blackberry chia seed pie.

My first pie(s)! I was inspired by a pie recipe on the first year blog but made a few changes to the presentation & filling.  I love chia seeds (because they are so good for you) that I add them to everything and luckily it worked out will with the pie.

Crust

1 cup flour

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

6 tbsp butter, cut into small cubes

1 egg yoke

1 tbsp soy milk

Mix the flour, powdered sugar, baking powder and salt together.

Cut the butter into small cubes and add them to the mix too. Mix it all together with your hands.

Add the egg yolk and soy milk in as well. Once the dough is mixed, form a ball, wrap it and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Not longer as it will get hard. 

Preheat over to 350 degrees F.

Filling

2 cups fresh or frozen blackberries (organic)

1/8 cup sugar

1/8 cup flour

1 tsp cinnamon

2 tbsp chia seeds

Egg Wash

1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp water

1 tbsp sugar for sprinkling on top

In a medium bowl, mix the fruit, sugar, cinnamon, flour and chia seeds together.

Next, take your dough out of the fridge and (if you're making 4 mini pies like me) section it into 5 pieces. 4 for each crust and the extra for your star cut outs.  I didn't use a rolling pin for this recipe at all, I just used my fingers to mold the pie crust into the pie pan. I did add a little extra flour, but it was too sticky to use the rolling pin. Fingers worked just fine.

Split your fruit filling into your four mini pies and flatten out your extra piece of dough. Using a variety of star cookie cutters, start cutting out different stars in whatever size you like and mix and match till you get a design you like. I got my cookie cutters at Sur La Table for $6. 

After you're happy with your stars, use your egg wash and brush a thin coat on top and sprinkle with sugar. I didn't use nearly as much as the recipe suggests, but it's your world. 

Now just pop them in the oven for 20 minutes, 

let them cool enough to take them out of the mold and serve up your festive pies!

diy doughnut sweater.

enjoying a peach yeast doughnut at the doughnut plant on grand & essex today, 

contrary to my lackluster expression - it was AMAZING!!! 

supplies:

1 grey sweater/sweatshirt

(mine cashmere blend from uniqlo for $30)

1 standard piece of felt - pastel pink

various round objects to trace circumference 

safety pins for placement

an assortment of tube beads, sequins and seed beads

1 bead needle, 1 embroider needle

1 white skein of embroidery floss

i just learned the definition of the word skien***

A length of thread or yarn wound in a loose long coil

those wrapped colors of embroidery floss are indeed called skeins

MORE AFTER THE JUMP

rainbow sprinkles.

post lunch snack. forbidden fruit in the west village.

white chocolate covered banana and rainbow sprinkles. 

ambitious baking. blueberry ombre.

the most ambitious cake i ever made. 

ingredients:

2 boxes of vanilla cake mix

2 boxes of vanilla frosting

4 cups of blueberries 

eggs, water & oil (as directed on the box)

* i substitute apple sauce for oil

1. in a large bowl mix all of the ingredients together as directed on the box.

or make a cake from scratch if you have time for that. (i do not)

2. i ended up using four cups of blueberries in total - 

but simmered them on the stove in 3 different batches. 

I threw in some water & sugar cubes initially but it was probably unnecessary.

cook the berries on the stove until the you see a deep purple liquid.

3. slowly add the blueberries to the cake mix until you get your desired shade of blue.

pour into a round cake pan & bake. repeat the process for all layers adding more blueberries to each layer. cook time will increase for each batch. my top layer was very dense with blueberries.

full disclosure: 

this cake took like 4 hours to make because i was rotating cake pans (having only 2).

i was trying to have it done in time for an oscar party and probably could have cooked some layers for a little bit longer. it ended up falling over after i cut into it. but does not mean it was not AMAZING!

it was AMAZING. definitely needs some tweaking but it's a pretty simple concept.