caboodle, That sounds adorable! I'm not a big pie fan either so that could be a fun way to make some for my husband. I was thinking on a slightly simpler variation --- I'd had a plan to make some apple crisp kits for gifts. Can apple slices in very light syrup, and give them away with little baggies of crumb topping minus the butter, with instructions to drain the fruit and put in a pan, cut butter into topping, and bake. I also thought I'd keep some for our use to bake up for an easy sweet fruity breakfast. Only when I finally got a chance to try this last weekend, my apple slices got too mushy by the time they were heated through to can! I ended up having to cook out the water and can them as sweetened applesauce (I don't usually sweeten my applesauce, so it's not something I'd have ever set out to can). The apples were a variety that I've found able to stand up to baking quite well in the past, but there were a number of factors that probably contributed to their demise. (HUGE pot of them, so they took a long time to heat through; not as fresh as I'd have liked by the time I got to them; and a hot August, which, the farmer I bought them from told me later, left them softer than usual.) I decided to go with the freezer for the quick-breakfast-crisp apples; I got some Ida Reds an will freeze them in some little individual-serving baking dishes, then remove them and FoodSave them, so they'll be in the shape of the dish when I take them out to cook, and we can eat them right from the same dish, no fuss no muss. Will come up with some other gift. Z

If you wait until next week, IÂll take you to the Kutztown Folk Festival here in eastern PA, where youÂll be able to sample a huge variety of PA Dutch specialties all in one place (link below) and be tempted to take home one of the 2000+ locally made quilts on display. Some of your choices will include chicken pot pie, schnitz un knepp (ham cooked with dried apples and dumplings), Lebanon bologna (a type of summer sausage) sandwiches, potato cakes, sausage and pepper sandwiches, shoofly, cherry crumb or other crumb-topped fruit pies, corn pie, fried scrapple and/or corn meal mush, roast ox, and pickles and preserves of many varieties. On the way home, weÂll stop at one of the farmers markets for thinly sliced dried beef, applewood smoked bacon and ham, Lodi apples, Uncle HenryÂs hard pretzels, any one of a dozen varieties of potato chips still fried in lard, sticky buns, chip steak, freshly picked corn, untrimmed celery, pickled eggs and red beets, pot pie noodles, whoopie pies and Moravian sugar cakes. I confess that I wonÂt feel much like cooking dinner since IÂll be tired from volunteering at the festival. We can go out for dinner at any one of a score of diners or 100+ year old still-operating village hotels/taverns, where itÂs possible that some of the nightly specials may be stuffed beef heart with gravy or pig stomach stuffed with potatoes, onions, smoked and fresh sausage. YouÂll have to remember that many of the vegetables or items like steamed clams will be served with addiction-inducing browned butter. Yuengling beer will be on tap everywhere but you can also have prize-winning Chambourcin wine from one of the Lehigh ValleyÂs vineyards. Here is a link that might be useful: Kutztown PA German Folk Festival

For something that was so dynamic in baking years ago, it's too bad the misnomer for naturally-leavened breads - "sourdough" - has been reduced to one perceived type of bread. The truth is, the same things that determine the crumb of bread made with baker's yeast apply just as equally to naturally-leavened breads. --When you want a loaf of panned sandwich bread with a close crumb to hold spreads and fillings, you add the fat early in the mixing so it "shortens" the gluten development for a close crumb. --Add the fat towards the end of kneading for a more open crumb that is perfect for toasting. All those small holes that hold the butter and jam, yet gets nice and crispy when toasted/grilled, unlike sandwich bread which is awful when toasted/grilled. --Want a network of large holes? That bread is made with well-hydrated lean dough - no fat. The last 25-30 years has reduced what was a common leavener in every home (starter) to a single loaf of bread. My grandmother used starter all her life to make panned loaves (they never called it sourdough bread - it was just "bread" - white bread, dark bread, rye bread, oatmeal bread, Anadama bread, etc.), dinner rolls, cinnamon rolls, waffles/pancakes, quick breads, cookies, donuts, bannock, biscuits, cornbread, fruit cake, chocolate cake, and probably other things I can't think of. They lived in the northern bush country in Ontario, Canada until after WWII, on a self-sufficient farm. My friend who was nearly 100 when she passed away a couple years ago, originally from Missouri, used nothing but a type of starter called "Everlasting Yeast" for making all her bread. Her mother began the starter and gave some to each of her daughters when they "set up housekeeping". She shared some with me in the late 1990's and was still making her bread each week. Modern versions of starter - "Herman", Friendship Starters or Amish Starter, are all based on things my grandmother and all her contemporaries used it for, with a modern twist. Some starters were just flour and water, some included potato water or potatoes, sugar/honey, some included dairy products..... But they all result in naturally-leavened breads and baked goods. Check out a 1959 copy of "Sourdough Jack" Mabee's "Authentic Sourdough Cookery Book". His book does have a recipe for "Sourdough French Bread" (San Francisco Style), but he lived in the area and the book is full of all kinds of other things made with starter - besides bread. In "Adventures in Sourdough Cooking & Baking" by Charles D. Wilford (copyright 1971), has even more recipes not bread related. "Sourdough Breads and Coffee Cakes - 104 recipes for using homemade starters - by Ada Lou Roberts (copyright 1967) is another great book for recipes as well as a large number of interesting starters. Just a touch of history and reality.... -Grainlady

I thought I remembered them being really particular about the cooking temp on the show, but that does not seem to be reflected here. Deep-Dish Apple Pie Cooks Illustrated, 9/2005 Use a combination of tart and sweet apples for this pie. Good choices for tart are Granny Smiths, Empires, or Cortlands; for sweet, we recommend Golden Delicious, Jonagolds, or Braeburns. Wrap leftovers tightly in plastic wrap and store at room temperature for up to 24 hours. To reheat, remove the wrap and warm the pie in a 350-degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes. See below for freezing instructions. Makes one 9-inch pie, serving 8 to 10 All-Butter Pie Pastry 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 1/2 ounces), plus additional flour for work surface 1 teaspoon table salt 1 tablespoon sugar 16 tablespoons unsalted butter (2 sticks), cold, cut into 1/2-inch cubes and frozen for 10 minutes 3 tablespoons sour cream 1/3 cup ice water , or more if needed Apple Filling 1/2 cup granulated sugar (3 1/2 ounces), plus 1 teaspoon 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar (1 3/4 ounces) 1/4 teaspoon table salt 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon 2 1/2 pounds tart apples (firm), about 5 medium, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices (see note) 2 1/2 pounds sweet apples (firm), about 5 medium, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices (see note) 1 egg white , beaten lightly 1. For Pastry: Process flour, salt, and sugar together in food processor until combined, about 3 seconds. Add butter and pulse until butter is size of large peas, about ten 1-second pulses. 2. Using fork, mix sour cream and 1/3 cup ice water in small bowl until combined. Add half of sour cream mixture to flour mixture; pulse for three 1-second pulses. Repeat with remaining sour cream mixture. Pinch dough with fingers; if dough is floury, dry, and does not hold together, add 1 to 2 tablespoons ice water and process until dough forms large clumps and no dry flour remains, three to five 1-second pulses. 3. Turn dough out onto work surface. Divide dough into 2 balls and flatten each into 4-inch disk; wrap each disk in plastic and refrigerate until firm but not hard, 1 to 2 hours, before rolling. (Dough can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours. Let thoroughly chilled dough stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before rolling.) 4. For Pie: Mix 1/2 cup granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, zest, and cinnamon in large bowl; add apples and toss to combine. Transfer apples to Dutch oven (do not wash bowl) and cook, covered, over medium heat, stirring frequently, until apples are tender when poked with fork but still hold their shape, 15 to 20 minutes. (Apples and juices should gently simmer during cooking.) Transfer apples and juices to rimmed baking sheet and cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes. While apples cool, adjust oven rack to lowest position, place empty rimmed baking sheet on rack, and heat oven to 425 degrees. 5. Remove 1 disk of dough from refrigerator and roll out between 2 large sheets of parchment paper or plastic wrap to 12-inch circle, about 1/8 inch thick. (If dough becomes soft and/or sticky, return to refrigerator until firm.) Remove parchment from one side of dough and flip onto 9-inch pie plate; peel off second layer of parchment. Working around circumference, ease dough into plate by gently lifting edge of dough with one hand while pressing into plate bottom with other hand. Leave dough that overhangs plate in place; refrigerate until dough is firm, about 30 minutes. 6. Meanwhile, roll second disk of dough between 2 large sheets of parchment paper or plastic wrap to 12-inch circle, about 1/8 inch thick. Refrigerate, leaving dough between parchment sheets, until firm, about 30 minutes. 7. Set large colander over now-empty bowl; transfer cooled apples to colander. Shake colander to drain off as much juice as possible (cooked apples should measure about 8 cups); discard juice. Transfer apples to dough-lined pie plate; sprinkle with lemon juice. 8. Remove parchment from one side of remaining dough and flip dough onto apples; peel off second piece of parchment. Pinch edges of top and bottom dough rounds firmly together. Following illustrations 1 through 4, trim and seal edges of dough, then cut four 2-inch slits in top of dough. Brush surface with beaten egg white and sprinkle evenly with remaining teaspoon sugar. 9. Set pie on preheated baking sheet; bake until crust is dark golden brown, 45 to 55 minutes. Transfer pie to wire rack and cool at least 1 1/2 hours. Cut into wedges and serve.