Fall Haiku
Foods and Fall
Leaves blow in the wind
The smell of cinnamon flows
As fall approaches
The State fair arrives
Concession stands filled with treats
Small hands grasp for more
Warm chocolate swirls
Marshmallows circle around
When the heat escapes
Laughter fills the air
Friends greet each other warmly
Over funnel cake
Pumpkin patch is full
A giant is taken home
Pie and whipped cream served
Cornfields get picked through
Red, yellow, and white kernels
Green husks in my hand
Smiling and stretching
Crimson apples are taken
Put into baskets
Halloween arrives
Candy is divided up
Bellies full again
Time for thanks is here
Sharing turkey with gravy
And white potatoes
Foods and Fall
Leaves blow in the wind
The smell of cinnamon flows
As fall approaches
The State fair arrives
Concession stands filled with treats
Small hands grasp for more
Warm chocolate swirls
Marshmallows circle around
When the heat escapes
Laughter fills the air
Friends greet each other warmly
Over funnel cake
Pumpkin patch is full
A giant is taken home
Pie and whipped cream served
Cornfields get picked through
Red, yellow, and white kernels
Green husks in my hand
Smiling and stretching
Crimson apples are taken
Put into baskets
Halloween arrives
Candy is divided up
Bellies full again
Time for thanks is here
Sharing turkey with gravy
And white potatoes
Piktochat to Powerpoint about Poutine
German Jello Pie Early this week I cooked up the Lime Jello Pie on page 35 from Vittles Cookbook: Compiled by the American Women in Blockaded Berlin (link to page here). I choose this particular recipe because it looked simple and I thought it would be a good first try at a jello pie. After baking the pie, I could see my previous thoughts of difficulty were skewed.The difficulty came in every step of the process of making a pie. The first step, of course, is to buy the ingredients. So, I packed my brother and I into our little Nissan and we set of to America's most diverse store, Walmart. Trouble didn't seem imminent as we entered the store, but we had chosen the worst time to go because it looked as if everyone and their great-aunt decided to shop at Walmart the evening. Finding the ingredients we needed had suddenly become way more difficult than the two of us had suspected. For the life of me, I couldn't find the lemons in the fruit isle because the store changes the layout every other week it seem like. Beside that small mishap, we were able to find all we needed and made it home in relatively one piece.
Making the pie was a new experience because I forgot to get pie tins for said pie, so we settled for a circular glass dish instead as to not face the tyranny that is the supermarket. First, I had to figure out how to zest a lemon with a knife which was very dangerous as I also cut the tips of my fingers multiple times. Even after risking my hands, the zest still was more like small squares than nice thin strings of the peel. As the recipe dictated, after adding all the dry stuff in with the jello I was supposed to fold in the thick whipped milk into the jello mixture. I forgot to do this until the last second, so I had a very full bowl of jello and milk almost overflowing onto the counter as I tried to fold it haphazardly. My sister tried to help me at this point, resulting in the mixture ending up on her entire front side. (Side note: jello and whipped milk hake a very interesting accessory choice.) then It was time to make the graham cracker crumble for the crust of the pie. This involved me putting about 8 or so whole graham crackers into a cup, placing my hand over most of the opening, and then repetitively smashing them with a large spoon I found. It is a lost technique of smashing crackers as it makes you lose more crumbs than you produce. All turned out well as I spread it in the bottom of our glass container.
Then came the fiasco of actually pouring the liquid into the pan. Instead of pouring the mixture against the side of the bowl so it would spread evenly, I just jumped right in and poured it directly in the middle of the pan. This caused the area of the crumble to get mixed in and leave the bottom of the pan. Needless to say, I had a very hole filled crust. After chilling overnight, I was met with something that looked right out of a Dr. Seuss book. The mixture was very frothy when I put it into the fridge but I thought the bubbles wouldn't affect the final product. As you can see from the pictures below, that assumption was wrong. It looks as if the green eggs from Sam I Am and the moon had a love child.
Regardless of the lack of thick crust and smooth surface, the pie tasted better than I expected. The "zest" I made earlier wasn't bad and added a nice texture to the slightly rubbery pie. Honest to god, this thing could bounce like a tennis ball. I know because I dropped it a small bite onto the floor and it bounced under my fridge, much to my dismay. My dad was eager to try it and but out 1/4 of the pie and consumed it like a black hole does to a solar system: without mercy and terrifyingly quite. He loved it and down the slice with a tall glass of milk. I was proud the outcome wasn't too terrible and I would gladly recreate this recipe if I was given the opportunity.
I wouldn't go too far to say that pies are my favorite dessert, but they are high up on my list of favorites. Most of the time though, my family just buys a Marie-Calendar pie from the store and shoves the poor thing into the oven. Homemade pies do taste fresher and better though, so in the future before we go to the frozen isle, maybe I can convince my family to go toward baking goods instead.
Below are some pictures I was able to snag before the entire pie was eaten.
Making the pie was a new experience because I forgot to get pie tins for said pie, so we settled for a circular glass dish instead as to not face the tyranny that is the supermarket. First, I had to figure out how to zest a lemon with a knife which was very dangerous as I also cut the tips of my fingers multiple times. Even after risking my hands, the zest still was more like small squares than nice thin strings of the peel. As the recipe dictated, after adding all the dry stuff in with the jello I was supposed to fold in the thick whipped milk into the jello mixture. I forgot to do this until the last second, so I had a very full bowl of jello and milk almost overflowing onto the counter as I tried to fold it haphazardly. My sister tried to help me at this point, resulting in the mixture ending up on her entire front side. (Side note: jello and whipped milk hake a very interesting accessory choice.) then It was time to make the graham cracker crumble for the crust of the pie. This involved me putting about 8 or so whole graham crackers into a cup, placing my hand over most of the opening, and then repetitively smashing them with a large spoon I found. It is a lost technique of smashing crackers as it makes you lose more crumbs than you produce. All turned out well as I spread it in the bottom of our glass container.
Then came the fiasco of actually pouring the liquid into the pan. Instead of pouring the mixture against the side of the bowl so it would spread evenly, I just jumped right in and poured it directly in the middle of the pan. This caused the area of the crumble to get mixed in and leave the bottom of the pan. Needless to say, I had a very hole filled crust. After chilling overnight, I was met with something that looked right out of a Dr. Seuss book. The mixture was very frothy when I put it into the fridge but I thought the bubbles wouldn't affect the final product. As you can see from the pictures below, that assumption was wrong. It looks as if the green eggs from Sam I Am and the moon had a love child.
Regardless of the lack of thick crust and smooth surface, the pie tasted better than I expected. The "zest" I made earlier wasn't bad and added a nice texture to the slightly rubbery pie. Honest to god, this thing could bounce like a tennis ball. I know because I dropped it a small bite onto the floor and it bounced under my fridge, much to my dismay. My dad was eager to try it and but out 1/4 of the pie and consumed it like a black hole does to a solar system: without mercy and terrifyingly quite. He loved it and down the slice with a tall glass of milk. I was proud the outcome wasn't too terrible and I would gladly recreate this recipe if I was given the opportunity.
I wouldn't go too far to say that pies are my favorite dessert, but they are high up on my list of favorites. Most of the time though, my family just buys a Marie-Calendar pie from the store and shoves the poor thing into the oven. Homemade pies do taste fresher and better though, so in the future before we go to the frozen isle, maybe I can convince my family to go toward baking goods instead.
Below are some pictures I was able to snag before the entire pie was eaten.
Post Tonsil Surgery Menu
Two weeks ago I had surgery done on me for the removal of my tonsils. After living with chronic tonsillitis for 2 years, the surgery has been nothing short of a blessing. On the flip side, I have mostly only been able to consume soft, semi-soft foods for the past 14 days. So, to help with those of my peers who may need to get their tonsils out as well, I have designed a menu of foods that are good to eat during the recovery time.
Two weeks ago I had surgery done on me for the removal of my tonsils. After living with chronic tonsillitis for 2 years, the surgery has been nothing short of a blessing. On the flip side, I have mostly only been able to consume soft, semi-soft foods for the past 14 days. So, to help with those of my peers who may need to get their tonsils out as well, I have designed a menu of foods that are good to eat during the recovery time.