"The crust and I are both flaky." - The Author 2014

Several years ago I "borrowed" a 1965 edition of the Farm Journal's Complete Pie Cookbook from my mothers vast collection of cookbooks that were literally climbing across her walls in abundance. At the time, I knew she wouldn't miss it and I personally was really frustrated with my pie baking skills regardless that actually putting those skills into play were few and far between. I was also just desperate for a creative outlet. Working so much as an executive in online retail ecommerce and digital marketing during the week, meant that my primarily right brained self suffered tremendously as I voraciously exercised my business minded analytical left brain during the week. Not only was pie satisfying, but it felt like an enviable craft to be actually able to produce a slice people adored. In fact, my own husband might love Dutch Apple Pie more than he loves me and it might be something I could leverage to win my teenagers over, IF I could actually get them to like pie. =sigh!=

About a year (or more) after actually bringing the book home, I settled in to scour the pages for recipes that a California girl with some ties to the south (my mother being originally from Arkansas...), could actually produce. I Post-It flagged the pages with sophisticated legal contract type Post-It flags generally used in a business setting. After working in a legitimate business setting for so long, tagging these pages for me was "getting down to the business of creativity." 

After several attempts actually making a pie crust "the old fashioned way"--- or how the Farm Journal might direct, I gave up. In trying to get the pastry flaky, I would always make the dough too dry and ultimately it would fall apart. Too wet, and I lost all of the flakiness that make a good pie well, a "good pie."

On a PBS cooking show I overheard someone mentioning using vodka (that's right... vodka) to add moisture to the dough that would actually cook off in the baking process, thereby making the pie crust perfectly flaky. The problem was, I didn't have a recipe. So I set off to create one and I did actually create one of the most fabulous recipes ever and I share it here.

Just so you know, I'm not your typical "pie baking chick", in fact, I am probably not what you think of at all when you think pie talent, but then again--- modern society is changing perception across a plethora of topics, so why not this one. And if pie or vodka isn't your thing (and that's okay), then maybe any of the other topics I elect to discuss here be it art, books, podcasts, stuff my kids do or say, dogs and cats, fashion, pop culture, celebrity mayhem, the weather... etc...

Bottomline, I've gotten so many compliments on this pie crust recipe and pie recipes that I've made over the years, that I thought I would share them here on this blog: "Pie & Vodka" and maybe occasionally I'll tell you about something wildly amazing or terrifically wonderful, since I'm apt to do!

I hope you enjoy Pie & Vodka! Comments are always welcome and you can contact me via email at: info@pieandvodka.com.

                                   OXOX