Tag: cooking and writing

Food for Thought: Boozy Pecan Pie

This recipe is my traditional Thanksgiving dessert, but it would make an equally good finish to any meal of note during the holiday season.

When you cook it, you think of roaring fires and big glasses of aged liquor and regrets about notches on your belt.  And the house smells of sugar, butter, and bourbon for hours.  And you tell yourself it’s not so bad because at least it’s got nuts in it, and nuts are good for you, aren’t they?

Another plus to this pecan pie is that it takes a rather long time, but good chunks of that long time are “waiting time” — or, as I like to call them here on Comedy or Tragedy, “writing time”.

Boozy Pecan Pie

serves 4-6 (with seconds)

For the pie shell:

  • 2 cups of flour
  • 1 Tbs granulated sugar
  • 1 stick, plus 4 Tbs unsalted butter, cold & cut into small cubes
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/4 cup ice cold water

Sift together the flour, sugar, and salt.  Add the cubed butter and rub together with your fingertips until the dough becomes moist and takes on the consistency of small, soft peas.  Add the water a little bit at a time, mixing with a fork.  The dough will be very sticky.  Mold and kneed it together into a ball, working it until the butter and flour are well incorporated.  Press the dough into a disk and wrap it in saran wrap.  Refrigerate for 30-45 minutes.

While you’re waiting for the dough to firm up in the fridge, pull out your laptop and get writing.  Do a sprint and see how many words you can net in 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, take the dough out of the fridge.  If it is still too soft, put it back in for another 15 minutes or so.  When it’s firm, using a rolling pin, roll it out on a floured surface (tip: because this dough is very heavy in butter, and therefore rather sticky, I like to roll it out on a layer of plastic wrap, for easy transport into the pie pan).  Roll the dough to a thickness of no more than 1/8 of an inch.  Place the rolled crust into a pie pan and crimp the edges (leave a high edge, as the crust will shrink as you bake it).  Put the entire pie shell in the freezer for another 30 minutes.

…and there you go – another 30 minute writing sprint.  Go!

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line the pie shell with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans.  Bake for 25 minutes, then remove parchment and weights and bake an additional 12 minutes until the crust is lightly browned.  While the crust is baking, begin preparing the filling:

For the filling:

  • 1 1/2 cups of lightly toasted pecans (to toast the pecans: place them in a baking pan in a 350 oven for about 12 minutes)
  • 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
  • 1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar (loosely packed)
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup light corn syrup
  • 3 Tbs whole milk
  • 2 Tbs flour
  • 1/2 a fresh vanilla bean – seeds scraped
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 Tbs of good quality bourbon (I’ve also used Scotch Whiskey in a pinch)
  • 4 large eggs

In a saucepan, mix all the butter, all the sugars, the corn syrup, the milk, the flour, the vanilla bean (and scraped seeds) and the salt together over medium heat.  Keep stirring until the mixture just comes to a boil.  Turn off the heat and let the mixture sit for 5 minutes.  Carefully add the bourbon (mixture may bubble – stir carefully).  As the sugar mixture is cooling, beat the eggs in a heat proof bowl.  Carefully (gradually) add the hot sugar mixture to the eggs, whisking constantly.  Fish out the vanilla bean and discard it.

Once the pie crust is out of the oven, layer the toasted pecans on the bottom of the shell.  Then pour the filling over the nuts.  You may have excess filling.  Bake the pie at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes, or until the filling is just set.

While the pie is baking, return to your laptop and write, write, write.  If the insanely good smells filling the house aren’t inspiration enough, I don’t know what is.

Once the pie is done, let it cool on a rack.  Leave the pie covered with foil at room temperature until serving (can be made 1 day ahead of time).  Whip up some fresh cream (maybe with a bit of sugar and a splash of bourbon) for serving.  Oh, and prepare a new notch on your belt buckle.

Bon appetit, and happy writing!

Food for Thought: Butternut Squash Soup

Fall is officially here, and so is squash season.

I, personally, can think of no more soul-satisfying meal than a hot, creamy bowl of butternut squash soup on a chilly fall day.  Best of all, the bulk of the work in making this soup it is waiting for the squash to roast.  All that downtime is perfect for getting a little writing done.

So…get cooking, and writing!

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Bacon and Crispy Sage

serves 4

2 large butternut squashes, cut in half lengthwise and cored (or, 2-3 cups cubed butternut squash)

8 large strips of smokey bacon

1 bunch fresh sage leaves

Olive oil (3-4 Tbs)

Maple syrup (3-4 Tbs)

Pinch of cayenne pepper

Salt

1/4 cup Heavy cream

4 Tbs Mascarpone or Creme Fraiche

Instructions:

After cutting the squash lengthwise and scooping out the seeds and stringy pulp, rub the exposed flesh with olive oil, sprinkle with cayenne pepper (just a tiny bit!) and salt, and drizzle with maple syrup.  Place the squash on a roasting sheet or in a roasting pan and lay 1 strip of bacon on each of the squash (reserve the other 4 strips).  Roast for 1 hour in a 400 degree oven, or until the squash is fork tender.  If using cubed squash, toss the squash in a oven-proof dish with the olive oil, cayenne, salt, and maple syrup and lay all the bacon on top of the squash.  Roast as directed.

While the squash roasts, fire up your laptop, open your current WIP and get to work.  The delicious smells wafting from the the kitchen should inspire you 🙂

Once the squash is tender, scoop out the flesh, discard the bacon strips, and puree the squash and any juices in a blender.  Add a little water as needed.  The final result should be a very smooth, very thick (think baby-food consistency) puree.  Transfer the puree to a pot and bring to a low simmer, adding water, salt, the heavy cream, and maple syrup as needed to adjust the thickness (my preference is for a thick soup that coats the spoon but is pourable) and seasoning.  If the soup tastes a little flat, more salt is probably needed.

Meanwhile, cut the remaining bacon into a fine dice (quick tip: freeze the remaining bacon strips — they are easier to cut if frozen) and fry them until crispy.  Remove the bacon from the pan, but reserve the drippings.  Coarsely chop the sage leaves and fry them in the reserved bacon fat until they are crispy as well.  Drain the fried sage and bacon on paper towels and set aside.

Once the soup is the desired consistency and flavor, spoon it into serving bowls.  Top each bowl with a dollop of either mascarpone (for a creamy/sweeter flavor) or creme fraiche (for a tangier flavor) and sprinkle with a little of the fried sage and bacon.

Bon appetit!…and happy writing 🙂