4th Annual Portland Thanksgiving

Here it is boxing day and I have not yet posted about pies from Thanksgiving! Here they are, presented in rhyming couplets...

For the 4th year in a row to Portland I did go,
Well, let's get this straight, it is really SoPo.
Though it took 13 hours through great traffic trials,
It was well worth the trip to meet sweet baby Miles.

I opted to make apple cranberry pie,
The recipe for which Laura Dove won the Washington Post prize.
I used the ingenious apple core-cut-skin machine

cut out circles of crust and brushed on an egg sheen
After fire, singing, and dinner we set up our pie bar,
A dessert buffet of the highest par.Talya's pie was the richest chocolate diner
The recipe from Mav's friend Martha (a fabulous cook, though a bit of a whiner)
Jamie made a pumpkin, with no use of can
Mav's dessert was one of ginger--the bread, not the man.
Along with the apple cran, I added a pie of maple,
Which may well become a Thanksgiving staple.

At this bar, Talya couldn't believe her sight

It fueled Saiyid's ocean swim on that cold November night
And made Mav want to just take a big bite!Oh, what fun times this crew does create,
And so much pie for one little plate!

Welcome to Maine Pie

A few days after Thanksgiving I visited Derek and Robyn at their lovely seaside Portland home for some Christmas decorating and welcome-pie making for Artie, who was moving to Portland that evening. We decided to go with a rustic tart-tart of Bosch pear and cranberries, with not too much sugar, a bit of cinnamon, and a whole wheat (pastry flour) crust.For the crust design, Derek used his fine cartographic skills to cut out an outline of the state of Maine--complete with islands and practically perfect lettering. While it was baking, we joined Robyn in the dining room to string cranberries for the tree and watch at the window for Artie.When he finally arrived in his new state, we whipped up some cream and entered the Pie Enjoyment ZoneDerek and Robyn in the PEZ
Maine pie: The Way Life Should Be

Cutie Pies

Check out this most beautiful, and I'm sure delicious, ginger and fruit pie made by a bunch of sweet NELPer ladies.
L to R: Maja, Helen, Kate, and Karey

You make me proud, girls!