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This post is about Mw's favorite of all of the dishes I make:  Spaghetti Bolognese.  Sorry vegetarians, back to the meat.  Last week marked delivery #2 of our meat CSA and with it came another 10 pounds of various cuts of meat, including some beautiful ground beef, perfect for this recipe.  Yes, I did say 10 pounds of meat.  That's per month, in case anyone is curious, and yes, it turns out that it is kind of a lot of meat.  But it's local and grass fed and so I almost feel like I'm doing the world a favor by subscribing.  Or at least some local farmers, whom I wholeheartedly support and whose vegetable CSA I subscribed to last year (and I would again this year except this year I'm growing my own).  But I digress...

I've written about one of the wonderful recipes in this cookbook before.  The Spaghetti Bolognese recipe originates from the same book, and although I lost the list I used to keep of the meals I cooked Mw and how many times I'd cooked them, I think that I've made this for him more often than any other.  I actually didn't even realize until yesterday that this is his favorite recipe in my repertoire, when he actually asked me to make this for dinner.  I say asked because usually he humors (and appreciates) my out-of-left field culinary whims and it is fairly rare that I hear a specific request.  I take such requests very seriously; I want my diners happy.

Speaking of lists, I wanted to point out to all of my readers that I had a fit of organization and created an index of the recipes I've posted and another of the restaurants I've written about.  Both lists are linked to on the sidebar, and I attempt to keep them updated.  The nice things about these indices is that now you don't have to try to remember what weird title I used for a post to try and locate that recipe you've been wanting to make.  Or, if you aren't sure what you are in the mood for, use the index to help you decide what to make tonight.

Spaghetti Bolognese scores high on the comfort food scale.  This dish also scores high on the easy to make scale, but it does take awhile--the sauce needs to simmer for two to four hours.  I try to allow at least three hours (only about 30 minutes of that three hours is actually spent slaving over the stove), but longer is always better and helps the flavors to marry and deepen.  This recipe is a great way to use up those old bottles of wine you have lying around (occasionally it is possible to have leftover wine).  Don't forget to plan ahead with this recipe though--because it takes so long to make it is really a weekend recipe, and you can't buy alcohol in Georgia on Sundays.  This recipe is also incredibly decadent, but you don't have to eat it all at once, right?  We're having leftovers for dinner.



Spaghetti Bolognese
Adapted from 'The Sharper the Knife, the Less You Cry' by Kathleen Finn

Serves 6-8.  This recipe can easily be halved.

2 pounds ground beef
2 onions, choped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 bottle (750 ml) dry red wine (I often use various leftover bottles)
4 Tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp Italian herbs
1 cup heavy cream (or less if you are feeling guilty)3 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped (optional)

1 pound spaghetti, cooked and drained

In a heavy saucepan, cook the onions in olive oil until softened.  Add the garlic and the beef, and cook until meat cooks through (no pink) and separates into crumbly pieces.  Add the wine and increase the heat so that the wine bubbles continuously.  Cook until reduced by about half, skimming off any gray foam.  Add the tomato paste.  Cover and turn the heat down to very low.  Cook for at least two and up for four hours, stirring occasionally.  Before serving, add the herbs and cream and cook for another 10 minutes.  Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper and stir in the parsley.  Serve over pasta.

Yum

It has certainly not been my intention, but most of the recipes I have posted have involved meat of some sort. I’m not saying that this is entirely a bad thing, but some of my favorite readers are vegetarian, so I’ve been feeling a bit guilty about not providing recipes that my most loyal readers can use. This post is therefore my attempt to assuage my guilt with an incredibly easy and delicious vegetarian recipe. Hopefully this guilt assuagement will tide me over for a bit: Mw’s Valentine’s Day gift was a subscription to a meat CSA, so assuredly there are more meat recipes to come.

In my estimation, the sign of successful cooking is when the dish is so delicious that whomever you have fed it to asks for the recipe. Sure, people compliment cooking all of the time, but you know it’s really good when they want to make it at home. (Don’t worry, I won’t think you didn’t like my cooking if the next time you eat at my house you don’t ask for a recipe. Conversely, don’t be insulted if I don’t always ask. I’m just saying… asking for the recipe is added proof). Therefore, I can assure that you will love the recipe I’m featuring in this post because I asked for it from a friend who had made this dish at a dinner party, and then my coworkers asked for it after I fed them, and then my mom asked for it after I made this for her during her most recent visit. Being the nerd that I am, I can actually see a diagram of this in my mind, sort of like the ‘telephone’ game for recipes.

Some people think eggplant is bitter or tough or greasy. I’m these are legitimate complaints regarding eggplant, if not cooked properly. Luckily, most of these problems have a fairly easy solution. To remove bitterness, soak in salted water or salt liberally and let stand for 30 minutes, then proceed with the recipe. To avoid a grease-laden dish, ensure that whatever oil the eggplant will be cooked in is very hot before the eggplant is added. Eggplants are like sponges for too-cool oil. One of the reasons I like the dish in this blog entry so much is that I’ve not had any issues with bitter or grease; in fact, the eggplant cooks to a creamy pulp that perfectly coats the pasta. In order to make sure the eggplant is not tough and reaches this perfect pulp, I’ve increased the cooking time a bit from the original recipe.

The most novel part of the recipe (at least to me), is the inclusion of sliced basil stalks, in addition to the leaves. Having never used basil stalks in a dish before, I was of the opinion that the stalks are too woody and chewy to cook with, and was both curious to see what happened to them in the dish, and worried that they would hurt the rest of the dish. In fact, the stalks add a lovely complexity to the flavor, and because they are simmered into the sauce, are beautifully tender by the time they reach the plate. If you didn’t know that the stalks were there, you would never know the stalks were there (and if you can follow this sentence, I’m impressed).

This recipe comes from one of Jamie Oliver’s cookbooks, but in the process of the recipe telephone game the actual source is unknown. This is the first of Jamie Oliver’s recipes that I have cooked, and I am impressed. The recipe is straightforward and simple, with a resulting flavor that belies the simplicity of the ingredients and the preparation. I hope both my vegetarian and non-vegetarian readers will try this and enjoy it as much as I do. Let me know who asks for the recipe.

Pasta with Eggplant, Basil, and Mozzarella

Adapted from Jamie Oliver (not sure what cookbook)

Serves 6-8

1 firm ripe eggplant

2 cloves garlic, sliced

1 onion, finely chopped

2 14-oz cans plum tomatoes

1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 jalapeno, finely chopped [optional]

1 bunch of basil, leaves ripped and stalks sliced

4 Tbsp heavy cream

1 lb rigatoni or penne

7oz mozzarella, coarsely chopped

1 piece parmesan cheese for grating

salt and pepper

4-5 Tbsp olive oil

Remove ends of eggplant and slice into 1/2 inch slices, then dice into 1/2 inch cubes. If desired, season liberally with salt and let drain in a colander over the sink for 30 minutes to help remove any bitterness. Before using, rinse thoroughly and pat dry. [Note: I rarely do this step because of the extra 30 minutes required].

Heat olive oil in a saucepan. When hot, add eggplant and stir immediately to coat with oil. Cook 12-15 minutes on medium heat, until beginning to brown and soften. Add garlic and onions and cook 5-8 minutes until they have a little color. Add canned tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, and jalapeno. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add basil stalks and simmer 15-30 minutes, until eggplant is a soft, creamy pulp. Add cream and heat through.

While sauce is simmering, cook the pasta in salted water. Drain and return to the pot with a little bit of the cooking water and a drizzle of olive oil. Add tomato sauce to the pasta. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Mix mozzarella and torn basil leaves into the pasta, stir for 30 seconds. Serve with grated parmesan.

Dining in Luanda, Angola: Cais de Qu4tro and Tendinha

Despite my devotion to good food, I consider myself quite able to survive when the conditions are less than ideal.  I have fond memories of tuna and ramen noodles while rained into a little shelter somewhere in the White Mountains.  And a night in Sudan with only weird scrambled eggs (weird because the yolks had no yellow), salt and pepper from an airline packet I’d saved, and some watermelons we’d found on the side of the road.  So I was nonplussed by the prospect of spending a week in Angola where I’d been warned by several coworkers that there is ‘no food’ (to avoid too much dramatic license, I will admit that I’d also heard that there is food but it’s not very good and the prices are so exorbitant that you’d never want to pay for it.)  Not wanting to take any chances, I packed half of my suitcase with granola bars and ramen, just in case.

It is with great happiness then that I report to you, dear reader, that there is indeed food in Angola. Good food!  And pricey food, but not as frighteningly so as I’d been warned.  With two evenings of dining under my belt, I figured it was time to report on some of my discoveries. 

Last night we ate at Cais de Qu4tro, located on the Ilha (Av Murtala Muhammad).  Apparently, this restaurant is owned by a Brazilian chef from Rio, and the food is heavily Brazilian influenced.  I had the picanha Minas Gerais, essentially flank steak, served with black beans and rice (of course…Brazilian food), some cabbage/greens, and a fried banana.  All was quite delicious, and I’m not sure I’ve ever before wanted to keep eating and eating and eating beans and rice in the manner in which I shoveled them in last night.  They were delicious.  I was also completely enamored with the fried banana.  This is a huge admission, as I don’t generally deign to like bananas in any form.  Four of the six of us at dinner had the picanha, and all of us thoroughly enjoyed it.  My only possible complaint was that it was a tad salty, but then my fellow diner added shake after shake of salt to his plate, so I guess it really is all in the taste buds.

Food aside, Cais de Qu4tro also has a wonderful ambiance.  Located right along the water, the patio offers what is perhaps the best view of the city of Luanda.  At night, it is breathtakingly beautiful, and you can get a sense of the many new buildings taking shape over the city.  There’s certainly a lot of building going on here.  I also liked the simple yet modern atmosphere and décor; it would be a nice place to sit and take a drink and spend a relaxing evening watching the city.

As for the pricing, it wasn’t cheap, but hardly the break-the-bank pricing I was expecting. The picanya was around 2700 kwanza ($27), add a couple of shared bottles of nice Chilean wine, and my total was around $50.  A nice meal out, but not so expensive I felt completely violated.

This evening we tried a place only a block walk from our hotel called Tendinha (Rua da Missao).  One of the people I have met here is on a several month interim position so has been living in the hotel and learning all of the area restaurants.  He’s Catalan and was raised in Chile, which somehow means that I trust his opinion on restaurants.  Unlike the more sophisticated Cais de Qu4tro, Tendinha felt more like your neighborhood restaurant and bar.  A nice patio outside along the street, and a homey restaurant inside, the walls lined with African art and masks.  The menu was only in Portuguese, which meant that our Catalan friend almost had several of us ordering stomach rather than fish, but after figuring out which word was which, I settled on what amounted to small pieces of fried chicken served with chips and rice (carbs galore here) and a fried banana (which was again the highlight of my meal). My only possible complaint was that it was a tad salty, but then my fellow diner added shake after shake of salt to his plate, so I guess it really is all in the taste buds (you may recognize this sentence; so far all of the food has been a bit on the salty side for me).  I definitely liked this place for its all around solid Portuguese food and the down-home atmosphere, and will add it to my list of good places to go for a good meal and several rounds of local beer (the name of which is escaping me).  The bill?  2700 kwanza for the chicken, 150 kwanza each for two beers, so around $35 total.  Beer is cheap!

Two nights in, and I’m nothing but happy with the meal choices and I still have money to spare.  Those granola bars are going to have to wait!

Dining in Brunswick, Maine: Lilee's Public House

One of the great things about a blog is that you can write about the same thing twice if you want to.  So it is completely without shame that I write about another delicious brunch at Lilee's Public House in Brunswick, Maine. [It was also over brunch at Lilee's that this blog was born.]

Last time I was at Lilee's I had the Scotch eggs, and I was so enamored with them that I had to have more on this most recent trip to Maine.  Also, poor Mw had heard about them incessantly for two months, so it was time for him to try them as well.  I nearly panicked when I found out that Lilee's had taken them off of their regular brunch menu [a popular but extraordinarily labor-intensive dish], but thanks to my connections, was able to plead with the brunch chef to feature them as this Sunday's special.  And I was not disappointed.

Before raving on and on about how much I loved my brunch yet again this time, I thought I would take a moment to address the question on everyone's mind:  What are Scotch eggs?  Good question, I didn't know this until a few months ago, either.  In a nut[egg] shell, Scotch eggs are hardboiled eggs, wrapped in sausage, deep fried, and in the case of Lilee's Public House, served with very delicious Hollandaise sauce.  Contrary to popular belief, Scotch eggs seem to have nothing to do with the Scottish, and were invented by a London department store.  A little known fact about Scotch eggs is that they go quite well with Scotch, or so Mw reports.  It's great brunching in Maine where you don't have to wait until 12:30 on a Sunday to have libations with your meal.  Personally, I wasn't quite ready for Scotch with my eggs but can report that the bloody mary's at Lilee's are excellent, and go well with Scotch eggs.

I'm not convinced that the picture above really does justice to the deliciousness of my meal.  It's quite hard to capture the gustatory beauty of a fried, sausage-wrapped egg.  But trust me, really, really good.  I will admit that there is no way that I could have eaten both eggs, which is why it is nice to have dining companions.  Mg and I split the eggs and the apple and cinnamon filled crepes.  The crepes were lovely, crisp apples, well spiced, with a hint of cream cheese, wrapped in a perfectly cooked crepe.  A great post-egg sweet fix. 

Last but not least, I would like to devote a few sentences to raving about the potatoes. The homefries were a blend of three potatoes (sweet, Russet, and one I forgot), and a perfect mix of crispy exterior and 'squishy' interior (as Mw put it).  The biggest testament to their deliciousness, though, is the fact that I didn't use any ketchup.  Not a drop. And I do love ketchup.  In fact, I'm not sure I've ever willingly eaten potatoes without ketchup.

All in all, a solid brunch, and one I will certainly want to have again.  And perhaps will even blog about again.  In case you still aren't convinced, I thought you should know that the youngest member of our breakfast crew also highly recommends brunch at Lilee's.

Obsessions

I am obsessed with pimento cheese.  Really, truly obsessed.  

Even though I grew up in the Northeast, pimento cheese has been a staple of my lunches for as long as I can remember. That's one of the many great things about having a southern mother (so is fried chicken).   Pimento cheese is decidedly not a northern thing; my northern friends who have had pimento cheese have either lived in the south for awhile or have been fed it by me.  My most recent convert was a friend from Colorado who grew up in California.  Day 1:  Pimento what?  Like the things in the olives? (this is the most common question fielded by a pimento cheese aficionado such as I).  Day 3:  Accurate and enthusiastic description of said item to a Minnesotan.  Clearly, I'm doing something right.  [For any not-yet-indoctrinated reading this, please see this link for a nice description of the history and wonders of pimento cheese.]

Just in case you don't have time to read the link, here's a few things you should know about pimento cheese:

Question:  What is a pimento?  

Answer:  A pepper, also defined as a 'fully ripened sweet pepper, usually cooked.'

Question:  Are pimento the things in olives?  

Answer:  Yes.

Question:  Do you have to take them out of the olives in order to make pimento cheese?  

Answer:  No, conveniently enough, you can buy pimentos in jars.  Look in the canned vegetable aisle.  Buy several jars, I'm guessing you'll want to make more.

Question:  What do you do with the pimentos?  

Answer:  Make pimento cheese!  Mix the pimentos with cheese and a little mayonnaise and you'll have the best sandwich spread ever.  I also recommend it in a grilled cheese sandwich.

Question:  How come I've never heard of this before?  

Answer:  You're probably not from the south.

Even though I grew up eating pimento cheese sandwiches, I will admit that for many years I wasn't the biggest fan.  While I liked it, I could make do with only a bite or two, that was more than enough.  [Nothing against my mom's pimento cheese, it is great].  But about a year ago, something changed.  First, I made pimento cheese sandwiches for my friend P's birthday picnic.  Then my mom came to visit, and I made it again.  Next, I tried it grilled, even better.  And so on...and on....and on...an obsession was born.  

My obsession has been enabled by a seemingly simultaneous and sudden renaissance in pimento cheese in Atlanta restaurants.  The Brick Store Pub in Decatur added pimento cheese to the menu about six months ago.  The West Egg Cafe serves it with the grits.  97 Estoria serves it, too.  So does Sun in My Belly catering at the Botanical Garden.  And at the Vortex you can put it on burgers.  Yum, yum, yum, yum, and yum.  I think I like this stuff.

The basics of pimento cheese are the same from recipe to recipe:  pimentos + cheese.  I've put my basic recipe below, but urge you to experiment a bit.  Try sweet pickle relish instead of chopped pickles (or in addition to).  Add jalapenos.  More paprika, or less.  This is an incredibly forgiving recipe, just correct with a little more cheese or mayo.  After much experimentation, I do recommend a fairly high pepper: cheese ratio, but make a batch and see what it takes to start your own pimento cheese obsession. 

Pimento Cheese

2-3 cups cheddar or monterey jack cheese, grated fine (I like a mix of both cheeses)

4 oz jar diced pimentos,drained

3-4 Tbsp mayonnaise 

1 baby dill pickle, finely diced

1/2-1 tsp paprika

salt and pepper

Thoroughly mix together first five ingredients in a big bowl.  Salt and pepper to taste.  If not using immediately, refrigerate.  Before using, let sit at room temperature for 20-30 minutes.

Best Burgers in Atlanta

Sometimes I wish that I didn't like burgers so much since red meat is bad for me and the cows are bad for the environment, but I will not-very-guiltily admit that burgers are just about my favorite food.  Which is great because here in Atlanta there are a number of restaurants with just fabulous burgers.  I've been planning this post for awhile but was waiting to try out a couple of other burgers that I've heard are among Atlanta's finest; however, I changed my mind today [well, Thursday, when I started this post] after an incredible lunch of burgers and onion rings at Grindhouse Killer Burgers (see image above).  I can always write another post if I need to.  I picked the three restaurants featured here because 1) they are my favorites, 2)  they run the gamut from ghetto (literally) to a bit swanky, and 3) they are my favorites.  Really, it's all totally subjective.

In no particular order:

Grindhouse Killer Burgers are great.  Located in the Sweet Auburn Curb Market, Grindhouse is essentially a lunch counter inside a large, open market in downtown Atlanta.  For me, the only problem with Grindhouse is logistical; although it is open on Saturdays, the Curb Market is only open from 8-6, and since I work nowhere near there, off of my usual lunchtime route.  I've managed to make it there twice; the first time there was a long line of suited men and it took more than 20 minutes to order and find a seat, but today we were there a bit after the peak lunch hour and were able to walk right up and order.  I love the fact that Grindhouse makes it easy if you don't eat meat or prefer not to eat red meat and doesn't charge extra for a veggie or turkey patty.  Every menu option is easily customized with your choice of meat (or lack thereof), can be made as a single or a double, and there are a nice array of toppings to choose from (think Hatch green chilis!).  On my first excursion to Grindhouse I tried the Apache Burger (the one with the green chilis; turkey patty), today I tried the Grindhouse Burger (essentially a standard burger; beef patty).  Nothing but complete and utter satisfaction with either.  I've heard mixed things about the fries and have not tried them, but can vouch that the onion rings are delicious.  They are on the crunchy side of fried, which I like, and can be smothered in either Grindhouse sauce (what I think is ketchup and mayonnaise mixed with a lot of pepper) or chipotle ranch, which makes them even better.  I also had a coffee milkshake.  By the way, I moved 5 tons of stones and topsoil today, so I could afford this meal. 

The first time I had a burger at Cakes and Ale I wondered aloud whether it was possible for a burger to be worth $14.  The answer is a resounding yes.  In fact, the burger is the only entree I have ever ordered there, and I have been to Cakes and Ale a half dozen times as it is probably my favorite restaurant in Atlanta.  I love the in-season menu, the wait staff are always knowledgeable and pleasant, and the atmosphere works for either a relaxed but sophisticated dinner or late-night drinks at the bar.  The burger is phenomenal--I think it is made with a combination of beef and pork belly, and is always perfectly cooked and juicy and served on just the right bun.  I'm scouring my brain trying to remember what comes on the burgers and am coming up short, which means you will you just have to go try it yourself.  I also love the fries that come with the burger; Belgian style, served with mayonnaise, and always perfectly cooked.  In the summer, don't forget to try the fried okra, too.

My third pick for one of Atlanta's best burgers is the famous Ghetto Burger at Miss Ann's Snack Bar, an Atlanta institution.  Miss Ann's is a tiny hole-in-the-wall in the Kirkwood neighborhood, and her lunch counter seats only eight.  Seating is in shifts; burgers are made for the first eight people then she cleans up and cooks a batch for the next eight.  Perhaps not a very efficient system, but part of the charm.  The time I went we arrived at around 10:45 am because we'd heard that there is usually a line on the weekend and we wanted to try and get in the first round of 8 people seated at 11 am.  As luck would not have it, the three of us were persons 9, 10, and 11, which meant we had to wait for the second seating.  Miss Ann operates on her own time, so she finally opened at 11:40 am and by the time the first shift was done and we sat down it was around 1 pm.  The wait was well worth it, both to watch Miss Ann in action and for the fabulous burger.  Everything is cooked right in front of you, one slow step at a time.  I can't say with any degree of certainty but I'm guessing there are around 2 pounds of beef in each Ghetto Burger--a double burger topped with onions, chili, bacon, and cheese.  Completely obscene yet incredibly delicious and an unbeatable experience.  In a futile attempt to mitigate the enormity of the Ghetto Burger I rode my bike to Miss Ann's, but I was so full that I was totally out of breath the entire ride home. 

Culinary Disasters (But the recipe at the end is great)

Was it me? Should I have given it more time? Did I forget to add something? Such are the questions we ask ourselves when a recipe goes awry. Actually, I should rephrase that: Such are the questions that some of us obsess over when a recipe goes awry.  As was unfortunately the case with a cherry pie I made last weekend. A complete failure. A disaster.

I was very excited to make this particular cherry pie as my uncle was visiting and cherry pie is his favorite and he's my favorite. But something went horribly wrong and the pie was awful. My uncle kindly gave it a 5, but unless it was a 5 on a scale of 1 to 100, I think he was just being nice. My cousin ate one bite. Even Mw, who will happily consume vast quantities of food that I deem merely acceptable [it is not that he lacks taste, it is that I am a very tough judge of my own cooking], would not eat the pie and finally I threw out the better part of it after three days of it remaining untouched on the kitchen counter.

It remains only my best guess about what went wrong. My theory is that the cherries I used had been in the freezer for too long. Mw thought that somehow the pie had reacted with the metal pie dish. Even though I'd used that pie dish for plenty of other pies with great success, I took precautionary action and recycled the pie dish (I wanted a pretty ceramic one anyways). The weirdest thing about the pie was that not only was the filling runny and not set, but the crust was also not fully cooked, even though I cooked it for about 30 minutes longer than the recipe called for. Truly, everything that should have been right was wrong. And tasteless.

Despite the cherry pie debacle, I already had my heart set on making a blueberry pie for last week's bookclub. I was admittedly a bit nervous making another pie so soon after the last one. What if it wasn't the cherries? The pie dish? What if I'd just lost my innate pie making skills (clearly, maternally inherited)?  Well, I was definitely very cautious with this pie, but am happy to report that the blueberry pie was phenomenal. The crust was just as it should be, light and flaky. The filling was well-set, and sweet without being too tart.  The leftovers from bookclub survived less than 24 hours.  All around, a perfect pie.  I'm happy that I have my pie-making skills back.  Let's hope they don't fail me again, that cherry pie really was awful.

Blueberry Pie

Essentially from the 'Joy of Cooking'

Flaky Pie Crust 

[this is my standard pie crust, it works well with apple pie, and probably cherry too under different circumstances]

21/2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup solid vegetable shortening (I use those nice Crisco sticks; you can also use 1/2 cup shortening plus 1/2 cup cold, unsalted butter)

1/3 cup plus 1 Tbsp ice water

Mix flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl.  Cut shortening into large chunks, then add to the flour mixture. Cut the fat into the dry ingredients using a pastry cutter or two knives. The mixture will come to resemble the consistency of coarse crumbs/cornmeal; some of the fat may remain in pea-sized pieces. Drizzle the water over the mixture, mixing in until the mixture looks evenly moistened and begins to form small balls. Once balls of dough stick together you have added enough water. If necessary, drizzle an additional 1-2 Tbsp ice water over top. [Note:  I usually do all of this in a Cuisinart mixer, makes the process extremely fast and easy.  Essentially, mix the dry ingredients with a few pulses, add the fat and pulse until the consistency is as described above, add the water and pulse until the dough begins to form as described].  Press the dough into a ball, the dough will be a bit rough. Divide dough in half, wrap each half in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or up to 2 days.

Blueberry Pie

5 cups blueberries, rinsed and picked over

3/4 cup sugar (or up to 1 cup if you like sweeter)

31/2 Tbsp cornstarch

1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

1/8 tsp salt

1 Tbsp butter, cut into small pieces.

Place oven rack in the lower third of the oven. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Roll out half of the dough you made above into a 13-inch round. Fit dough into a 9-inch pie plate, trim overhanging edge to around 3/4 inches all around. Roll the other half of the dough into a 12-inch round for the top crust.

Combine blueberries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and salt in a bowl. Let sit 15 minutes. 

Pour blueberry mixture into the bottom crust. Dot with butter. Brush edges of pie crust with water and then cover with top crust. Seal the edges, trim the overhang, and crimp or roll the edge of the crust as desired. Cut steam vents into the top crust.

Bake pie for 30 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F and slip a cookie sheet under the pie to catch juices. Bake the pie an additional 25-35 minutes, until thick juices bubble out of the vents. Cool completely on a rack, then serve and enjoy!