Bites of My Life

The post-holiday slump starts now:( I hate how fast holidays come and go. Thankful that Christmas is around the corner, but to think I have to wait a whole year until dressing, pumpkin pie and creamed corn again, it's just plain sad. 

The Tucker Thanksgiving was top notch this year. The whole fam plus some, hours in the kitchen, multiple food babies, leftovers up to our ears; shopping, walking, drinking, eating, board games, football games, golf games, etc. I wish it didn't have to end! 

-Rice cake, almond butter, pumpkin puree and cinnamon for a quickie seasonal breakfast.
-Cranberry moscow mules to start the festivities!
-I am a traditionalist when it comes to Thanksgiving dishes, but I risked it for the biscuit and updated our pies with homemade crust and the addition of cranberries to our apple pie!
-Cause the apps before the feast are just as important.
-Not to toot our own horn, but nobody does Thanksgiving better than my family of foodies. 
-The classic pie sampler plate to really send the Thanksgiving food baby into it's 3rd trimester. Cran Apple, Pumpkin and Pecan with homemade whipped cream!
-Sister squad. 
-A very happy #manksgiving! Congrats to Courtney and Hunter!
-Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, took a day out of my life. Kathleen and I spent a solid 6+ hours on the couch marathoning all the episodes. I can't help but love it because it's Gilmore and all, but I was also a little ehh about it. It seemed a little silly and like they were trying to hard at parts. Give me your thoughts!

Annie

Bites of My Life

Post-vacation depression, quickly got subbed out by post-holiday weekend depression. Two back to back all-star weekends. I can't complain too much. My days have been full recently making the weeks fly by. I still welcomed the long weekend with open arms though! When I think back, I really jammed a lot in from Friday to Monday. Happy hour, dinner and show, day trip to Dallas, dinner with parents, pool time, drinks with friends, more pool time, 4th of July barbecue and more. All reason why I'm exhausted. Best part of a long weekend though, is the short week that follows!

-Last week was devoted to recreating some favorite D.C. eats. First the colorful mezze bowls from Cava Grill. I did turkey meatballs, a grain mixture of brown rice, barley and quinoa, cucumber, olives, tomatoes, picked onion, feta, tzatziki and tahini. 
-Attempt number two was with fancy mushroom tacos like at Chaia.
-Fell into the Sprout's salesperson's trap, but at least I'm getting in extra greens! 
-Acai bowl made better topped with HIppie Crack brought back from D.C.
-A delicious meal and even better cocktail had with the fam at OKC's new Mary Eddy's on Friday night before seeing Dreamgirls. 
-Took a quicky day trip to Dallas with mom and sis. The highlight was a stop at one of my favorite places.
-Cause a little frito chili pie and a cheese ball never hurt anyone.
-Thank goodness the swan had our backs!
-I get a kick out of being overly festive. A patriotic yogurt bowl was a must.
-Almost too cute to eat, but we all know I ate it anyway.
-Cause every barbecue needs a good salad. I did a combo of arugula, watermelon, feta and chopped pistachios. Salt, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic. Got real festive with my star shaped watermelon.
-Red just really isn't in our color wheel. 

Annie

Cherry Peach Pie + Homemade Pie Crust

Holy moly baking success. But really, we couldn't stop moaning and groaning over how good this sucker turned out.

A couple weeks ago for Father's Day, I knew I wanted to make a peach pie for my dad. We were grilling out, it's summer and it's one of his favorite desserts. But I had to find a way to amp it up a bit! I decided on cherries, but chose rainier cherries, a Tucker favorite. Their coloring almost looks like a baby peach with a stem.

Besides Thanksgiving I don't ever make pie. I like pie it's just not quite in my repertoire, time to change that. I firmly believe the best summer dessert is some kind of fruit pie or cobbler or crumble served up with cold ice cream!

Homemade crust was a definite for this pie. Again not something I ever make. We go straight up Pillsbury on Turkey day, but not anymore. The crust made this pie. It was thick and flakey with a touch of sweetness. I'm all about the crust. I struggle to understand people who don't eat their crust. Pizza crust, hand it over. Pie crust, scoop me some more ice cream and I gobble it up.  

I firmly believe in this pie. It had everything I want in a pie. One of my favorite parts is how well it stays together when you cut it. Fruit pies struggle in this category. Our Thanksgiving apple pie is delicious but comes spilling out after the first slice. Give this recipe a try, I'm not letting you down here!

Cherry Peach Pie

Ingredients:
5 ripe peaches
2 cups rainier cherries (the light red and yellow ones)
4 Tbsp. cornstarch
zest and juice of 1/2 a lemon
1/4 tsp. almond extract
2/3-3/4 cup sugar (I only used 2/3 but it depends how sweet you want it)
pinch of salt
egg for egg wash
Perfect Pie Crust (recipe to follow)

Directions:
Using a paring knife, peel your peaches. Slice in half and remove the core. Slice into thin wedges and place in a large bowl. Pit your cherries, slice in half and place in bowl with the peaches. Toss with sugar, almond extract, lemon zest and juice and a pinch of salt. Set aside.

Lightly grease your pie pan. On a floured surface, roll out both crusts to about a 1/4 inch thick. Gently press one crust into pie pan. Fill with pie filling and make sure peaches and cherries are evenly distributed. Slice your other pie crust into thick slices and alternate pieces creating a lattice top. Pies are supposed to be rustic, so no need to beat yourself up about trying to do a pretty edge. I just cut off the excess pie dough then roll it inward and give it a pinch to seal the two together.

Place your pie in the freezer for 15 minutes. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. After 15 minutes, give the pie an egg wash and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 15 min. Lower the temperature to 400 degrees and bake for 35 to 45 minutes until lightly brown and bubbly. Serve with some homemade vanilla bean ice cream and enjoy!
 

Perfect Pie Crust
yields two pie crusts, enough for a top and bottom

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cup flour
1 cup cold unsalted butter, cubed
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. sugar
9-10 Tbsp. ice cold water

Directions:
Combine flour, salt, sugar and cold cubed butter in a food processor until pea size crumbs form. With the food processor on, drizzle in the ice cold water until a ball forms and it pulls away from the edges. The dough is slightly slightly sticky, but if you think it's too dry or need it to come together more add an additional tablespoon of water. Flatten the dough into two disks, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Dough can also be frozen. I suggest wrapping in plastic wrap and placing in a ziplock to store. 

I know this pie is good from the fact that my brother-in-law was still talking about it three days later. Some things you just can't get off you mind-ha! Don't forget to serve with some vanilla bean ice cream. And it's even cuter baked up in cute pie pans like this "I love you more than 3.14" made by local, Designs by Kace. 

Annie