Oh My Vegan Blueberry Pie with Perfect Double Crust Dough (and eight paws!)

In baking, like everything else in life, weather, moods and trips to the store dictate whether pie is in order. I'm that person who sees pies in grocery store cases and thinks: what a shame, why don't people bake their own pies anymore? Then crave pie all the way home. It's been humid and unbearable one day, dry and breezy the next so far this summer with very little rain. 

Hot days of summer or not--I was baking a pie this week. 

I don't know why I've always felt baking a pie is an all day affair. It never is. Pie memories I have are of a pastry cutter and my mother with a large bowl of flour and clumps of butter rolling about in pieces, seeping through the thin wires of the cutter, and of me asking for raw bits of dough to nibble on while she continues to roll through the process of butter, dough, shortening. Then her with a large wooden rolling pin (the same one I still use today), shaping a circle out onto the kitchen counter with a few flings of flour tossed over and under the dough before being carefully flattened into the vintage Corning Ware blue cornflower pie plate (the exact same pie plate I use to today). Then she'd take gobs of whatever fresh fruit was available at the store for filling and copious amounts of sugar. Peach pies more often than not, but for me--berries always in summer. It never seemed to be a big deal for her to just magically throw together a pie. 

The pies were always scrumptious. 

There are a few schools of thought out there as to whether pie crust is a butter only affair or a shortening AND butter affair. I am of the latter in terms of preference.

Nothing fancy. Use whatever design you'd like to vent the pie during baking.

Giving into my craving for pie the entire pie process comes together and bakes in about an hour and a half. The "half hour" set aside for mandatory cooling period for the dough. Eating of said pie commences after a good hour or two of cooling with a dallop of vegan vanilla ice cream: a la mode. Or saved for the next morning. . . for breakfast. (The best way to eat pie if you ask me.)  

This is actually my second berry pie I've baked in two days. 

And aside from pies: here's the newest member of the family. 

This is our last addition to the family what with all the aging we have left in front of us . . we are now two dogs, two humans and four hearts. She is a little under weight and has much growing to go. She is super smart. Her sister loves her, but is a bit too big to have "full access" for play time (because her paw literally covers the little one's head entirely). Supervised play only for the time being. 

She fell asleep on the exam table at her first vet appointment while getting her booster shots. 

Awww. 

The first day we ALL met her! Smallest. Sweetest. Big Sissy loves her, too. 

Now.

Yup. It's a whole new world around here.

Vegan Blueberry Pie

Perfect Double Crust Pie Dough

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour (10 1/2 ounces by weight)

7 T. cold vegan butter 

1/4 cup cold vegetable shortening

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

8 T. ice cold water

In a large bowl, sift together the flour and salt. Then cube the ice cold butter and shortening and using a pastry blender, work the dough until the butter and shortening are in small pieces--some larger pieces are okay--actually are fine! Then begin adding the water one tablespoon at a time, tossing the dough around with a spoon to incorporate the water. Begin to work the dough into a ball carefully with your hand--but don't "over handle" the dough--you want to be able to form a ball. Then divide the ball in half. Flatten each half into a disc, then wrap in plastic and place in fridge for 30-45 minutes. 

Meanwhile, make the filling:

6-7 cups frozen blueberries (*I only had four cups of blueberries on hand, so added frozen black and red raspberries to offset the amount--it works out fine--but I did buy more blueberries for next time)

1/4 t. ground cinnamon

2 T. corn starch

2 T. all purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

juice of whole lemon

Preheat oven to 425. Prepare a 9" pie plate for baking. Toss all filling ingredients together in a bowl. Roll out pie dough on well-floured surface to a 10" in diameter circle--or wide enough to cover the base of the pie plate with a bit of overhang. Place dough in pie plate, pressing it in to fit bottom and come up the sides. *You don't want the crust too thin--about a 1/4" works well. Add the filling. Repeat with other half of dough and then place on top of filling. Fold the dough around the edges under and using your finger and thumb, pinch the crust closed. For the top of the pie, use whatever "venting" system you'd like. I just used a knife and cut out my own decorations, well. . . triangles. 

Bake for 20 minutes at 425. Then turn oven down to 350 and bake for an additional 40 minutes or until crust begins to brown. 

Allow to pie to cool for at least an hour before slicing. Store in fridge. 

Vegan Pumpkin Spice Brownies (and why I run. . . with Frankie)

The pumpkin craving kicked in and I began a search for what I'd bake. Not that there isn't a billion options with regard to pumpkin. I have pumpkin recipes galore within the hundreds of cookbooks scattered around this house to last me the full month of October and then some. Thumbing through the stacks yesterday, I was sure of one thing, the cinnamon and ginger were coming off the spice racks. Finally. 

I have old recipes cut from magazines stuffed in files as well. Add an internet search on top and I became a "frenzied overwhelmed baker"! 

I finally settled on my direction and ingredients. 

I would go "brownie" with my pumpkin. 

Vegan Peach Cobbler with Crunchy Muesli Topping (revamped from the Amish. . . and my new "coloring book" obsession)

 I had two bowls of this peach cobbler last night. First bowl was my test picture (does that one count)? I HAD to eat it or the ice cream would have gone to waste. Second bowl was right before bed. No regrets. I have to tell you peaches are one of my most favorite fruits. When this time of year rolls around and my kitchen counters and fridge are full of summer veggies and stone fruits, I am in heaven. Cobblers are one of those desserts that even a non-baker can master. Using an old passed down recipe from my mother's cookbook collection, this cobbler came together in a snap. 

It's ridiculously simple: eight ingredients. No stand mixer required. 

Vegan Strawberry Crumb Tart (and. . . under my WIDE brimmed hat in the garden)

This is what you get when you bring home a 2 lb. tray of strawberries and are home alone all week. The strawberries were obviously going to find a home in a smoothie here and there, but not 2 lbs., worth of them. What is marvelous about this delicious, nutty, cinnamon-y treat was the time it took to prepare it. Let's just say, by the time you've read this post, you could have made this already, okay?! I go for simple cooking here lately. And when I glanced in the freezer and saw the almonds and pecans, I thought nothing of throwing them in the food processor with a little vegan butter, some sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg and whipping up a nice little mini-tart shell (it took seconds, really!). The aroma from this baking was enough to satisfy my craving for something sweet, baked in quaint little ramekin and out of the oven ready to serve: crunchy, tart, sweet and yummy.  

Strawberries are a fruit favorite of mine going way back. I was the kid who'd order an ice cream sundae, "hold the whip cream. . .more strawberries." However, there's a limit to when I'll consume a strawberry. I won't eat them in the middle of winter unless they've been frozen by me during their peak months of May and June. After that, it's as if the strawberry never existed. (It's the same for tomatoes, though I do allow for some "Italian" canned varieties to enter the home in the dead of winter--a girl's gotta have her vegan lasagna.) We've moved so far off the Eat Seasonally path that I find it disturbing shopping in February and March surrounded by the same produce I saw the previous July. . . in the same places! We are a spoiled, rotten food nation. But that's okay 'cause when I want an avocado, I want an avocado.

Here is the beauty of making this Strawberry Crumb Tart: just put the nuts you have on hand in the dish and you will be fine, trust me. After a few pulses, you'll have this sticky, crumbly mixture--perfect for pressing into the ramekins. Then toss your filling with a bit of sugar, lemon zest and nutmeg, top that with a bit more of the crumb mixture and there you have it! It's delish. Go crazy and mix the strawberries with some blueberries or cherries, it's all good, I promise.

Little Rustic Strawberry Tarts (Container Growing Strawberry Know-How)

I have three pints of strawberries in the fridge. I had five! It became necessary to um, get baking. During strawberry season, there is no such thing as too many strawberries around here. Every morning on my oatmeal plus I nibble on them throughout the day (well, when I don't feel the need for chocolate). I am convinced they hold some secret cure. Of what, I am not sure. 

This recipe involves basically very little in the way of cooking. Personally, the kitchen is not where I want to be when there is so much to be done outside. Today the temps are in the nineties so I lasted outside until about noon, then had to come in to cool off. 

I grow my own strawberries, but not in the way you might imagine. There are no fields. Mine are grown in a one container that is literally maintenance free. I do nothing to this plant. I don't feed, mulch or co-plant. It is in full sun throughout the summer. In the fall, I cover it with leaves which apparently provides it with enough protection to keep it in its dormant stage without it being killed by the cold. And we had a truly cold winter, so imagine my surprise when my strawberries showed up! The homegrown strawberry is not your grocery store strawberry. IT is much better! Smaller, yes, but they are simply divine. 

Vegan Brownies (My Best Yet . . . Chocolate Craving Prayers Answered)

I have been reduced to tears by trying to make the perfect vegan brownie. Recently there was one day where not one, not two, but three batches were mixed and baked all in one afternoon. None edible. I thought I might be having a nervous breakdown. (And this would not have surprised me one bit given the state I've been in.) Comfort foods have been on the menu. A lot. Foods we can eat with our hands mostly: sandwiches, baked fries, maybe some sides of homemade slaw for good measure. The whole food thing sort of went on hiatus.  

Then this afternoon a wonderful thing happened. I craved brownies. . . again! And this time, something told me if I just threw open every recipe in every single cookbook I owned from every single expert on the matter of chocolate and brownie making, I'd bake the perfect vegan brownie. And I did. 

Vegan Velvety Chocolate Mousse (I Craved, I Conquered And . . . Morning in The Garden)

Recent events in my life lead to this dessert. Mainly stress. Chocolate is my salve. At my whit's end, the chocolate gods were smiling down at me. I feel quite accomplished after this mousse. Proud, giddy. Secure in knowing that this once most-craved dessert item can now go back into our rotation. Grant it, I had to really get creative. There is NO tofu in this. (You all know how I feel about tofu.) Plus even better--no baking! I'm slowly getting over some of my no-tofu-for-me-thank-you-very-much opinions. But not completely.

Vegan Bittersweet Chocolate Brownies (Sister Time, New Knitting Project And Returning to My Kitchen)

I returned to my kitchen yesterday and first order of business: bake something chocolate, dammit! It was like seeing a long lost friend again when I pulled out my little brownie pan. I was having withdrawl from not baking. And don't ask me why no cake in a while? All I can tell you is that I get distracted easily. Having my sister here for a week was a welcome change given all we have going on around here right now. However, I am in a bit of a "state" as we are heading into some procedures for hubby in a few weeks. My sister can attest to my rather wired self right now, watching me try to 'live in the moment' through all this drama--and do so calmly, telling me: "You need to RELAX! Try Meditation for crying out loud! Are you like this ALL the time?" And my answers: What is relaxation. . . I relax when I sleep! Meditation: Ha! And yes, I am like this ALL the time! Ah life.

Vegan Apple Crumb Pie (Move over cupcake. . . Hello Pie!)

When I woke up this morning, it was snowing! Two days ago, my air conditioner was on, I was in flip-flops and short-sleeves (not because I was having a hot flash either--though those DO happen, but just not this week. It was eighty-three degrees!)--that's why I was in short sleeves! However, yesterday, we had to have a fire in the fireplace. (I woke up and the house was sixty degrees. . . good god!) Is it any wonder I'm still not fully mended over my winter-early-spring-nearly-killed-me-virus I contracted over two weeks ago? Though, I will say that I am kinda used to not really being able to smell very well, so relying heavily on "visual eating" has helped keep me in the kitchen.

Vegan Chocolate Torte (Dear Click and Clack: My car went "Pop" then "Hiss" so I baked a torte--seemed to help me, but not my car! Why?)

I do my best to not panic. Famous last words. Sunday I was out and about, trying to cram in a few errands, leaving DH at home to "rest" and have his own down time. He'd had a busy week. So list in hand (I always have a list, can't live without my lists), I was out the door. I try do my "Sunday Shopping" before noon--when "church" folks hit the roads because once all the praying's over, seems the shopping begins. (Which totally blows my mind, but that's for another blogger to discuss.) Anywho, list in hand, I was heading down the highway, when suddenly, Pop and Hiss and Gurgle, Gurlge, Gurgle. Typically I would not have heard such goings on because I would be listening to music--really loud, singing to myself. As it so happened, I had the new Adele CD in the car (LOVE it!), but had not yet hit play, so my ears were privvy to the mechanisms of my dear eight year old car. I knew immediately something really bad had just happened. Worse, I was on the highway. So I changed lanes--got over to the right hand side, thinking, well, I could at least coast to a stop--then call hubby (hands free--always hands free--safety first). I called hubby after realizing as I tried to change lanes that to even do so--change lanes that is, I had to literally use my ENTIRE upper body strength to get the car over! OH, WTF?! Phone call placed, panic now definitely in voice, I am like, "Honey, uh, there's a problem." Well, to say this is a new conversation--I mean, one where I call home in a bit of a tizzy over my car, is an understatement. In the last thirty days alone--three such calls have been placed, all having to do with my car, and all on DH's day off! First, there was: Honey, my tire has a crack in it. New tires put on car. Second, there was: Honey, my car won't start. New battery replaced. Third, and most recent: Honey, I don't have power steering and have to turn my car using my whole body: I'm heading toward the car dealership NOW, could you please come get me! New power steering pump thingy needed. LOTS of money--lots. Sigh.

Vegan Chocolate Syrup Cake (The Perfect Grammy Night Dessert: Was that Johnny Depp singing with Norah Jones?)

My love of music runs far and it runs deep. My ipod is filled with a ridiculous assortment of music. Ridiculous. Last night was a ritual in our home: we watched the Grammys. No phones, no texts (I have never sent a text in my life)--but you get the idea. Last night's award show was probably one of the best I'd seen--especially for an Almost Fifty gal like me--seeing the tour de force of "seniors" out hip the hippest of them, I was floored.