibly excited - and even more grateful - for everything that is coming together and all the people who have made this possible. Maria and I are in awe of how our communities of friends, neighbors, and random acquaintances with big hearts have supported us throughout this process.

On that note, I want to give an insanely loud shout-out to my best friend Marie, whose excitement and ideas and creativity have really made this possible for me. I don't mean that lightly. I never would have been able to do this without her support. Actually, I never would have gone to New Zealand if it weren't for her either, which would never have led me down this path. Aw, I'm getting all choked up just thinking about it. The point is that I have her to thank for so many things in my life. Love you, girl. 

You wouldn't believe how much love and prep and time has gone into this from so many different people. Here is a small sampling of what we've been doing over the last few weeks to prepare:

• Endless recipe-testing to get the world's best pie crusts and fillings
• Logo and flyer design
• Menu and cocktail consultations
• Collecting an insane number of pie dishes
• Picking up furniture and rugs and tapestries; candles, lanterns, and jars
• Crafting endlessly
• Clearing out the entire backyard
• Eating Oreos for dinner because I'm too stressed to cook anything
• Contacting charities for our raffle
• Clearing out the garage and pretty-fying it for everyone's enjoyment
• Praying to the weather gods for sun and warmth this Friday (it seems to be working so far!)
• Making a dozen pie crusts in rapid succession
• Looking up from all my baking to see the lights of the city through our big, wraparound kitchen windows, then closing my eyes, breathing deeply, and getting back to work
• Yoga to stay focused. Lots of yoga.

Now it is time for me to begin all of my prep work for the food and settle into the excitement. Get ready to dance and party and drink delicious drinks and take some pie to the face!

Can't wait to see you all on Friday!

Blogs That Are Stealing All of My Free Time

It is quite possible that I spend too much time on the Internet for my own good. Here are some of the baking blogs I've been reading for the last few weeks, making me not as productive as I could be. Gosh darnit, stop putting out so much amazing, quality food-related content, people!

1. Teeny Pies: This girl is worlds of cool. She's basically my hero right now. It's her goal to travel around to become a pie apprentice at dozens of famous shops around the country. She's calling it her "tour of pie", and I am going along for the ride. Her first stop is High Five in Seattle. Mini pies, big pies, pie pops, all vintage-inspired. Those are my kind of people.

2. Chocolate-Covered Katie: Low-fat vegan desserts like Four-Minute Coconut Macaroons.I will eat these foreverrr.

Photo and recipe on Chocolate-Covered Katie

3. Southern Lady Cooks: I'm pretty sure the name says it all. These recipes remind me of back home and my family and the holiday.

4. Some Kitchen Stories: a photographer and a writer have paired up for beautiful recipes and great stories. Each recipe comes with a tiny intro that sets the tone for what's to come. So original, you have to love it.

Honey-Scented Fig Granola on SKS

Share the love and check out these awesome blogs!

What's In the Works

I haven't been updating because it has finally occurred to me that I really need to turn my baking into a legitimate "thing" before I begin my real journey. After several weeks of introspection, I realized that I often sabotage my own efforts to be successful. This cannot continue. I need to re-focus and prioritize so my life is not one failed effort after another.

Case A: I dream of going to grad school to get my PhD in American Literature. Yet I am too afraid to look at applications or even begin to do anything besides take my general GRE. The thought of googling "Emory Literature grad school application" gives me the hives. 

Case B: I thought of a brilliant idea at work, but the very idea of executing said idea sent me into a flurry of "No, that won't work"s. I imagine all the ways things could go wrong, and then I just sit still.

Case C: I am unhappy at work, but also afraid of all the possibilities outside of my office. Or the lack thereof, however you want to look at it. 

But, basically, I realized that my lack of blogging was me telling myself that I wasn't worth my own success, and I really need to stop doing that. I have so much unrealized potential, and I need an outlet for all of my creative energy. 

So before I begin blogging again, I want to let you know that I have been hard at work trying to make my dreams a reality. Here is a taste of what is in the oven:

The Speakeasy as Pie Event. Here is the flyer with all the details, designed by my friend Marie with my photograph. 

My electronic business card:

Improving my recipes, and finding the beauty of this bad boy: The Bourbon Apple Pie (so southern it kills me)

...More to come soon, I promise! I just need some time to re-focus. If you follow my other blog, you know that it is almost my birthday, and my birthday is a time of great reflection and re-organizing for me. 

One Day, Ten Varieties of Mini Pies

This wasn't even the messy part

Today I baked 10 varieties of mini pies. It took me about 9 hours total, not including the extra time I took to go for a run in the middle and to bake a batch of peanut butter cookies for a sick friend and an order I am shipping off to Los Angeles in the morning.

Why did I make 10 varietes of miniature pies? Who the hell does something like that? Is that what you're asking? Well, I had an order of two dozen mini pies today, and I wanted to showcase all my best work. The list went as follows:

1. Banana Cream Pie (so. effing. cute. the layers! the wafers fit perfectly! the whipped cream!)
2. Peanut Butter Cream Pie (the essence of comfort food)
3. Blueberry Lemon Curd Pie
4. Pecan Pie with Sorghum
5. Date-Pecan Pie
6. Apple-Pear Pie
7. Strawberry Mint Pie
8. Blackberry-Nectarine Crumble-Topped Pie
9. Lemon Chess Pie (oh, of course!)
10. Peaches and Cream Pie (my favorite... it tastes like peaches on homemade ice cream)

Now I'm sipping on a lemonade with fresh mint in my bed, saying goodbye to this exhausting day

Hello, Monday. You always arrive too soon.

Southern Church Cookbooks and Hummingbird Cake Inspiration

I spent Sunday relaxing and baking with my mom. She brought out her old dusty church cookbooks from the 1970's and we sifted through the stained and torn pages to find the best recipes for some mini pecan pies I was making (three varieties, which I will be posting about very soon). My mom warned me that you had to take the recipes "with a grain of salt" because they're written like the person is talking to a friend. So you have to know when something sounds a little funny, or how hot to preheat the oven since the author assumes you know, or when you should probably cut the sugar in half because you're using that much sorghum molasses. 

I went through a lot of the really gooey recipes, asking my mom, "Have you ever baked a banana cake?", "Have you ever baked sweet potato pie for the holidays?" and so on. She said yes to everything, until I got to, "Have you ever made a Hummingbird Cake?" 

Her response? "No, those are so sweet you can't taste anything but the sugar!" 

So, naturally, my next mission, probably for my mom's birthday, is to make a hummingbird cake that doesn't wipe you out from sugar overdose. So, sorry Paula Deen (1 3/4 cup sugar!), I won't be using your recipe. I'll be modifying one of the ones from my mom's old cookbooks. Maybe we'll even bake it together. Wouldn't that just be so sweet? You wouldn't even need a quarter of the sugar. 

Photo and recipe inspiration by Two Tiny Kitchens

Last Week in Food (Vegan Edition)

Roasted Eggplant and Tomatoes on Pita with Fresh Basil
I basically just threw some eggplant and tomatoes on a baking sheet with some salt and olive oil, put those in to bake for about 30 minutes, then put them on pita and toasted the whole thing. It was lovely and healthy, but also filling.

El Metate Avocado Burrito
So this isn't on the menu at El Metate, but I got a regular burrito and asked them to replace the meat with avocado, which they did (at no charge!). Then I got it inside of a whole wheat tortilla. I ate half for lunch and half for dinner, and indulged in some raw radishes, which are my favorite thing of the moment. Me wants mooore.

Miscellaneous 
I also had the pleasure of trying a new restaurant (Zazie), eating Ethiopian food at Ethiopian Cafe on Valencia, having a summery Pimm's Cup at Straits, and eating peanut-roasted tofu with kale and eggplant. That's right, I got hella vitamins over the last few days.

Crystal Springs Run
And this has nothing to do with food, but I decided to go for a run at lunch yesterday, and I ran into this view. I was much more productive the rest of the day as a result.

Now I'm off to spend some time with friends and brainstorm for my pie order next week. Have a wonderful Friday surrounded by friends and vegetables, because both are very important for your health.