Day 7: NaNoPIEMo 30 Days of 30 Pies, or something like that.

I’m exhausted. I write these blog posts the night before and have them scheduled to show up first thing in the morning. So I’m writing this one with my eyes partially closed. I may not even know what kind of pie I’m telling you is the pie for tomorrow. I think it’s called an ORANGE SPICE CARROT PIE in a CREAM CHEESE PASTRY. It will go brilliantly with all the coffee we are drinking to adjust with the Daylight/Standard time change jet lag.

This pie helps in two ways. The kids Ocean Discovery get free meals, and they often don’t eat all their fruits and veggies as kids are wont to do. I usually take the pounds of apples or pears or peaches and make pie for the kids. A cobbler with sugar and ice cream is SO much better than a fresh fruit when you are 9 years old. They also leave pounds of untouched little ziploc baggies of carrots. I love carrot cake but I don’t make much cake. I finally found a recipe for a carrot cake type of pie. All the same spices, and mixture, but not cakey but very moist. It will be in a cream cheese pastry, and I’m hoping to make some cream cheese whipped topping. Yum. And, the carrots won’t go to waste.

I’m rather excited about this pie, especially after the success with yesterday’s Chai Pie full of fresh ground spices. This pie will also be filled with fresh ground spices and fresh carrots. And DREAM, I mean, CREAM CHEESE!

Bids start at $85. Place your bids in the comments. Highest bidder when I pull the pie out of the oven wins. Watch for updates on social media. But the winner will be posted here when bids are closed.

This is me yesterday…I’ll survive!

Day 5: NaNoPIEMo 30 Pies in 30 Days

ROSEMARY STEAK AND GRUYERE IN A PUFF PASTRY. That’s the pie, but read on if you want to know why.

PLACE YOUR BIDS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW. THE WINNER WILL BE DECLARED WITH THE PIE COMES OUT OF THE OVEN, OR THEREABOUTS. Bidding starts at $95. I’m trying to raise more money than last year, and this pie is worth it.

WHY THIS PIE:

I re-watched Nora Ephron’s movie Julie & Julia last night because of Julie Powell’s untimely death. She is who inspired NaNoPieMo in the same way that Julia Child inspired her. I don’t mean I intended to be Julie Powell with her blog (I say, as I type this blog post.) but I appreciated that she not only reached a goal, but she worked through recipes. It seems easier than it is. Sometimes recipes are easy, sometimes not so much. In fact, when Juiia Child heard about Julie Powell’s project to complete all her recipes in one year, and how she was struggling, Julia commented that it was ridiculous because she had written her recipes to be so simple. She has, and her Mastering the Art of French Cooking is marvelous. BUT, some of the recipes, while simplified from the original, are still complicated. That said, I often use her recipe to make my beef bourguignon pie in puff pastry.

I’m not making that pie this time, but close. TODAY’S PIE IS ROSEMARY STEAK & GRUYERE IN PUFF PASTRY. It may be four little pies, or maybe one big pie. But it will make a perfect Saturday night dinner. I have a similar recipe with different spices in HOW TO WRITE A NOVEL IN 20 PIES—Warrior Steak and Cheddar PIe. It shows up right after the chapter on getting an offer from a publisher.

Julie Powell wanted to be an author. It was her determination and aspirations that helped her reach that goal. But because there are other people, like agents and editors, that stand between us and our goals sometimes, we have to be warriors, we have to keep fighting for what we want. We can’t be afraid. Fear is for the pie-less.

I’m posting this picture because this was a day I was fearless—I had heard about baking a pie on the grill. I tried it, and well, I wish I had an After-Photo. It was as blackened as the inside of the grill. I foolishly was talking to the group of guests I had on my deck instead of paying attention to my pie. For two days, Eber and I scraped apple pie out of the iron skillet. But, I will try it again!

Today’s pie will not be made on the grill. Note to self: try a recipe out before trying it on paying guests.

Place your bids in the comments, and I’ll check in when I slide the pie in the oven to give notice of time is short for placing those really high bids!