Here Comes the Sun(flower)

Turns out the overspill from the bird feeder provides a delayed gift. Unfortunately, the squirrels like them...so the day after these photos were taken, all that was left of this sunflower was a bare stalk and some petal remains on the back deck. Which is where, I suppose, those buggers like to sit, relax, and dine.

Anita & Arve, Photo Gold!

Well, going through the 1000+ photos from Anita & Arve has been a thrill! Thank goodness for high speed wireless.... I think it's about time for another vacation visit...

You All Apparently Want Homemade Cherry Pie...or, Home-Made Cherry Pie, redux

In reviewing some site statistics, the most repeated google search landing visitors to the site are those searching for some alphabetical variation of home made cherry pie. Last year, I posted an entry about just such a thing when visiting friends in Wyoming. With a photo. Here is that photo, and just so that those searchers actually find what they're probably looking for - a recipe instead of a photo - I'm posting that here as well. Bon Appetit!

Homemade Cherry Pie Recipe
Stuff you’ll need:

• Pastry for Two-Crust Pie
• 4 cups of fresh de-stemmed and de-pitted cherries
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
• 2 tablespoons margarine or butter

Stuff you’ll need to Prepare:

• Preheat oven to 425F
• Prepare pastry for Two Crust Pie - 9 inch pans.
• Prepare pie pans (glass or metal: add a touch of oil, butter, Pam, etc - to extra-non-stick it).

Stuff you’ll need to Do:

1. Combine cherries, sugar and flour and blend lightly. Most recipes advise adding a splash of almond extract, but I'm not sure why.
2. Taste your cherries. Are they a touch too sweet? Add a splash of lemon juice. Too tart? Add a squirt of honey.
3. Spoon into pastry shell.
4. Apply a little butter/margerine here and there.
5. Add the second pastry shell to the top, or use it to make a lattice crust.
6. Fold edges of top pastry under bottom pastry.
7. Press together to seal and flute edges.
8. Cut slits in several place in top of pastry.
9. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until juice bubbles through the top crust.

Alternative / Options:
Create a show-stopping top crust by applying an egg wash and some raw sugar crystals!!

• To create an egg wash you’ll need an egg yolk and a splash of water, and a new ~2” paintbrush.
• Blend an egg yolk and a teaspoon of water. If the wash doesn’t appear to be easily spreadable with your brush, you may gradually add a little more water – but be careful of making the mixture too runny.
• Brush mixture on the top pastry of your pie – whether lattice or whole crust.
• This yeilds a shiny, golden-brown effect to the pie crust. Additionally, it allows things to stick – like a couple of sprinkles of raw sugar crystals. For the same effect, but with less shine, use the whole egg.
• For an additional neat presentation effect, use a decorative item to press into your pie shell fluting. Examples are something with grooves, lines, patterns, etc. If the texture is flexible, it can be wrapped around a pencil, using the pencil to press in the fluting
• Finally, add a sprig of spearmint (not catmint) to the top for presentation zing.