Monday, August 13, 2012

Gave Berry Pie a Try

So, my absence yesterday was due to a day filled with visiting grandparents before I head to school. Having the grandparents over gave me a great excuse to try baking a new dessert, which I think came out pretty good, if I do say so myself : ) I didn't come up with the recipe on my own (I'm not that good) haha. Instead, I mixed together two recipes from other blogs that I love! Triple Berry Pie from So Tasty,So Yummy and Triple Berry Pie from JavaCupcake

Before I could mess up the kitchen with my baking adventures I headed to the local farmer's market, Calhoun's Farm Stand, with my mom. They always have such beautiful and vibrant displays of produce I can't help but take a few pictures!



I snagged some of those strawberries and blueberries for my pie. The only other berry I used were blackberries, which I was forced to pick up at the grocery store haha. Once I had all my ingredients together it was time to get started.

The first step (which I usually forget) was to preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Then I mixed together the berries, lemon juice, cornstarch, and sugar.

1 pint blueberries
1 pint strawberries
1 pint blackberries
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 tsp of lemon juice



I just mixed all of the ingredients together and poured them into a frozen/pre-made pie shell (hey give me a break I was busy yesterday! haha). I thawed and saved the second pie shell that came in the package to make the lattice top.


Once the filling was in the shell I had to work rather quickly to make the top without the bottom shell getting soggy. In hindsight (always 20/20) I would've had the lattice strips cut and chilled (so they were easier to work with) before I poured the filling. Oh well! It worked just fine. I rolled out the thawed pie crust just enough to flatten the edges and elongate the shape. Then I cut strips roughly an 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 inch thick. I laid three strips length-wise and three over the top width-wise. I called this "lazy lattice" because I didn't actually weave the strips haha.


When I finished the top I was almost done! I just finished it off by using the egg wash listed in JavaCake's recipe.

1 egg + 2 tbsp water

Mix egg and water and brush on edges and top of pie. Then it was ready to be popped into the oven for 45 minutes! : ) I was so excited (and it smelled so good) that I opened the oven about half-way through and took a picture.


It looked great when it came out of the oven and I was very excited to serve it to my family with a scoop of vanilla ice cream : )


It was delicious and my parent's made an awesome dinner before-hand, so I was STUFFED haha. As I am writing this I am actually eating a left over slice for breakfast : ) Just as good cold! I hope some of you get a chance to make this because it was super easy and a great use for delicious summer berries!

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Introduction : )

Hi everyone! 
I'm new to this blogging thing so you will have to bear with me : ) I wanted to cover a few things in my first post so that you can know who I am and what I am all about! I am a first year graduate student in exercise physiology at UMD with a teaching assistantship. I'm very excited to start this new chapter of my life with my awesome girlfriend and our ferocious (not) dog, Rory. I have a great support system of family and friends back home in Upstate NY who I will miss a ton.  I will be blogging about crafts, food, music, exercise, every day life as a graduate student, and whatever else happens to pop into my head! I can't wait to hear your opinions on the things I post and commenting is always encouraged : ) Thanks for stopping by!
P.S. The title of my blog refers to my type A personality (which I have a love/hate relationship with) and "namaste" comes from my obsession with yoga (the hotter the better!)