No Time To Complain

I was making a pie yesterday morning. One of my favorites. A cherry pie.

While making that pie crust a lingering idea wondered through my mind. Just why can't I take the wringers from an old wringer washing machine and make a huge pasta machine from them!

But the pie turned out fantastic as usual and the grandkids and I enjoyed some after we had dinner. Their mom enjoyed some too after she got back from her job.

Everyone says how great my pie crusts are. All I do differently from most is use real unsalted butter instead of that nasty grease from a can. Then I do keep everything as cold as possible while mixing and making it.

I cut the butter into pieces and put it back into the freezer until I'm ready to add it to the flour. Then after cutting it in I place it back in the freezer until I'm ready to roll it out.

By keeping the butter as cold as possible I always have a flaky crust.

Over working the dough also makes for a tough crust. So no kneading that isn't absolutely needed to get the ingredients together.

I made the mistake of asking the grandkids what they wanted for dinner.

Hotdogs... Not exactly my idea of a good dinner, but what the heck, hotdogs it was. We had them with a tomato, basil, pasta salad. At least I snuck something healthy in there and they liked it so much they asked for seconds!

You can use any small pasta. I used a cup and a half of elbows this time which I had boiled earlier in the day. Then three stalks of celery chopped up small, some chopped garlic or garlic powder, four tomatoes chopped up (or more if they're small), about eight basil leaves chopped up, salt and pepper and two to three tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.

Just toss it all together and enjoy.

You can add chunks of mozzarella cheese too if you want. To me that makes it a meal by itself. That and a thick slice of fresh homemade bread slathered with butter and I'm ready to go!

Today I'm ahead of the game. Instead of asking what the kids want I pulled some country ribs out of the freezer and I'll grill them this afternoon before they get home from school.

I'm still not sure what we'll have with them. The ribs would be enough for me, but I kinda think the little ones need more than that.

Thursday and friday I only have to get them on the bus in the morning. There mom will be home when they get home. I may not eat at all on those days...

Well, I'm off to do some mowing today. The weatherman says that rain from that hurricane Isaac will come up the Ohio valley and soak us for the weekend. So I figure I'll get the grass mowed down before more rain makes it possible to bale hay from the lawn!

Hmm, wonder how the grandkids would do with some grass soup : )