New failure modes for pies!

[pameladean]

Well, no pies slid from their cookie sheet, flipped entirely over, and landed right side up with no loss of filling; nor did I forget and bake the shell before I put the pumpkin filling in. (The pumpkin pie is vegan, made with silken tofu, and the other pie I make with tofu has a no-bake filling that you just chill; however, the pumpkin filling wants baking in an ordinary way, and half the time I forget and end up double-baking the crust.) The pie dough, however, was a nightmare. I realized belatedly that I'd had similar problems with David's lemon meringue pie on his birthday, and concluded in time to throw out the last 7/8ths of a cup that the current batch of flour was to blame. It's unbelievably dry. I didn't put in so much extra water that the texture of the crusts was affected -- opting for crumbly crust that split and had to be patched and looks as if a batch of mice had crimped it while playing hide-and-seek -- but I put in enough extra water over the permitted 2 teaspoons that the crust tastes distinctly under-salted. I tasted the dough and knew this was an issue, but I didn't begin to know how much extra salt would work, and it was not the stage where salt goes in in any case.

Nobody will starve, however.

I should stop typing and drink my tea and start prepping vegetables. The diabetic regimen suggests, in lieu of weighing All the Things, filling a quarter of one's plate with protein, a quarter with starch, and the rest with vegetables. So I'm going to roast several different kinds and serve them in separate bowls, since there are a number of people with Very Strong Opinions about which vegetables are edible and which are not who will be foregathering for dinner. Many guests don't really care about the vegetables and are happy if they have turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, and pie. But they will put a few spoonfuls of green or orange on the edge of their plates as long as it isn't the wrong kind of green or orange. And a few actually like vegetables.

I am very grateful for all of you guys here on LJ, and the people who aren't on LJ but comment sometimes anyway. May your Thursday, whether a holiday or just a day, be as bright as November permits.

Pamela

Edited for words out.

Comments

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

Wishing you and everybody at your household a lovely day and a lovely meal!

[pameladean]

The very same to you! At least we have no terribly problematic relatives to dodge conversation with, or engage in it either.

P.

[lblanchard.livejournal.com]

Today I am thankful for the marvelous pies from Trader Joes that spared me any baking this Thanksgiving.

[pameladean]

I can't eat most of their pies, so I was spared the temptation, but I'm glad they worked well for you.

P.

[tanac.livejournal.com]

I did yeasted dough for the first time in forever; pumpkin brioche that turned into cinnamon rolls and pull-apart bread with cider-whiskey glaze. Thankfully they turned out!

I keep finding pantry staples that are old or rancid or both, though. Lots of last-minute grocery trips lately.

[pameladean]

Oh yum.

I know that feeling of thinking you have plenty of something and finding that it's too old to use.

P.

Vodka!

[lsanderson.livejournal.com]

It ain't cheap, but it wets pie dough just fine without the effects of water...

[castleclear.livejournal.com]

This was fun to read and I bet it was a lovely meal! Kudos to the hostess!

[pameladean]

Well, some vodka is pretty cheap, especially given what small quantities one presumably uses it in for pie crust. Does it need to be the good stuff?

P.

[lsanderson.livejournal.com]

No, the cheap stuff iz just fine.

[eub.livejournal.com]

If you please, do you know, should I think of it as adding fractional water (1 T of 60% water = 0.6 T water?), or does the alcohol content prevent it operating like water at all for purposes of gluten-facilitating?

[lsanderson.livejournal.com]

It can be worth using alcohol when making pie dough because it does not support gluten linking and keeps the crust more tender (and lets you abuse it a bit more). Using less water helps too, but you still gotta mix it and have it hold together. Alcohol works fine for mixing the dough.

[inlaterdays.livejournal.com]

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! My parents were here, and we had a lovely visit.

[pameladean]

We did, and I'm so glad that you did too! Our kitchen is really not set up for ten people -- we were able to prepare the meal all right, but there was nowhere to clear the used plates to before dessert. One of our guests works as a waiter, and his instincts were very much frustrated by our kitchen.

P.