Two recipes to fill the arteries and heart with cholesterol and love, respectively.

The weekend of Harry's birthday was spent house-sitting/baby-sitting two teenagers, and Harry’s actual “day of birth” was on a Sunday, so I decided that Harry deserved a 48 hour birthday, and that Monday (which was also the first day of spring break for the students in this family) would be fit for celebrating.

We began the day with a recipe I found randomly on the internet. It's a combo of 3 of my favorite things: apples, bacon, and pancakes. It is as follows (no pictures were taken—the early hour and my feeble efforts to prevent a late arrival to work are to blame).

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup(s) apple cider
• 3 tablespoon(s) packed light brown sugar, divided
• 1 1/2 teaspoon(s) lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoon(s) cornstarch
• 1/2 cup(s) whole-wheat pastry flour
• 1/4 cup(s) all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoon(s) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon(s) baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon(s) baking soda
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg white
• 1/2 cup(s) nonfat buttermilk
• 1 medium (about 1 cup) apple, peeled and finely diced
• 4 slice(s) bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 1 teaspoon(s) canola oil, divided

Directions

1) Combine cider, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, lemon juice, and cornstarch in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking, and cook until thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Set aside.

2) Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and the remaining 1 tablespoon brown sugar in a small bowl. Whisk egg, egg white, and buttermilk in a large bowl. Stir in the dry ingredients, apples, and bacon until just combined. (The batter will be thick.)

3) Brush a large nonstick skillet with 1/2 teaspoon oil and place over medium heat until hot. Cooking 4 at a time, use about 1/4 cup batter for each pancake and gently spread it to make them about 3 inches in diameter. Cook until the edges are dry and bubbles begin to form, about 2 minutes. Flip the pancakes and cook until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes more. Repeat with the remaining oil and batter, reducing the heat as necessary to prevent burning. Reheat the cider syrup, if desired, and serve with the pancakes.

I didn’t make dinner because a few weeks ago I found out about this highly rated noodle place in San Mateo. Harry has mentioned every so often the desire to eat at a noodle bar. This one was rated 4/5 stars on Yelp (over 500 reviews!) and 91% on Urban Spoon—a good bet. To say it was yummy is a gross understatement (Hm. Using the words “yummy” and “gross” in the same sentence to convince people what you ate was delicious. Eh, I’m leaving it).

Delish.

Here’s what I really wanted to show—this recipe was from our King of cook books (Cook’s Best Recipe). Were I privy to Oprah’s wealth, I would make sure everyone I knew owned one (this would come after I bought a house next door to Ina Garten in the Hamptons). The great thing about this cook book is that it’s put together by the editors of Cooks Illustrated, and they literally make a recipe 25 times until they narrow down to exactly how it should be done (what’s the best type of leavener, thickening agent, type of flour, most preferred density/moisture/flavor, etc.) with the help of incessant testing/focus groups. Needless to say, this pie made me start singing “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,” and was surprisingly simple.

Blueberry Pie

Ingredients:

• Pie crust dough sufficient to line and cover an 8" round pie plate
• Flour for dusting the work surface
• 6 cups (30 oz) fresh blueberries (rinsed unless you like dirt/germs/etc.)
• 3/4-1 cup plus 1 TB sugar (depending on how tart/sweet you want the pie to be)
• 2 tsp. lemon juice
• 1 tsp. grated lemon zest
• 1/4 tsp. ground allspice
• Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg (or just plain old ground nutmeg like we used)
• 3-4 TB potato starch (depending on how "gummy" or held together you want the filling to be-- we opted for less)
• 2 TB unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 large egg white, unbeated

1) Adjust an oven rack to the lowest position, place a rimmed baking sheet on it, and heat the oven to 500 degrees F.

2) Roll the dough on a lightly floured work surface, roll out to a 12" circle, and transfer to the pie dish.

3) Toss the berries, 3/4-1 cup sugar, lemon juice, zest, spices, and potato starch in a medium bowl, let stand for 15 min.

4) Roll out the second piece of dough to a 12" circle. Spoon the berries into the pie shell and scatter the butter pieces over the filling.

5) Place the second piece of dough over the filling. Trim the top and bottom edges to 1/2 inch beyond the pan lip. Tuck this rim underneath itself so that it's flush with the pie dish's lip.

6) Cut 4 slits in the pie dough top and brush the egg white on the top of the crust, and then sprinkle evenly with the 1 TB sugar.

7) Place pie on the baking sheet and lower the oven temp to 425 degrees F. Bake until the crust is golden, about 25 min. Rotate the pie and reduce the oven temp to 375; bake until the juice bubble and the crust is deep golden brown, 30-35 min.

8) Transfer pie to pie rack, let cool for 4 hours (which is totally ridiculous, and we cut into this pie after 20 minutes, and it was amazing. We're all for only following the directions we want to follow, ostensibly).







This pie (which was celestial to the taste buds) had a strange and paradoxically wonderful and terrible effect on my subconscious.

That night I had a dream that I and all the same people who studied abroad with me in London went back for the same study abroad again. All the same people were there, hanging out in the London Center entryway. It was amazing the sense of nostalgia I woke up with. It’s strange when your brain brings back a rush of memories you thought were dormant, while you’re sleeping and vulnerable no less, and you wake up feeling like you’re 19 and irresponsible in Europe again. Almost a little unfair. Now I’m looking up round trip flights. Just for fun. And to scratch the itch that my brain put in my dream.

Thanks a lot, brain.