The Plan

I knew if I wanted to follow through with the challenge I would have to have a well-drawn up plan. I am proud to unveil my plan! 


I have always had a secret desire to make one of those "conspiracy boards" that  I've seen on tv shows; but my simple life doesn't typically demand anything of that nature.  However, I found this the perfect opportunity to try it out and used the concept of the "conspiracy board" to be an inspiration for my Easy as Pie Challenge plan. And now this very large work of art will reside in my dining room for the coming year.

I've numbered the weeks 1 to 52, added titles, pictures, recipes and color coded the strings according to sweet pies vs bonus items. I plan to add to the board as the year goes on by adding full recipe details, and interesting facts. Here is a peek at the month of January. You will have to wait for full details of each pie with each blog post. 

Yes, the plan is one sweet pie per week plus one bonus item a couple times a month, which includes savory pies and pie-spired items! All in all, I have over 80 recipes to share with you in the coming year. I can't believe how difficult it was to narrow down the selection as there are many great recipes to pick from. I'm nervously excited to share each and every one of them; there is everything from chocolate to apples to fruit loops...We will have a great time!

The Piesearch

With every good challenge there must be some research that must be done to achieve success.

I've gleaned pinterest and the internet for all pie possibilities, and studied up on all pie methods through recipe books from yesteryear. And to make sure that I pay tribute to the original piemakers in my life, I brought out the recipe boxes and cookbooks that contain all recipes from family members.  

One of the more interesting cookbooks I have found is "Cooking For Young Homemakers, An Edition of Encyclopedic Cookbook" printed in 1964, but was originally printed in 1948. The pie section alone boasts 300 Superb Pies and Pastries. It contains many images that assist in perfecting your pie abilities. 










The book describes good pastry as "flaky, tender, delicate and evenly browned. It is not crumbly, but when broken, shows layers of flat flakes, piled above the other with air spaces between."  The book also states "To achieve this result the cook must be quick and "light-handed, since pastry cannot be good if handled roughly or slowly."

I have taken note of several different methods, pie crusts and an extensive variety of pies and plan on sharing my findings in the coming year 2014. Believe me there are many more methods, types, and selection than I could have ever imagined, but I will put my best effort forth in giving you a great selection of pie! I have nearly 100 recipes that I have picked out to share, ranging from sweet to savory to pie-spired, I am confident that there will be something to satisfy nearly everyone's taste for pie!

The Challenge

Pies, Pies, Pies by Wayne Thiebaud; 1961 Oil on Canvas.
Located at Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento

I'm the type of person that likes to try something different; so the challenge of making 52 completely different pies is something I'm fairly comfortable with.

However, to commit myself to making it happen continuously every week for an entire year scares me.  I also planning on having pictures taken of every single pie that I make, and that is a little overwhelming to me. I have had my share of failures in the kitchen, and to know eventually in the coming year I will have to own up to that fact publicly is slightly intimidating. 

In this world of  TV cooking shows where the camera only shows a single cook cooking an entire spread in less than 30 minutes, the average cook has been tricked in thinking that they must somehow be inept. I am guessing the common fare in busy households across America on any given night is Hamburger Helper, fish sticks, or macaroni & cheese. Can these families cook better meals? Of course they could, but after a long day at the office or running kids to their activities; it is a treat to the cook to take a box out of the cabinet and instantly have a meal. In the past, I have had grand plans on making fresh meals for a whole month, even to the point of making out a whole month's of meals on a calendar only to have something come up where I had to skip cooking in the kitchen to sit with a sick kid or go to an unexpected meeting. I could always throw some instant pudding in a boughten pie shell and declare "Pie", but I am challenging myself to 52 truly homemade pies complete with pictures and recipes.

Even though I am hoping this next year is a smashing success with 52 perfect pies, I know there is reality. I hope my future failures can inspire busy people to be okay with doing what you can under your circumstances.

I don't like to fail, and I don't intend to do anything half-way so this is truly going to be a challenge for me. Easy as Pie Challenge 2014! 

The Idea

It all started on a Saturday night when I was in the kitchen making a chicken pot pie and I realized how long it had been since I had made a pie.  Over the next two days, I began to think of all the pie possibilities:
Meat Pies, Fruit Pies, Cream Pies...
Traditional Crusts, Graham Cracker crusts, Oreo crusts, Impossible crusts...
So many options and so few that I've actually made.

Those pie possibilities deserved a chance to be made in my kitchen.
The idea kept nagging me until I finally decided that I should do something about the lack of pie making in our household....