For most people, the day of eating and eating and gathering at the table, and sitting and talking, and eating some more, is over. You’re on to leftovers. My Thanksgiving food tradition is still two days away. This year, I’ll have just under 30 people to my pie party. Each person eats a half pie each. I kid you not. Well, that’s an average, taking into account a few teenage boys. Do the math. I need fifteen pies.

All year long I keep an eye out for pie recipes. I collect pie cookbooks, and I have a folder filled with clippings from magazines and newspapers. Each year I craft a menu that’s different from the previous years’. I like a variety and I like some of the pies to be ones that my guests haven’t had before. But, I also need to have classic apple pie (my specialty.) I never have pumpkin pie. I figure that everyone has had enough of that. My menu is balanced between custard and fruit, chocolate and nuts. In recent years, due to requests, I’ve added savory pies. Some of the pies are complicated. Very. Some pies can be made ahead. I have eight in the freezer right now. Some crusts can be made ahead. Here I’m rolling out a savory, peppery crust for a butternut squash galette.

This crust can be frozen, but the pie itself can’t be put together until the last minute. Other recipes have to be constructed at the last minute. A detailed to-do list is essential. I have a master list, and a schedule of when to prep what.

I fume and fuss, and yesterday I had a snit over a poorly written recipe for a ground peanut crust that was too heavy on the sugar, but I do love all of this baking. And I really love eating the pies.

Here is the pie list for 2010. It might change. You never know what will need tweaking as those last pies are made.

Bittersweet Chocolate Tart with Orange Marmalade
Cashew and Chocolate Cream Pie
Apple Pie with Crystallized Ginger
Orange Creme Brulee Pie
Cherry Clafouti Pie
Peanut Tart with Maple Syrup and Chocolate Moussse
Lemon Pie (straight off the frozen Minute Maid lemon juice box – perfect!)
Brown Sugar Pear Pie
Apple Pie with Cheddar Crust
Toll House Pie
Toll House Pie with Mint Chips and White Chocolate
Butternut Squash Galette
Shepherd’s Pie Made With Local Lamb and Beef

Did you have a special pie yesterday? Tell me about it! I might be able to find the time to make another.

I’m elbow-deep in pie crust for my annual pie party. I’ve already frozen 10 all-butter crusts and two sweet orange crusts. Today I’ll be making four savory crusts for the butternut squash and pomegranate free-form tart. I take great pride in my flaky, soft butter crusts. Thank goodness I’ve learned how to freeze them so I don’t have to make all 20+ crusts on the day of the party!

Making crusts really is easy, but it does take experience to get a perfect result. The ingredients are basic, it’s how you handle them that makes all the difference. I make crusts using very cold, almost frozen, butter, and ice water. I work it as little as possible in the processor to form a ball. It’s exactly the right temperature to roll right then. Many books advise letting the dough chill before rolling. Don’t.

I pat the dough into a flattened ball. I roll it out 1/4 inch thick. I prefer to roll on a flour-dusted surface, not between parchment as is often recommended. But, I have a light touch and my crusts don’t dry out fro the addition of too much flour. If you’re new to pie-making, you might want to roll between  parchment. I then use a large pie plate as a template and cut the crust into a perfect circle. I put the circles between sheets of parchment paper and place on a baking sheet. Wrap the whole thing in layers of plastic wrap, label and freeze. When I need a crust, I take it out of the freezer and let it sit at room temperature until it becomes flexible – about 10 minutes. Then the crust is ready to use.

Crusts become tough when overworked. After I cut that perfect circle I have scraps of dough. Good, expensive, butter-dough. I could save them and make one more crust, but, rolling it again will ruin that perfect pie crust texture. What to do? I make pie crust cookies. I form the scraps into a ball and roll it out, this time in something like a rectangle. Then, I dust with sugar and cinnamon. Then I put a single-layer of something, pecans, or chocolate chips, or chopped apples – whatever I have leftover from pie baking, on the dough (leaving the edges empty.) Roll it up. Slice it like you would a sugar cookie log. It’ll look like rugelach. Place on a non-stick baking sheet (I always use parchment paper.) Bake in a 375 degree oven until lightly browning on the edges.

A baker’s well-deserved treat!

These are pecan pie-crust cookies.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

(Just a reminder that if you haven’t yet seen my Goat Notes, to go to my Etsy.com store!)

It’s been a beautiful November – hard frosts in the morning and sunny skies in the afternoon. It’s been so cold that the pumpkin in the chicken run is frozen. Most of the animals take it in stride, but there are two that are already showing full-winter cold weather coping behavior.

Candy has been spending the morning sunbathing at the door of her hutch. It’s her winter place. (Note that we lowered the hutch by a half foot. She’s getting old and I noticed her having a bit of trouble with the steep ramp. Now it’s easier.)

Scooter does his sunbathing inside. We’ll be tripping over him all winter.

It’s that time of year when the obligatory gift shopping begins. I refuse to get sucked into the commercial frenzy. You can, too.

I don’t like malls. I don’t like the physical spaces, the echoey cacophony and the hard surfaces. I don’t like the strained marketing the stores use to get people to buy stuff they don’t need. That said, in all honesty, I do go to the mall. That’s where the Apple store is and where I buy Clinique. But it’s not where I shop for gifts.

I also don’t like most gift cards.  Gift cards are the equivalent of giving cash, which destroys the spirit of  a gift – the surprise and pleasure of getting something you didn’t ask for and never knew you needed until you opened the package. Gift cards don’t have to feel like extortion, though. My oldest son will get one -there’s no way I can select clothes for him, so the card will be for an unexpected shopping trip to a store in the city.

I like getting books that I’d never have thought to read if it weren’t for them being given to me as a gifts. I like giving books, too. I’m lucky to have indie bookstores nearby, but I also shop online, especially for used books – that’s where I’ve found those old chicken keeping texts that I tell you about. (By the way, for you horse people out there, check out my friend, Robin’s, used equestrian horse books.)

What I really enjoy are unique handmade items. I’ve found some wonderful crafts, and made some even more valuable friendships, through a combination of this blog and an online community of artists. Celia Hart is a printmaker and is now also collaborating with a jeweler. Jenny Tiffany makes the most adorable stuffed animals with personalities that are so quirky. Brandy Goodwin is a soap artist. I know that there are many, many more worth a comment. If you are an artist or crafter and have products available online, this is your chance to toot your own horn. Tell us what you do and leave a link in the comments.

(And in a bit of shameless self-promotion, I do hope you’ll think about giving something from Little Pond Farm to your loved ones. Tillie Lays an Egg is the perfect gift for a little one, or an adult who collects all things chicken. There’s also the Goat Notes, the ringtones, and bumper stickers. The bumper sticker image can be put on any product at that store. Just ask! Links for all of these are on my HenCam homepage. Or, simply tell a friend about my site. Your gift to me are more readers!)

I’m looking forward to reading your comments and seeing your art!

… Pat! More than half of the entries liked The Meeting of the Minds notecard the best. What you should know about that photo is that I took it with my iphone camera – it was in no way posed. Pip’s natural inclination is to head butt with some force. After all, he is a goat, and that’s how he plays with Caper. But, I think that Candy did some sort of lop-eared mind meld that let him know he could say hello, if, and only if, he behaved. I actually saw him think about butting, and then gently get closer. Sweet.

Anyway, what I should say is “and the winner is…. me!”  Thank you all for telling me how much you love my animals and how much you appreciate my cams and blog.

Yesterday was my birthday. I had a very  nice day. I took the dogs for a long walk to the Hemlock woods. The path smelled like wet brown leaves and decaying pine needles. (Why doesn’t Yankee Candle sell that scent?) Can you see Scooter in the leaves in this photo?

I got the best presents – Steve gave me a DVD about the Jewish chicken farmers of Petaluma. My oldest son gave me a coupon for a dinner, and my youngest gave me a big bag of horse treats to feed the goats. Steve and I went out to dinner at Oleana. The chef’s husband is a vegetable farmer, and they use locally-sourced meats, but what I love about this restaurant is the use of vibrant North-African flavors.

The icing on the cake were all of your birthday greetings (I got a slew on FaceBook.) I have four projects sitting on various editors’ desks. I am waiting and waiting to hear if they deem any of my work worth publishing, so to get all of your affirmations that what I do is meaningful to you, really and truly keeps me going.

The rose on the top of the cake was a note from one of my very favorite novelists, Jo-Ann Mapson. She found me through google while researching chicken behavior for a new novel. A Jo-Ann Mapson book with chickens? I can’t wait! AND she said she likes my writing style. Really, it was just that sort of a warm and fuzzy day.

Lily Dog is at my feet. She says that long walks to the Hemlock woods should not be limited to birthdays. She’s right.