An Apple A Day.......

Winter fruit & nuts. Macro. (Click picture for larger view)

"I know the look of an apple that is roasting and sizzling on the hearth on a winter's evening, and I know the comfort that comes of eating it hot, along with some sugar and a drench of cream... I know how the nuts taken in conjunction with winter apples, cider, and doughnuts, make old people's tales and old jokes sound fresh and crisp and enchanting." ~ Mark Twain

Once upon a time I tried to make an apple pie. I peeled the apples, cored them, cut them in thin luscious slices and placed them carefully in a beautiful pie shell. I put in sugar, cornstarch, a dash of salt, apple pie spice and dabs of butter, just as the recipe called for. Then I put the thin layer of pie dough on the top, sealed the edges with a touch of water, fluted the edge and cut slats for steam to escape. I baked this pie, this work of my own hands, until it was a golden brown and the aroma of cinnamon filled the apartment. I had made the perfect apple pie.

After the mediocre supper, I prepared to cut my pie and dazzle my new husband. The ice cream was ready to melt over the top; my knife was poised above the crust and I slowly sliced into my masterpiece expecting to see delicately soft baked apples with a spicy thick cinnamon sweet sauce. Instead, I found butter melted over dry, browning apples with hunks of undissolved sugar and cornstarch! What happened to my prize winning pie? The cookbook guaranteed this was a prize winning pie! I quickly read through the instructions again; yes, I did that and that and that and that and cooked it that long at that temperature. What happened?

I noticed in the lower corner, a little footnote that said simply "Works best with MacIntosh, Granny Smith, and other tart apples." What? I didn't see this before! An apple is an apple and apples are ALL good for pie; aren't they? What did I use.... we had golden delicious and standard (this means cheap) red delicious; wasn't that good enough? Apparently not; either they are not good for pie in general or ours were too old and too dry. Not a speck of moisture came out of those apples, nothing, nada! A disaster!

I learned a lot that day as my pie slithered into the garbage can.

• All apples are not alike.
• I don't like apple pie as much as I thought I did.
• Mrs. Smith really does do a good job with hers and doesn't make such a mess in the kitchen.

Life lesson learned? The best pie comes from the frozen food section.

Update: I have removed the links to MacroDay as they have determined that my photo is NOT a Macro but a close-up and removed my entry. This from a site that has accepted landscapes as Macros. (end of post)

(Picture taken in Colonial Williamsburg. Christmas wreaths made with natural fruits, nuts, grains and flowers.)