Happy Father's Day

Father's Day (+4 birthdays) brunch at Anthony's at Point Defiance. A surprisingly beautiful (albeit blustery) day.

We love our breakfast tacos and cinnamon butter (for the coffeecake not the tacos). 

A Birthday Party.

The four little ones below (of whom I take far too many pictures) are so precious to me. They are incredibly lucky.  Surrounded by adults, family and friends, who would do just about anything for them. I hope some day they will know how dearly they are loved. 

Not because they are beautiful, which they are.

Not because they are constantly amusing, which they also are.

And not because they smile and hold out their arms for an embrace whenever they see us coming.

But simply because they are. 

The love I have for them as an aunt is indescribable, I can't imagine the depth to which their parents adore them.

Emily, the darling and winsome 8 year old we celebrated on Saturday, was born when I was not even 15.  In many ways we've grown up together.  From deep knee lunges to bounce her to sleep as an infant, to seeing her radiant smiling face looking up at me on my wedding day. I can't wait to continue growing up together.

Emily girl, I love you. 

 

Emily turns 8.

Happy Birthday darling girl. 

Derby Pie. A gift from my in-laws.

I have a pathetic sweet tooth.  Given the choice, I would always choose an overly salted batch of french fries over a piece of cake.  I prefer a slice of quiche over a muffin, tortilla chips over an Oreo.  And much to my husband's dismay, I really don't have much of a liking for ice cream.  I do however, have a weakness for chocolate chip cookies.  And Derby Pie is basically one big rich chocolate chip cookie... in a pie crust.

I encountered this loveliness the first time I visited Brad's family in San Diego.  We'd only been dating for three months, and I was quite honestly scared out of my mind.  I wanted so bad for them to like me.  But I'm fairly certain I only spoke when spoken to (not due to manners, rather a survival technique).   I'm sure they were wondering... who is the quiet, shy, non-communicative girl that you've brought home?  









They, on the other hand, were absolutely wonderful.  And Derby Pie made me feel a whole lot less awkward. Plus it gave me an excuse to be quiet.  


Derby Pie
Waidelich Family.


Preheat 350 degrees.


1 9" refrigerate pre-made pie crust
1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup flour
2 eggs
1 stick of butter (melted and cooled)
1 cup chocolate chips 
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup walnuts (optional - I'm sure my mother would disagree)


1.  Combine sugar and flour, mix together.  Add in beaten eggs and melted butter. 
2.  Mix in chocolate chips and vanilla.
3.  Place unbaked pie crust into a 9" pie dish, form edges.
4.  Pour mixture into pie crust.


Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Hard golden shell will form on top, middle will never completely set.

Lemon Cream Pie.

I hate waiting.  No, I shouldn't say that.  That makes me sound like I'm incredibly impatient, like I can't hold my horses.  I don't consider myself to be an impatient person, in fact just the opposite (friends and family may think otherwise...).  To be more specific, I am not a fan of waiting for a response after I've turned in a job application. I check my phone, I refresh my email.  


Refresh. Refresh.  


I wait, not trusting that the "refresh" function has truly done it's job.  The straggler emails download. One more from J.Crew Factory.  Another Groupon deal.  Still no response.  I've started a habit of draining my iPhone battery in the course of the afternoon playing this little game. 


New life plan: Living in the moment. 


Enjoying my present state of limited responsibilities.  My mornings of staying in my pajamas until 11 a.m. watching Hoda and Kathy Lee. Actually getting 8+ hours of sleep at night, something my body has not experienced in over four years.  Playing tennis with my husband in the middle of the afternoon. And most of all?  Enjoying the expanse of possibilities, dreaming of what's to come. 

That said, I told you I made pies... and I won't make you wait any longer. Here is one of the aforementioned desserts.  Gingersnaps, sweetened condensed milk, and homemade whipped-cream.

Lemon Cream Pie 

From Real Simple (March 2012)

Gingersnaps (about 35 - I used Franz)

14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk

6 TBLS butter (melted)

2 TBLS sugar 

1 Tsp. salt

1/2 cup lemon juice (I was able to get the juice from 3 large lemons)

1 TBLS lemon zest

2 eggs

For whipped-cream:

1 cup heavy cream

2 TBLS confectioners sugar

1. Crush gingersnaps (using either a food processor or placing the cookies in a zip-loc bag and pounding them with a rolling pin... it's therapeutic).  Place gingersnaps, melted butter, sugar, and 1/2 tsp of salt in food processor, pulse until blended and moist.  Spread mixture in a 9 in. pie dish, using your hands to press and distribute the crust along the bottom and creating steep sides. Bake for 16-18 minutes, bottom will still appear soft, but will become crispier as it cools. 

2. In a medium bowl combine eggs, lemon juice, zest, remaining 1/2 tsp of salt, and sweetened condensed milk.  Whisk until completely blended forming a custard-like substance.  Pour lemon cream mixture into the cooled pie crust.  Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until middle is set.  Let pie cool for at least 2 hours before serving (or even overnight).

3. Whipped cream: combine heavy whipping cream and confectioners sugar in a medium-large bowl.  Beat with a hand mixer until the cream forms stiff peaks. It should look delicious. 

Top pie with whipped cream and fresh lemon zest.