Pie Making

To continue my quest for domesticity, I decided I should learn how to make an apple pie from scratch.  I've never made a pie crust from scratch on my own and I figured I should start with the all-American apple pie. I ended up slicing my finger while cutting an apple, but other than that the process wasn't too bad. It did take quite a while though. 

We received a beautiful pie dish as a wedding present (thanks Ward Tatge!), but I had been using it as decoration on our coffee table. So I literally dusted the dish off and began the process. I used a recipe for the crust that didn't require Crisco or butter, since those have hydrogenated oils and Dan says those are slowly killing us. The filling was a recipe from Pioneer Woman. 

(Pardon the asymmetrical vents. I apparently need to hone my slicing skills.)

It was of course delicious, but it took me about 2 hours of prep time, so I don't think I'll be making pies on a regular basis. I'm glad I finally used our pie dish though!

Bread Making

When we were in Oklahoma to pick up Abbey, I went to a few thrift stores with my dad and found a bread maker for $1.50. Yep. That cheap. It was marked down from $7, so it was a really good deal. Though, I probably would have paid the full 7. I love this thing. Ask any of my former roommates about my love affair with bread and they'll tell you some embarrassing stories. Bread making (and bread eating) is my new hobby and I think it is the perfect hobby for winter. Plus our apartment smells amazing. All the time. And let's face it, I needed to up my domestic skills after the laundry incident.

It is SO easy. Having a bread machine makes the whole process less scary. When I was little, my mom would occasionally make bread with us. I've been told I liked to compare the soft dough to my baby sister's tummy. I remember it being very messy, flour all over the counter, and then you had to find that perfect spot to let it rise. The bread machine does all that for you. Seriously, all you do is put in all the ingredients and 4 hours later your house smells amazing and you have a loaf of bread.

I've experimented with different wheat recipes, but so far I haven't found one that made a great wheat loaf. The white loaf is delicious though!

I've also made pizza dough and dough for chicken and dumplings!

I told Dan we're never buying store bought bread again. We'll see how long my new hobby lasts.

Mishaps

This is why communication in a marriage is important:

Last night I came home from seeing the musical Chicago with one of my friends. Dan was at the gym. I've been in the process of whitening all of our white linens, since they were becoming a little drab. So I decided to whiten our white duvet cover next. I fill the washer half full with water and then pour in the bleach. I let it fill all the way to the top, before I stuff in our king sized cover. Dan comes home from the gym and asks if I dried his clothes already. Um no. Apparently, before Dan went to the gym he decided to do a load of his favorite shirts (emphasis on favorite) and I poured bleach all over them. And now we have to go shopping for a new wardrobe for Dan. Lesson learned.