Beer Makes It Better

Picture in your mind a warm summer day. You're out for a stroll through a beautiful garden, watching the bees flit from one flower to the next, pollinating each as they pass. As you look around, you think, "I'm thirsty." You should probably be thinking, "What a beautiful day." or "Wow, this garden is amazing!" But instead, you retreat to your college days and think of none other than beer.

But it's not just any beer that you want. It's too nice of a day outside to just have any old beer (don't argue with me, just wait to see where I'm going with this). The warmth and sun, and the trees, ripe with cherries...You raise an eyebrow and question your own thoughts, "Warm cherry beer?" Uh...no.

Then you remember that your friendly neighborhood pie-maker (and seller, just a reminder) has on her Summer Pie Challenge list a Cherry Chocolate Stout Pie. You narrow your eyes, put a smirk on your face, and nod your head in victory.

Your name is Ted and you are the pie-maker's father. You are on a weekend trip, visiting your wonderful daughter. This pie was your suggestion. You have one slice on Saturday night; you describe it as tasting like a black cherry pie, with a subtle hint of the stout.

You have two more slices on Sunday morning, no need for breakfast. You realize that you need to head home before you finish off this delicious treat, leaving none for your pie-making-genius of a daughter's friends to nom on.

You tell your daughter you love her and head to the car. Satisfied. It was a good weekend.



Love you, Dad!

Damn Near Perfection

When Tina suggested kiwi as a type of pie for me to use in this summer's challenge, I almost passed it up. You see, I've made a kiwi pie before. Now, I know that you're thinking, "I thought you said you wouldn't do a pie that you've made before." And normally I wouldn't. Thing is, I've never tasted kiwi pie. I've only sold it.

That's the problem with pie: as the baker, there isn't an extra slice for you to try after pulling it from the oven. Which could be a bad thing, especially if it were to taste awful.

But after eating a slice of yesterday's creation, tasting awful wasn't an option.



So, yesterday morning I met up with my friend, Jen, at Eastern Market. It was the first time I had been to that market in over a year, which is depressing, because that market is the best one around. Well, as we walked up and down I took careful notice of which stands still had strawberries, how those berries looked, and what they cost. I was amazed to find that my old, favorite farm stand, Knopp's Farm, had the best berries, at the best price.

As I stepped to the front of the line to make my purchase, the farmer took one look at me and said, "I haven't seen you in a long time." I miss that; knowing your farmer is a great thing, especially when he gives you free patty pan squash to try.

Anyway, after purchasing my berries, and grabbing lunch with Jen, I headed home to make the pie.

Having previously purchased the kiwi at Wegman's, I was ready to bake. I decided to make a smaller pie this week, because I always seem to have just a bit too much (and I can't eat an entire pie). So I got out my Longaberger pie pan and filled her up.

Sadly for my oven, and my sanity, I forgot to put a 'pie-juice catcher' under the pan. The bottom of my oven is now covered in a puddle of bubbled-over pie-juice.

Anyway, while the pie cooled, I made the whipped cream. The strawberry whipped cream. The home-made strawberry whipped cream. The best way to describe it's taste would be to compare it to an early summer evening: the sweet sent of the of the berries wafting through the air, the light taste of the cream rolling in like fog near a warm stream. It was luscious. I don't think I'll ever be able to have normal whipped cream again. I'm ruined.

And when dabbed on top of a slice of my strawberry-kiwi creation, ...perfection. I couldn't eat a bite without mimicking the chefs on the Food Network; I had to close my eyes and say, "Mmm..." The tart taste of the kiwi and the sweetness of the berries, all topped off with the creamy flavor of the whipped cream...


If only the rest of the pies in this challenge will be so good...

And now, it's time to clean the oven. Wish me luck!

The Sweet and the Sour of It All

So last night, a small group of us went to Bazin's on Church, in Vienna, to celebrate Sumo's 30th birthday. The food was fantastic! After taking the first bite of the appetizer Sumo and I were sharing, we knew we were in for a treat. But when the server gave us the dessert menus, we knew we couldn't do it (even though we wanted to). You see, since I was in Florida last weekend, and didn't make a pie, I had two of them to make this weekend. And they were waiting in the kitchen for us all to get home.

So we paid our bill (which was rather reasonably priced for a place where the clientele dress like they are coming straight from the Country Club) and headed towards Oakton.

After the patio's string-lights were lit and the coffee was poured, we took a seat and a few slices of pie.

It was a lovely night to sit under the stars and chat with friends. And the pies...well...they were interesting.

The Whoopie-Pie Pie didn't quite turn out as I had planned. It tasted like straight up sugar. I guess I should have known going into it: the chocolate cookie crust, the chocolate cream top layer. And the middle...Whoopie Pie filling. That filling is made of confectioner's sugar and not much else. Sumo said it made his teeth hurt.



The Strawberry Rhubarb was exactly the opposite. Tart and tangy. Which was exactly what Erin wanted when she suggested it. Having never made or tasted rhubarb before, I had no idea what to expect. It was great, though. I enjoyed the tang of the rhubarb with the slight sweetness of the crisp topping. It made me wish I had bought the vanilla ice cream I had been eying up at the grocery store earlier in the day.




Well, this week definitely proved a challenge. More than a few things went wrong. First, the Vienna Farmer's Market didn't have any rhubarb (I knew I should have gone to Fairfax). Then the recipe I used for the Whoopie Pie filling didn't thicken. So I had to make a second batch (luckily, I'm originally from central PA and remembered I have an Amish cookbook). Even the Hershey's recipe I used for the top chocolate layer didn't set properly.

But when all was said and done, it wasn't about the pies. It was just nice to be here, sitting outside, enjoying the company of good friends.

Happy Birthday, Sumo.

So, I know that all of you loyal fans are shaking with anticipation while waiting for the next installment of the Summer Pie Challenge. Unfortunately for you, I will be unable to bake this week. You see, Sumo is meeting with a potential client next Tuesday in Daytona Beach, Florida, and, well, in honor of his 30th birthday, we're both heading down today.

We will be flying into Orlando around 4 pm and hitting up Universal Studios tomorrow and Monday. I've even talked Sumo into going to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. I know, I know, it's his birthday, we should do what he wants. Anyway, we bought fast passes to avoid long lines and hope to be sick on fun.

I realize that it would be more of a challenge if I tried to make a pie while there, but at 54 & 1/2 inches tall I'm going to have enough of a challenge just being able to ride the rides.

So after I ride some rides and spend some much needed time on the beach, I'll be heading back home where I'll be making two pies in one day. Now that will be a challenge.