A life hack worth trying

and a recipe for the best cherry pie

A note on this post:

When I started writing this newsletter in the dark heart of the pandemic, it really was a time when we didn’t know just how the world would change, and we along with it. Looking back at something I wrote almost exactly four years ago reassures me that, even in that dark time, the things I valued still hold true today. And chief among those timeless truths? My unwavering love for a great cherry pie!

Coming out of a year where we have learned to do everything differently, the predictions for how life as we know it will change are proliferating. We’ve already begun to make those changes, however unconsciously, in our own lives. 

Call it life hacking the pandemic.

Shortcuts might be shortchanging

We all know about life hacks. They’re the nifty tricks and shortcuts that help us do things more efficiently, with increased productivity and time saving often the goal. It’s no wonder that, as we’ve tried to figure out how to navigate a world of constantly changing rules, we’ve also tried to find ways to make the most of our time and our well-being.

The fundamental problem, of course, is that change is hard. And it’s easy to get sucked into the rabbit hole of how we should do things differently to be stronger, healthier, better, at the end of all this. As this great piece from The Boston Globe described it:

When COVID-19 hit, so many articles, tips, and Instagram accounts cropped up dedicated to making ourselves the Best Pandemic People Possible: how to transform a living room into a learning den; how to stage a quarantine “glow up” and emerge lithe and toned. Always, a battery of self-improvement advice with undercurrents of scolding: You are failing, and a pandemic is the prime opportunity to do better.

But what if this is really an opportunity to focus, not on doing better, but on feeling better? What if, in the process of trying to save time and be more efficient, we’re losing the joy of savouring time? And enjoying the journey along the way?

Taking the side roads to get to the destination

I’ve been thinking about that as I've seen the proliferation of shortcut recipes and kitchen hacks this past year. From the famous TikTok baked feta pasta and whipped ice coffee to fried Uncrustables and microwave mac and cheese, it seems that just about everything can be made more quickly, and with less fuss.

But - hang on a second.

Do you really need to make fettuccine Alfredo by boiling the pasta directly in the sauce?

Buzzfeed’s kitchen hack for fettuccine Alfredo

This is already one of the simplest pasta dishes to make - 10 minutes flat. Why not take the time to make this most delicious of dishes in the good old-fashioned way?

As I’ve been making summer pies, doing things slow and easy has been on my mind. Sure, there are shortcuts to be had: frozen pie crust, canned pie filling. But with very little effort, and an abundance of the most delicious in-season fruit available, homemade pie is satisfying and simple.

The quickest path may save time, but what are you missing along the way? Like taking the side roads and country lanes, following the slow and steady path to your destination, whether that’s a pie or a place, is ultimately so much more satisfying. Now that’s a life hack worth trying.

Just make pie

If you haven’t made pie before, I know you may not believe me when I say it’s as easy as, well, pie. It’s not the filling that seems difficult; after all, this is usually fruit, sugar, some sort of thickener, and perhaps a few spices. It’s the dough that confounds and intimidates.

Why not try? The dough comes together in less than 20 minutes. And while you need to chill that dough for at least two hours before proceeding, it will benefit from that long slow chill. And you’ll have time to do something else while you wait.

Did you know that clicking the ❤️ here or below helps more readers discover Delicious Bits? It’s like seasoning — a small thing that makes a big difference.

All-purpose pie dough (Pâte Brisée Fine)

from Julia’s Kitchen Wisdom, Julia Child
Dough for a double crust pie

For such a simple thing - essentially flour, water and some sort of fat - there are myriad recipes for pie dough. The first time I made pie dough, I thought I’d go to one of my tried and true kitchen wizards: Julia Child. This recipe is simple and delicious.

1½ cups all purpose flour 

½ cup pastry flour 

1 teaspoon salt

1½ sticks (6 ounces) chilled unsalted butter, diced

¼ cup chilled vegetable shortening or leaf lard 

½ cup ice water, plus more if needed

1. Combine the flours, salt and butter in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pulse 5 or 6 times to break up butter. 

2. Add lard, pour in the ice water, and pulse 5 or 6 times. You don’t want to blend the dough together, but rather create a mass of smallish lumps, which should hold when a handful is pressed together. If the dough is too dry to stick together, pulse in a few more droplets of water.

3. Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface, and with the heel of your hand smear the dough outward. This is called fraisage: it is the blending of the flour and fat in the dough.

   This super quick video from Dorie Greenspan shows you how the dough should look, how to fraisage and how to gather the dough together to refrigerate. 

4. Gather the dough into a round ball, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours (or up to 2 days) or you may freeze the dough for several months.

Kate McDermott’s award-winning sour cherry pie

I love making pie and cherry is my hands-down favourite. My all-around go-to pie guru is Kate McDermott. If you love pie but don’t know McDermott, go to Kate McDermott’s Newsletter posthaste. Her website is chock full of recipes, tips, delicious ideas and yes - a recipe for the world’s best cherry pie. If I haven’t persuaded you, her love of pie and the beautiful way she writes about all things pie—both sweet and savoury—will surely make you want to try.

Kate generously shares some of her favourite recipes for all readers, and her award-winning cherry pie is one of them. You can get the recipe here.

My lattice-top old-fashioned cherry pie

Update: A note about Kate’s pie dough recipe

While Julia Child’s pâte brisée fine has been my go-to for years, how could I love Kate’s pie but not try her dough? So, last night, with a bowl full of cherries and a pie to make, I tried it. The butter to lard ratio is higher than what I am used to, so I found you have to work rapidly so that fats don’t melt beneath your fingers.

Here’s a sneak peak at the first step; the final bake will tell if the results match her peerless pies.