Thanksgiving and Pies and Disasters – Oh My!
I will never forget the first Thanksgiving holiday I hosted. I was a lowly newspaper reporter in Anderson, South Carolina. I was also a transplanted Midwesterner (referred to as a Damned Yankee by many of the locals), among several other 20-something transplants. None of us had enough vacation time or money to go home for Turkey Day. So, I decided to play Martha Stewart an invite the gang to my house for the holiday once we “put the paper to bed.” (Okay, the reporters don’t put the paper to bed, but it sounds cool, don’t ya think?)
Anyway, the turkey prep and cooking was a story in and of itself. But this post is about pies. I made two apple pies and they tasted TERRIBLE! A few days after the holiday, I was lamenting this fact to my mother, who was consoling me by saying, “Hon, it’s takes lots of practice to get a pie crust just right. Don’t be too hard on yourself.” To which I responded, “Mom! I bought the stupid pie crusts already MADE! It was the filling that was dreadful!”
Well — if you’re going to attempt a homemade pie this year, and especially if you’re a newb at such a task, then you need to know about the Crisco Pie Hotline.
The Crisco Pie Hotline is back this year to offer the latest baking, storage tips, time saving hints and the option to talk to a live pie pro. Consumers can call 1-877-FOR PIE TIPS toll-free to find answers to some of the most common pie-baking questions like:
- “How do I prevent the bottom of my pumpkin pie crust from becoming soggy?”
- “How do I prevent my meringues from weeping?”
- “How can I make a quick, classic pie crust?”
Home chefs also can visit Crisco Pie Central at www.Crisco.com to find troubleshooting tips and step-by-step visual instructions for creating delicious pie crusts and simple, yet tasty recipes using seasonal ingredients.
Now back to my first Thanksgiving as a host story: I learned a few things that year:
1) Just because it grosses your single, childless, 20-something self out, you shouldn’t skip the step of sticking your hand inside the turkey while prepping it. If you do, you might not realize there’s a bag of “stuff” in there, and you might stuff the turkey and bake it without having removed that bag. If you do this, that part of the turkey will turn a funny green color.
2) If that happens, you can hack off that part of the turkey without your guests ever knowing what you did. The turkey will look a little funny on the platter, with half of it cleaved off and thrown in the trash can, but the rest of the meat will taste just fine and no one will get food poisoning.
3) 20-somethings who are away from home for Thanksgiving for the first time will fall into one of two categories as guests: a) the kind that are incredibly grateful for the meal and the company and b) the kind that tell you what recipe/special ingredient/dish their Mom’s made that they are really missing!
Still, it’s a great memory — bad pie and partly-ruined turkey and all.
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#1 Anna on November 9, 2009:
Ha, I was a stressed-out newspaper reporter when I hosted my first Thanksgiving, too! Thank goodness my mother was there to hold my hand.
This will be my first year without her – I feel like such an adult!
Thanks for the story and the tips, I’ll need them!
Anna, Live Solid