When the weather, inspiration, fruit of the season and mood is just right, then it is time to bake. Or, when you just plum feel better, and you have to do something nice to lift yourself...
I went to bed on Thursday night feeling fine.
But, at 1 a.m. I knew something was wrong.
I normally sleep like a log through the night, but I was wide awake.
I cuddled back up, as best as I could, between Miles and Matty, and tried to go back to sleep, but I felt something strange.
Then, I knew...
When my head began to spin and I couldn't lift it, and my stomach was in waves, fast waves, and I felt like I could fall right off the edge, never to be a part of this world again...
I knew.
Hello inner ear.
Hello vertigo.
So horrible to see you.
(as some of you know, I suffer from this a few times a year, due to a teenage horse fall head injury)
I grabbed my medication, or rather, dragged myself to it. I took one for my inner ear, and the golden one, especially for vertigo. And then, I held on for about 15+ hours. (funny enough, it was going to rain, something that does not happen often here, and the air pressure had changed. Am I am human barometer now?)
On Saturday, I came back to this earth. Still a little wobbly, still a little like my head was waving. But no longer feeling like I was literally going to die. Yes, that is what full blown, actual vertigo, feels like - to me at least.
I shuffled to the kitchen, and saw the heaps of Empire apples Mister Lovee had brought home.
And then I knew, that in slow steps, I just had to make apple pie.
I just had to.
It was a life line, back to my safe world...
I slowly peeled, cored, chopped...
I used this recipe.
One change I made is, where the pastry calls for 6 tablespoons of shortening, I used butter instead.
And then, Sir Cuisinart did the rest.
I love this machine.
He makes everything so easy.
Pop it all in, and then...
Dough? Pesto? Presto!
The recipe is really easy...
For the leaves, I just rolled out the dough and used a sharp knife to cut them out free hand. Then I shaped them and scored some details in with the end of some random kitchen tool. It was actually a corn ear holder thingy.
Very supple dough.
I had never made a double crust pie before, but it really was a breeze, and so much fun to do. Like creating edible art...
A pie for Mister Lovee.
He is such a love.
He is a gemini, so he has one angelic side, and one rotten side.
But mostly, he is fun and hilarious, and inspires me to bake him nice things.
He came in from the store just as I was finishing adding the leaves, and he just LOVED the look of his surprise pie. He asked me to paint the center berries with red food coloring. I told him they would turn black, but he said he would like that, so I said okay ;)
I baked it, putting foil lightly over the pie during the last 30 minutes of baking...
While it cooled, I made stuffed peppers, per Mister Lovee's request earlier in the week. I had so much to do, paintings I was working on, tidying, washing clothes.
But when you get so sick that nothing matters, then sometimes, for that moment in time, nothing does matter but...
Homemade apple pie...
I am still a little funny feeling, so I think that, on this dark rainy lovely autumn morn, I will cozy up with my 3 boys, and have a quiet little day...
See you soon!
Love, Vanessa