Blueberry Pie...

With the calamity of the Moore tornado this week, 

it seems like there is little those of us living far away 

can do beyond donating money 

to reputable charities like the Red Cross...

Certainly, every monetary donation 

will do good...  

But others, those closer to the disasters, 

sometimes find a way to provide much needed
comfort through food... 

Like making pie...

Beth Howard is a "Piethanropist" of sorts...  

She found her own solace in pie making 

after her husband's sudden and tragic death 

from an aortic rupture...  

She just wrote a book about her experience, too...

Last year, after the terrible massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School, 

Beth loaded up her "The World Needs More Pie" RV 

and headed from Iowa to Connecticut to make 

and serve pies...  

The  Newtown community embraced her desire to help 

and many assisted with loving hands...  

All told, Beth and the local folks baked hundreds of pies 

to supply to wakes, funerals, community meetings 

and to first responders...  

Beth was mentioned in this article,
which includes some excellent stories of people 

coming together, amid tragedy, 

to feed those hurting...  

Today, I felt like making pie, too...  

To nourish my kids, mainly...

To give love, "from scratch"...  

A bubbling, purple hug with a creamy ala' mode kiss on top...  

It felt good to mix the dough by hand, 

with bits of butter and lard dotting the flour landscape...  

It was therapeutic to roll out the chilled dough,

between two sheets of parchment,
carefully laying the thin sheet into the pie plate...  

Simple ingredients to fill; blueberries, sugar, flour, 

lemon juice, salt and nutmeg...  

The top crust was brushed with a beaten egg 

to ensure nice browning... 

A quick dusting of cinnamon and sugar 

for a sweet crunch...  

Some say you are not supposed
to heal wounds with food...  

That is what the nutrition police will warn you...  

Certainly kids should not gorge themselves 

with a box of Ding Dongs every time 

they have a bad day...

But now and then, a hot and satisfying dish, 

be it home-made macaroni and cheese, fried chicken, 

or pasta bolognese, can soothe a broken soul, 

even for just a short while...  

There is no doubt that I show love
through cooking and baking...

I hope my young ones will feel the warmth of my hugs 

as they dig into a fat slice of blueberry pie....

Here are the recipes for pie crust and the blueberry pie...

Thank you, Pioneer Woman!

I sort of morphed the crust directions, 

using the pie crust tutorial ingredients 

and the blueberry pie recipe for baking it...

  

Enjoy!