Baker Woman.

There are many aspects of Washington state that I missed while I was living in Lynchburg, VA for the past three years...

Some of which include:

• Coffee; I became a Starbucks drinker in VA. Yeah, that's how bad it was.

• Competent drivers; people everywhere say "there are the worst drivers here." Well, with all due respect, those people are wrong. Lynchburg, VA has the worst drivers on the planet. I'm sure if you googled it or something that's what it would tell you. (Don't actually do that though).

• The incredible scenery; Mt. Rainier. Did you know they don't even have huge, gorgeous moutains everywhere? I didn't until I left. I doubt you will find a better view than ours in Enumclaw.

• The food.

The food is where I want to focus today. You can find amazing food anywhere. Every place has its own specialty. The difference in Washington, is that we are SURROUNDED by incredible food. From seafood, to mexican, to vegetables, to fresh fruit, it is hard to beat the food offered in the PNW.

So all of that explanation was to lead up to why it was so cool that I made fresh blackberry pie today. I had several people in VA ask me if I ate blackberries all the time in WA. (weird). I had blackberry bushes all through my back yard as a kid & they were actually kind of a hassle. I know Washintonians (that's what people from WA are called... seriously). are aware of this fact, but Virginians are not.

So yesterday I was on a run with Bane & I saw a TON of blackberries all ripened to perfection. I got the bright idea that I was going to berry pick & make my very first fruit pie.

So after work this morning I picked up Bane and we went off to pick some blackberries. Twenty minutes and a couple finger pricks later & we were out of there headed home to start start the baking!

I decided today that if my life could entirely consist of baking, cooking, puppy play time, reading, blogging, running, weight lifting, and date nights, I would be a happy happy girl. I am the worlds biggest home-body. However, bills must be paid, & I gotta help my hubs the best I can with that part. #firstworldproblems

Anyways, onto the recipe. It was a Paula Deen recipe so I knew it would be a winner.

It went something like this (bolded commentary by AustinJean):

Ingredients

6 cups (1 3/4 pounds) blackberries 1 cup sugar 3 tablespoons cornstarch 1 teaspoon lemon juice 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest 2 disks refrigerated pie dough (one 14-ounce package) 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, diced 1 large egg

Directions Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F with a baking sheet on the middle rack. In a large bowl, toss the blackberries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice and lemon zest. Let stand, mixing and coarsely mashing occasionally, 20 minutes. Fit one round of dough into a 9-inch pie plate. Trim the edges, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang. Refrigerate while you continue. Cut the remaining piece of dough into approximately eleven 11/4-inch-wide strips.

(Or you can be like me & buy the one in the frozen section at the grocery store. They come in 2-packs so then you can cut the strips with the extra one. First time pie baker, cut me some slack. Maybe next time I'll be brave enough to tackle a real crust!) Spoon the blackberry mixture into the pie shell. Dot the top with the butter. Arrange the dough strips in a lattice pattern on top of the filling and trim the strips close to the edge of the pan; roll up and crimp the edge. (This is really all they give me? As though I should already be a professional lattice pattern-er? <--made up word-->Do it prettier than I did). Lightly beat the egg with 1 tablespoon water (forgot the water..but it didn't make scrambled eggs like I was kind of worried it would when I was reading the recipe as the pie had been in the oven for 20 mins already) and brush on the top and edge of the pie. Place the pie on the hot baking sheet in the oven and bake until the filling is bubbling, 45 minutes to 1 hour. If the crust browns too quickly, cover it with foil and continue baking. Let the pie cool before serving. The website is here if you want to try it for yourself :]

I ended up baking it for 40 minutes in my oven but I think it's hotter than most & the crust did brown too fast. But I didn't cover it with foil because Mr. H. likes baked goods slightly more baked than most. & I was maybe being a little bit lazy. It's not nearly as aesthetic as the pies you see on baking blogs, but I betcha mine tastes just as good. (Or at least 90% as good as theirs do).

Welp, that was my first adventure as a pie baker. Not quite as intimidating as I expected... But It may have been a flop, we'll see! My friend A Ihde told me yesterday that even she has flops (and she's a super fab cook). It's all about experimenting.

& I love being a (mostly) stay-at-home wife.

That's all,

xo/AustinJean

#pie #baking #food #recipe #blackberry #enumclaw #washington #pnw