Thanksgiving Pies (you have to have more than one....)

Pies. One of my favorite things. My mother makes the best pies in the world. Her secret? Her homemade crust. She takes flour, shortening, and water and turns it into a magnificent taste sensation.

I've tried her recipe; I can't replicate her touch. Instead, I rely on Pillsbury pre-made piecrust dough in the rectangular red boxes. In the refrigerator section. People who eat my pies (and didn't grow up eating pies made by my mother) love them.

Our Thanksgiving traditions include a lot of pies: pumpkin or squash (sometimes both), pecan, apple, mince; and the old New England standby, Indian pudding with vanilla ice cream. This year I'm baking pecan and trying out making pumpkin tarts instead of a pie; I'll let you know how they turn out.

On to the pie recipes: pecan and pumpkin:

Pecan Pie

Serves 8
Preheat oven to 350º

1 cup Karo syrup
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ½ cups (6 ounces) shelled pecans
1 unbaked 9” pie crust

Stir the first 5 ingredients thoroughly using a large spoon. Mix in pecans.
Pour into prepared pie crust.
Bake on center rack of oven for 60 to 70 minutes. Cool for 2 hours. Store pie in refrigerator.

Tips: Pie is done when center reaches 200º F. Tap center surface of pie lightly; it should spring back when done. For easy cleanup, spray pie pan with cooking spray. If pie crust is over-browning, cover edges with tin foil.

Recipe from the Karo container.

New England Pumpkin Pie

1 15 ounce can ONE-PIE pumpkin
1 tablespoon cornstarch
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ginger
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon salt (scant)
1 ½ teaspoon butter (melted)
1 ½ cups milk or 1-12 ounce can of evaporated milk
1 cup sugar
1/8 cup molasses
2 eggs (beaten)
1 unbaked 9” pie crust

Preheat oven to 450ºF.

Sift sugar, cornstarch, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg together. Mix this with contents of one can pumpkin. Add eggs, beaten, melted butter, molasses, and milk. Add a dash of lemon juice if desired.

Line a 9” pie plate with pie crust, pour in mixture. Bake at 450º for 15 minutes. Then reduce temperature to 350º and continue to bake for 50 minutes.

Cool on wire rack.

Creamy Carrot Parsnip Soup: Third Time's a Charm...

Growing up we always had fresh vegetables. We had a garden, as did my grandparents so many of the vegetables on our table where ones we had grown ourselves. My favorites have always included root and other vegetables I associate with fall: fresh from the ground carrots, turnips, rutabagas, sweet potatoes, and parsnips; butternut squash and Brussels sprouts.

Today, from June to December, most of my fruits and vegetables come via my membership in the Farm Direct Coop, a local community supported agriculture group. Each Thursday I drive to the pick up spot and discover which produce is ripe that week. The days when my basket is filled with kale, swiss chard, arugula, and bok choy make for challenging menu planning, but these choices are often supplemented by radishes, tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, and lettuce - vegetables I find easier to plan menus around. Then in the fall, my favorites tend to be among the choices and I spend Sunday afternoons cooking, often making soup or roasting vegetables.

Today's recipe for Carrot Parsnip soup is new to me: I've only made it three times. The first time I loved it, the second time it was rather tasteless, and today - perfect. The difference? Today I followed the recipe exactly. I advise you do the same. The taste will be worth it.

Creamy Carrot Parsnip Soup*


Medium crock pot: makes 4 servings

2 tablespoons rice
1 pound carrots, scrubbed or peeled, and cut into small pieces
1 pound parsnips, scrubbed or peeled, and cut into small pieces
2 cups vegetable broth
1 cup water
1 cup evaporated skim milk
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons ground walnuts

Combine the rice, carrots, parsnips, vegetable broth, and water in the crock pot. Cover and cook on low until the vegetables are tender, about 5 hours on low or 3 hours on high.

Using a hand held blender, puree the vegetables. (Or transfer vegetables to a regular blender, then return to the crock pot.) Stir in the milk and pepper. Heat the soup until hot, about 5 to 10 minutes. When serving, sprinkle each bowl with walnuts.

* Recipe from the Complete Slow Cooker Cookbook by Carol Heding Munson.

So how did I improvise? The first time I made the soup I used skim milk rather than evaporated and I believe I cut back on the water. The second time, I didn't pay attention to the recipe and used more parsnips than carrots and put skim milk into the crock pot with the raw vegetables. The soup was tasteless: I made it edible by adding half and half each time I heated up a bowl...

Moon River Root Beer Floats

As always happens, hearing Andy Williams singing "Moon River" brings me back to Auntie Vi's den, sitting on her sofa with my sister Polly, watching Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's. Drinking root beer floats out of Auntie Vi's tall, colorful aluminum glasses, using her silver iced tea spoons to fish bits of vanilla ice cream into our mouths. We loved spending the night at Auntie Vi's as our beloved great aunt let us stay up 'late' to watch movies - a real treat as we sometimes did not have a television at home, although we did have set bedtimes.

In honor of Auntie Vi, who would now be 113, and Polly, who would be 52, I offer my memory of our Moon River Root Beer Floats.

Put a scoop of your favorite vanilla ice cream (no low fat or frozen yogurt please....)into a tall glass, then fill the glass with a good quality root beer.
Stir with an iced tea spoon.