I only like two kinds of pie!

"I only like two kinds of pie..." my grandpa would say chuckling, "...hot and cold." Another one of his grandpaisms was: "I never met a pie I didn't like." Grandpa would eat any kind, anywhere as long as it was pie!

Now my sister Andi claims to be the best pie baker in the world. "Ya wanna know the secret to a great pie?" she whispered one Thanksgiving. "Lard!" I remember looking at her aghast when she uttered the name of "he who should not be named!" "Did you hear me George?" she would nudge me and say, "isn't that the best stuff you've ever had in your mouth?" She saw my eyelids flutter and my eyeballs roll back in my head...and she knew I was hooked."
"There's lard in this pie? Why in the world did you use lard?" I couldn't decide at that moment whether I should really be enjoying this cholesterol loaded, pig laden scrumptious, melt in the mouth crust, so I took another bite. "I can't eat anymore of this lard crust!" I announced to the family...had to uphold my quasi-vegetarian beliefs at the time...and marched right to the kitchen, pulled out the waste basket and shoveled the rest of that pie right into...

my mouth. I threw caution to the wind that Thanksgiving and discovered that my sister was the best pie baker in the world. Which pleased her to no end!

I don't cook with lard, never did. I prefer to just eat my sister's pies, which doesn't happen very often, she lives 800 miles from me, but I still like pie...but only two kinds...you guessed it...hot and cold!

Here is a link to my favorite and easiest pie crust recipe in the whole world. I'll let you decide on the filling!

http://www.recipezaar.com/20984

Tonight I filled this crust with smoked turkey breast that my husband spent 5 hours cooking this past weekend and tenderly simmered vegetables: red potatoes, parsnips, turnips, Vadalia onions, carrots, fresh snipped parsley and chervil, sea salt and freshly crushed black pepper. Made a butter, milk and vegetable water creamy sauce and poured over all then topped with egg yolk brushed crust! Baked it at 425 for 30 minutes. My son...in the restaurant business...just had some of the leftovers and said: "Mom, that is the best one yet!"

Happy Baking Farmgirl Friends! With lots of love,
Auntgeorge

Pie sign is available at allposters.com just do a search for pie!