To be interested in the changing seasons is a happier state of mind than to be hopelessly in love with spring.
George Santayana, Spanish-American philosopher (1863-1952)
Dad and I bicycled to the Saturday farmers' market this morning, more for the fresh air than anything else because the refrigerator remained well-stocked, fortunately for us with vendors being few and the range of produce being limited, this being still early in our homegrown season and the first summer holiday weekend, inciting a mass exodus onto the highways to be anywhere but home.
Fewer people meant that a table draped in red gingham plastic and blue plastic chairs located beside the homemade sweets table was vacant and we could sit and enjoy some apple crisp and two cups of coffee, fuel for the ride home.
We did score the season's first field-grown beefsteak tomatoes, precious cargo on the route home, where they were transformed into lip-smacking good toasted bacon and tomato sandwiches. Gourmet meals may make for interesting culinary adventures but they really don't measure up to the soul-nourishing flavour of this simple fare.
After lunch, Mom and I raided the neighbour's rhubarb patch, taking away Spring's last red and green stalks for the noble purpose of baking a strawberry-rhubarb pie, pairing sweet fruit with tart vegetable, creating a delicious unity more ambrosial than the sum of its parts -- at least that is what we're hoping for as we wait for tomorrow to taste the fruits of our labour. Stay tuned.
You'll have to get Mom's recipe for rhubarb pie if you don't have it already. Sweet-tart with a bit of a custard-type filling. Super yummy! I miss it. Guess I'll have to start tackling pie making.
ReplyDeleteStacey
Hi! I wasn't enthusiastic about pie making until I found a simple, no fail (truly) pie crust recipe:
ReplyDeleteMix together 2 cups flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large bowl. In a measuring cup, measure 1/3 cup yogurt (others use buttermilk) and top with 2/3 cup vegetable oil. I whisk these together and then pour the liquid into the flour. Stir with a fork until just mixed. Divide dough in half. Roll between two sheets of waxed paper and transfer to pie plate. Put in the freezer for 1-2 hours before baking. I leave the top crust between the wax paper during the freezing time. I like a thicker crust for quiche so I don't divide the dough.
The recipe has never failed me, opening up a broad spectrum of ways to add inches to my waistline. ;-)
Enjoy!
And I'll be sure ask for your mom's recipe!
ReplyDeleteShe uses Grandma MacFarlane's pie crust recipe. don't know how it compares to yours but she says it's easy.
ReplyDeleteShould we start thinking about a MacFarlane family cookbook? ;)