Well then, that must have been my problem because I did double the recipe!! I didn't realize you couldn't! I know you're not supposed to fool around with amounts in recipes so you keep the acid ratio correct, but where this was just strawberries and sugar and nothing else in the recipe I figured it was ok! I guess not! And I measured out 4 quarts of whole strawberries. The recipe was 2 quarts of strawberries and 6 cups of sugar. It didn't say to cut them or mash them before measuring - in fact (I'm remembering off the top of my head here as I don't have the book with me) it said to crush the strawberries one layer at a time and then to mix with the sugar, so it sounded to me like you measured the whole strawberries, then crushed them and that's what I did. I'm not going to fuss with what I already made - as I said, it won't go to waste as hubby will use it as pancake topping - we've even been known to plop a spoonful of jam in a bowl of oatmeal, so this stuff will work for that as well. But I'm glad I spoke up because for future adventures in jam, I wouldn't have known any of this and would probably have given up on it if I kept failing! And I thought it was weird that the jam recipe that used the pectin used an extra cup of sugar from the one without pectin. I've learned so much from just this thread - thanks so much guys! I want to take my next adventure into the realm of peaches! Peach jam sounds yummy and if I fail again, hubby does like peaches, so he'll have more pancake topping than he knows what to do with lol!! Lisa

I like parchment best because it can be folded up easily to transfer the crust and with a little flour the crust won't stick. This is probably redundant, but to make great pie crusts, just make more! In other words, practice! Then you will know the deep, dark secrets of the pie world. The reason cooks like the vodka recipe is because it is so forgiving. With butter/shortening crusts, the dough Must be kept cold at all times. When the dough starts to even get close to room temp., I slide a cookie sheet under the parchment and pop the whole mess in the freezer. As I cut out leaves, or whatever decoration I want on top of the pie, they go on a plate to be popped in the freezer immediately. The cold, cold, cold thing can't be underemphasised with regular pie dough (butter, shortening or lard) Cracks are ok, warm is not. With the addition of the vodka, however, something magical takes place. the dough can be rolled out a little warmer, it becomes like play dough, and has no cracks. It is satisfying and easy to work with. But when cooked, the vodka evaporates and creates those beautiful layers and flakiness. If you used regular pie crust and rolled it out warm, you would get leather. All that said, I still am obsessed with keeping pie dough cold. Very cold. Cracks can be turned under for the crust. I always make about 3 times more dough than the recipe calls for, I want lots of wiggle room. The dough can be frozen anyway so it doesn't go to waste. (make a disc, wrap in lots of plastic and a freezer bag) However, I experienced the real beauty of the vodka dough one day when I let the dough get crazy warm. I was sure the crust was ruined. But it turned out great! Flaky, and just as perfect as using stiff, cold dough.

Here is my favourite, great made with the or . I vary the veggies using sweet potato turnip, green beans and peas and omitting the carrots. No reason why you couldn't make a double crust. I like to make individual pies. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Chicken Pot Pie With Herbed Crust ================================= Pie can be topped with herbed crust or with Puff pastry Dough 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh thyme 1/2 teaspoon salt 4 Tablespoons cold butter, cut into 1 inch pieces 1/4 cup cold solid vegetable shortening cut into bits 1/4 cup ice water Chicken filling 4 Large chicken breasts 5 Cups chicken broth 2 Teaspoons black peppercorns 2 bay leaves 4 springs fresh thyme 3 Large garlic cloves 2 Small carrots cut into 3/4 inch cubes 1 Small leek cut into 1/2 inch thick pieces (about 2 cups) 1 Large sweet potato 1 or 2 stalks of celery 2 or three large baking potatoes cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces 1 Cup frozen peas Sauce 4 Tablespoons butter 5 Tablespoons all purpose flour 1 Cup heavy cream 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh thyme salt and pepper . Use any combination of vegetables. I have added fresh green beans cut into 1/2 inch pieces. Cook the chicken in a soup pot with the broth, peppercorns, bay leaves, thyme and garlic. Bring to a boil over high head. Reduce the heat to low and simmer very gently until the chicken is cooked. Remove the chicken from the pot and let cool. Remove meat from bones. Strain broth to remove peppercorns and herbs. Bring strained broth to a boil and add leeks, celery and carrot. Cook a couple of minutes and then add sweet potatoes and regular potatoes. Remove vegetables from broth to a bowl with the chicken and set aside. Make sauce, by melting butter in a saucepan over low heat. Add flour and then cooking stirring frequently with a whisk, until the mixture develops a nutty smell, about 2 minutes. Slowly add half the broth to the roux, whisking constantly until the sauce thickens. Add the rest of the broth along with the cream and chopped thyme. Increase the heat to moderate and allow the sauce to simmer, stirring occasionally, until it is well steeped with the flavour of thyme. Remove the pan from the head. Add the vegetables and chicken to the sauce. Add frozen peas. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon filling into the pan. Cover with pastry, trucking in edge to seal to side of pan. Reroll the dough trimmings and cut out several leaf shapes to decorate. Make small incisions in the crust to allow steam to escape. Bake in a 375 degree oven until crust in golden brown, for about 50 minutes.

Cowpeas, or Southern Peas, are not peas, but are actually a bean crop that originated in India in prehistoric times, found their way to Africa, and were brought to the U.S. during colonial times. It is doubtful that this specific bean can be grown anywhere in the U.K., unless it were grown in the WARMEST area, there, since it prefers hot Summer weather. Nevertheless, surely the canned version Cowpeas is available to anyone who has the inclination to give them a try; they are quite healthy. Most varieties of Cowpeas fix Nitrogen in the soil as they are grown, so they also improve the soil; some in the U.S. grow them specifically as a cover crop. In many areas of the southern U.S., I find Cowpeas combined (and served and eaten) with stewed Tomatoes; the taste of each seems to compliment the other. There is a small area in and around Charlottesville, Virginia, where Cowpeas are baked into a pie, and served, by the slice, at dinner or supper; nowhere else in the U.S., or any other country, have I ever seem them cooked and served in this manner. (Canned Cowpeas can be substituted for fresh, for anyone adventurous enough to try them--they are quite tasty and very healthy, and worthy of a taste-test). They are cooked and served as follows: A kilo, or so, of fresh, shelled Cowpeas (of one's choice) are cooked in water to cover them, until tender, (approximately 30 minutes) in a sauce pan that will accomodate them. When done, ALL water is poured off, and the beans are coarsely mashed in their pan with a potato masher. (The idea is not to sieve them with a fine masher, but to mash them coarsely). Into a 24cm-30cm (10"-12") frying pan, 3 slices of raw bacon are fried until done and set aside, and the coarsely-mashed beans (cowpeas) are spooned into the hot bacon grease, (hopefully) to nearly fill the frying pan all around, to the depth of the pan (5cm, or 2" deep). The coarsely-mashed beans (Cowpeas) are either cooked (on medium heat) in the frying pan on a burner atop the stove, or placed in a medium oven to bake. (As stated earlier, 2 or 3 cans of (already cooked) Cowpeas may be coarsely mashed and substituted for the fresh, cooked cowpeas). The pan should be monitored until a brown crust has formed on the bottom of the mashed Cowpeas--with experience, this will take only about 8-10 minutes on medium heat, since the beans (Cowpeas) are already cooked, and ONLY being heated and browned on the bottom. When a nice brown crust has formed on the bottom of the mashed Cowpea "pie", the pan is removed from the heat, a (slightly) larger platter placed on top the pan, and the pan "turned over" onto the platter. If properly executed, one will now have a Cowpea "pie" with a nice, brown crust on top, on a platter. The "pie" is then sliced (like any other pie) and equal portions served to diners. The fact that all water was removed from the cooked beans (Cowpeas), and they were heated for 8-10 minutes longer, means that the Cowpea...