Happy Pi Day!

        I don't think I've really mentioned this before, but I like math. I'm not crazy about it, but about halfway between sane and insane on this subject. Math always came pretty easily to me, so I enjoyed it and enjoyed learning and understanding all of the concepts. I am rather close to being crazy about pi, though, and partially because I love pie. I always bake two pies at 360 degrees, because 2(pi) radians equals 360 degrees, and that's just cool. And I cut them into slices each with an angle measurement of pi/4 radians. That's pie/8. 

        Today is the day to share the pi love! :) It is March 14 (3/14), and at 1:59 and 26.54 seconds, we all have to eat pie. I sometimes wonder just how many people are eating pie at the exact same moment as I, although an hour before, all of the central time zoners were celebrating, and those in the mountain and eastern zones at their respective times. 

        I had actually forgotten about pi day, but this morning I was playing my piano and all of the sudden I remembered. I stopped right in the middle of Chopin's Mazurka in B flat - one of my favorite classical songs - and just about had a heart attack. It's Pi Day!!!! I realized I needed to make a pie, so started looking around for ingredients. We didn't have any apples, blueberries, or canned pumpkin, and I was very disappointed. Then, I went outside, and lo and behold, there was a pumpkin. I had forgotten we still had one left over from the ones my grandma grew last fall. It wasn't processed or anything, but it was pumpkin. I lugged it inside, which was a good workout (although not as bad as some of the bigger ones we had), and put it on the table on a big cutting board. Then we had to cut it up, peel it, cook it, and puree it. The cutting and peeling are the hardest, because of the size of the pumpkin. We have taken to calling this whole process 'slaughtering' the pumpkin. This picture doesn't do the size of the pumpkin justice. The knife, if this helps, is longer than my forearm.

        Then, after being cut up, it goes in the pot to steam.

        I just took it right out when it was done steaming because I was running out of time before 1:59, and plopped it in a bowl and made the pie filling. I had done the crust while the pumpkin was steaming. Here is the recipe I use for my pie. The best part is, it's sugar free and made with sprouted flour. This minimizes the gluten and the other stuff that's hard to digest. I know it really isn't pumpkin pie season, but I don't care. Out of season pie is better than no pie. ;)

Ingredients:

Filling:

• 1 1/2 cups of pumpkin puree (homemade or canned)
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup of honey or maple syrup
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cups yogurt or milk
• 1 T ground cinnamon
• 1/2 t ground allspice
• 1/4 t ground ginger
• 1/4 t ground cloves
• 1 t vanilla extract
• 1/4 t salt

Crust:

• 1 1/4 cups of sprouted whole wheat flour
• 1/4 t salt
• 1/3 cup of coconut oil
• 5 T ice cold water

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 360 degrees
• Blend together your flour and salt, and then knead in the coconut oil until lumps are scarce and small. Make a well in the mixture and add 1 T of the ice water. Mix with as much flour as it will soak up. Repeat for the other 4 Ts.
• Blend with a fork, and then press into a ball.
• Roll out on a floured surface to 1/8" thick, ans then lay over your pie pan. Trim the edges and fold them under, and alter the border if you choose, i.e. fluting, roped edge, etc.
• Blend together your filling ingredients, and pour into the pastry shell. 
• Bake at 360 degrees for 30 minutes, and the cover the edges with foil. Bake for 10 minutes more or until the filling is firm and the crust is a golden brown. 
• Let cool for 30 minutes - or not. :)

         Are you celebrating Pi Day? I think these shirts are pretty cool. ;)

        Happy Pi Day to you! Oh, and don't forget to look at my last post and give me some ideas on what to name our new chicks! :)

Blessings,

Reyna