Monday, December 12, 2016

And, he licked the bowl clean!



It's a little late for a Thanksgiving story, but it's the one I "enjoyed" the most. I spent the morning making my family's famous (scratch) chocolate pie. The crust was ready, I had everything I needed (I always do), so I jumped right in.

Now, the magic of this recipe is that you don't put meringue on top. You fold it into the pudding! So, once the pudding thickens, you just stir it occasionally while you make the meringue. No sweat. I put 1 egg white in the bowl of my (new) mixer, and was dismayed to discover that the whisk DIDN'T EVEN TOUCH THE EGG WHITE!! And it's a Kitchen Aid! I tried whipping the egg white by hand – but that, clearly, wasn’t going to work. I finally added a second egg white and that did the trick. Once the whites were frothy, I grabbed the little jar of cream of tartar - yup, it still had the seal on it. That thing must have been attached with super-glue. I couldn't pull it off, and had a terrible time finding something that would penetrate it enough to be able to pry it off! Grrrr.

Finally, I got the egg whites the way I wanted them, and turned my attention back to the pudding. I yanked it off of the stove in the nick of time. The final preparation for the pudding is to add some butter and vanilla. Guess what I discovered about the vanilla. Yup, it too, had an in penetrable seal! But, ultimately, stronger wills prevailed and the pie was cooling on the counter.

The trick with this pie is to stop whipping the meringue just short of "firm peak". All of the delicious goodness will fold into the pudding smoothly and lump-less. Anyway, the good news is with 2 whites, there was lots of meringue, and I was quick to put extra in the pudding. Amazing stuff. Listen, when made right, this pie is so good, your eyes roll back in your head, your heart will leap with joy, and drool will cause you great embarrassment. Of course, the DH made sure the pudding pot and the meringue bowl were "clean" before they went in the dishwasher! 

Oh, the crust. You need to make 2 crusts for my chocolate pie. The crust is simple, easy, and wonderful. The secret? It has an egg and sugar in it! Why 2 crusts? Well, how else are you going to have enough left over dough for cinnamon and sugar pie crust cookies?

News from the Studio


Dawn's Quilt 

Don't you just love Arlene's quilt? It is so  beachy and happy! The Wave on Wave pantograph worked beautifully on it! I hope Dawn loves it as much as I do!
Wave on Wave Panto









 Christmas Heart Song

Here is Joyce's version of the Christmas Heart Song quilt. So bold and happy. It just makes your heart sing. Again, the Trumpet Vine pantograph looks great on this quilt, and the shiny gold thread pulled it all together. Great job, Joyce!
Trumpet Vine Panto








Piano Key Heart Song

Trumpet Vine Panto
This is the 4th Heart Song quilt I've made this year! SO easy and quick. I had enough left over fabric for the star and first border, but not for the outer border. So I cut up all of the leftovers I could find and made a piano key border. I used the ever popular Trumpet Vine panto. The pattern for the version with a standard outside border is now available on Craftsy. Just click here: Christmas Heart Song Pattern.


AHQ Opportunity Quilt

The Appalachian Heritage Quilter's "opportunity" quilt which will be given away at the April quilt show, is a "pinwheel chain". What a sweet and gentle quilt. Save up your money! Soon you will be able to purchase Hershey Kisses and be given tickets to enter the drawing!
Wave on Wave Pantograph

The Wave on Wave panto  adds a little bit of "whimsical" to it, don't you think?


Heart Song Workshop

I mentioned in the last post, that I was preparing for a Heart Song Workshop. Well, we had a great time. Everyone made great progress on their quilt tops. It's amazing to see how different they are!
 
 













 


















Great job, everyone!

Have a blessed and joyful Christmas! And, here's to a happy and prosperous New Year!

Now, let's go quilt something!


2 comments:

  1. The pie sounds like it's out of this world. Are you willing to share the recipe?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Of course, there is nothing proprietary. The recipe is Cocoa Fluff pie from a 1933 cookbook of my mother's. The pie crust recipe was given to me by an old boyfriend's grandmother. Just fill out the contact me form on the right side panel, and I will send them to you. You will love it!

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