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Somewhere between baking, cooking, and La Jolla is found the perfect Apple Pie
Thursday, November 20, 2008
There are two foods I make really well:
Steak (proven with my trophy this summer)
and Apple Pie from scratch
My sister, Heather, is a really good chef.
If Jason put his mind to it, I bet he could be a really good baker.
Cooking is not all that precise.
You add in ingredients and seasonings and tweak recipes till the cows come home.
Cooking is creative and free flowing.
Baking is precise. Every measurement has to be RIGHT ON, every temperature perfect.
Jason's got the meticulous detail-oriented mind to follow a recipe to perfection.
I'm stuck somewhere in between the two.
I'm nowhere near fastidious enough to measure out 1/8th of a teaspoon of anything,
but I can follow directions and keep an eye on a few details.
I think that's why I'm good at steak & apple pie.
Neither one is really cooking or baking.
Since we're ditching Grandpa for Thanksgiving, I decided to make him an apple pie,
and we'll take it to his house today before we leave.
He really likes my apple pie.
I thought it would be fun to share my methods for the PERFECT APPLE PIE
in case there are any other baking/cooking limbo folks out there.
You could try it out for your Thanksgiving!
Here's what you absolutely have to have:
-big mixing bowl
-9in GLASS pie dish
-rolling pin
-Pam cooking spray
-White sugar
-Ground cinnamon
-Nutmeg
-Cornstarch
-Flour
-Betty Crocker pie crust mix (comes in a box)
-Real butter
-wax paper
-7 or 8 medium sized GRANNY SMITH APPLES
-Christmas music playing in the background
Here's what comes in very handy, but not necessary:
-Apple Peeler/Slicer/Corer. Jason got me THIS ONE a few years ago. LOVE IT!
-A cute husband who's willing to help clean up the mess when you're done
I've got a recipe from "Joy of Cooking" that I loosely follow,
but I really only use it to remind myself of the correct temperature settings for the oven.
Here's what you do:
-peel & slice the apples. Not paper thin, not thick. Put the slices in a big bowl.
DO NOT WORRY if they start to turn brown as you work.
They turn brown when you bake the pie, so it doesn't matter!
Don't soak them in water or put lemon in there to keep them from browning
(learned that the hard way!!)
-set aside the apples, and start heating the oven to 450.
-mix together about 3/4cup sugar, a few spoons of cornstarch, & a tiny spoonful of nutmeg
-NOW, mix in LOTS of ground cinnamon, and keep adding cinnamon until the mixture
is the color of a perfect beach's sand (like La Jolla). Not white sand!
(this is a LOT more cinnamon than the book says to use)
-sprinkle the mixture all over the apple slices in the bowl, and toss it like a salad
until it's all mixed up & the apples are coated. (this is a good time to take taste tests!)
-follow the instructions on the pie crust mix to make 2 crusts.
-use a rolling pin, roll the crusts out on pieces of wax paper with flour sprinkled on there
to keep the crust dough from sticking
-spray the pie pan with Pam cooking spray
-Put one crust in the bottom of the pan.
-OPTIONAL: I like to put in the bottom crust and bake it in the over for just a few minutes.
I like a crispy bottom crust!
-spoon the apples into the pan. DO NOT POUR them in! There's a lot of liquid there that you don't want in the pie.
-put about 5 or 6 pea-sized blobs of butter on top of the apples
-put on the top crust
-pinch the edges
-slice from vent holes
-sprinkle some cinnamon-sugar on top
Put that in the oven at 450 for TEN MINUTES, then lower the temp to 350.
Cook it at 350 for about 45 more minutes, but keep an eye on it.
Take it out when the crust looks golden brown, not dark gold, and not creamy white.
Let it cool at least 2-3 hours before you slice it,
then serve it with whipped cream and/or vanilla ice cream.
Let me know if you try it for your Thanksgiving!
It's a GREAT Black Friday breakfast, too!
Enjoy, and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!!
~Carey
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Aloha! Hawaiian Thanksgiving for the Schumacher family this year!
Thursday, November 20, 2008
The suitcases are packed with lots of shorts, bathing suits, and sunscreen.
The laptop batteries are charging as I type this.
The kids have their iPods loaded with their favorite movies & music for the plane.
Hawaii, here we come!
My main photographic goal for the trip is to get a few pictures
for the Schumacher Family Christmas Card.
Other than that, it's RELAXATION and family fun time all the way!
Speaking of Christmas cards and holiday festivities...
I've been a busy busy bee getting my annual Christmas slideshow ready to go for December!
Lots of email has been coming in from folks who are excited to see this year's show,
and it's getting closer and closer to done. If all goes well, it will launch December 1st or 2nd.
The slideshow will be BIGGER (and I think BETTER) with a full-screen option
with little bells & whistles tossed in.
Start getting your Christmas cards ready, because no year would be complete
without the Barefoot Memories Christmas Card drawing!
I'm still racking my brain to decide on a cool prize (or prizES),
so if you've got a great idea, let me know!
After December is over, I'll be re-launching Barefoot-Memories.com like I do every year.
For 2009, the site will be completely redesigned.
I'm keeping the "Barefoot Memories" look & feel, but it's going to be a HUGE improvement.
I'm excited for you to see it, but it will have to wait till January 1st!
...stay tuned for Hawaiian Barefoot Memories...
~Carey
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The Annual Trek from Arizona
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Arizona to Imperial Beach is quite a drive for a photo session,
but it sure was fun for everyone!
This family comes to San Diego every Fall for their Barefoot Memories session.
For the previous two sessions, there had a new brother each time, but not this year!
All three boys are just bigger and busier than ever.
We've had sessions in Balboa Park, La Jolla, and Coronado, so this year,
mom chose Imperial Beach, and it was perfect!
The weather was awesome, the beach was all ours, and the boys had a blast:
By the end of the session, I even had sand all over.
I'm still not sure how I got sand in my shirt, but maybe it was because of moments like this:
The boys would sometimes try to convince their mom that they were trying to stay clean:
(we all know the truth, don't we? come on... they're boys after all!)
Enjoy!
~Carey
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Perfect weather + cute kids + a very well-behaved dog = awesome beach photo session!
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Very few words are needed to describe how much fun I had with this family
at the beach last week in La Jolla!
This photo session was a year in the making, too!
Last year, this adorable little girl broke her arm the DAY before their scheduled session!
We tried to schedule another date all year long, but the timing never worked.
It was meant to be, as you can see, because we got a PERFECT morning in La Jolla!
Enjoy!
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I ordered my Christmas tree!
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Last year, we got the most beautiful Christmas tree we've ever had!
I like to order our Christmas tree and have it shipped right to us for a few reasons:
1) It's usually really hot & dry in San Diego in November & early December,
and going out to pick up a tree in shorts & flip-flops just feels weird.
2) Because it's so hot & dry, all of the trees at the local tree lots are sitting out
in LOW humidity, in HOT weather for days and days, after already spending a
long time on a truck for the trip from the tree farm to Southern California.
It doesn't take long for a store-bought tree to turn bone dry and start dropping needles!
3) I like supporting family-run business, like little Christmas tree farms.
This isn't "clear cutting" or destroying rain forests!
Think of tree farms like flower growers, with a bigger final product.
This year, I went back to the same Christmas tree farm,
COYOTE HILLS.
Look thru their website, and you'll learn all about their beautiful land in Oregon,
and how they grow, nurture, and deliver their wonderful trees!
All of their prices include shipping, too!
You'd probably save a few bucks by going down to a nearby tree lot
and picking up a tree there, but trust me, the beauty & FRESHNESS
you get from Coyote Hills is worth it,
especially if Christmas is your favorite holiday like it is mine!
Merry early Christmas!
~Carey
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