Gallivanting through the Kitchen

Nope....I'm not out gallivanting.

Although I did head out to the grocery store today, and we all know that two days before Thanksgiving can be crazy.  But, I somehow managed to avoid the loonies, and even had a pleasant cashier.  Now, how nice was that?

But I digress from the purpose of this blog.  On our recent road trip, while sitting for hours in the car, I decided to browse through the pile of magazines that were stacking up that I never seem to find time to read.

You know how it is.....no food for hours in the car....looking at picture after picture of delectable delights.   Every page seems like a grand idea worth trying.   I managed to resist most temptation, but decided that this year would be the one to make the pie crusts from scratch.

The Woman's Day magazine had an "easy pie crust" recipe and instructions, and it sure convinced me to give it a try.  

Or, should I say that it sure tricked me?  Let me just say that I know why the Pillsbury Dough Boy was my good friend once.

There's something to be said about opening a box, pulling out the plastic sleeve, cutting it open, pulling out the pie crust and inserting it in glass pie dish.....perfect.  A little fluting around the edge and Wha La!  Pie crust!  What did that take....about 5 minutes total?  Times three that comes to about 15 minutes from start to finish.  

What did it cost?  Well.....if it is Pillsbury pie crust, then I'd say 2 pkgs. for $5.00.  Two pies per box.  But, let's face it, you have to buy two packages regardless....so the total cost:  $5.00.

But, I'll be honest with you here.  It probably wouldn't be Pillsbury.  It would probably be Shurfine brand, which really is Sure Fine with me!  And, that would generally run a sale of 2 pgs. for $4.00.

Now, let's compare that with making it from scratch.  Measuring the flour, cutting in the shortening, adding the water to make a ball.  The recipe called for the dough to then be flattened into a disc, wrapped in plastic wrap, and refrigerated for 30 minutes.  That worked for me, since I was making three pies anyway.  And, I can tell you that by the time I finished the 3rd disc, it had been 30 minutes.

Then, there's the rolling of the dough.  Let's just say that it wasn't a pretty sight:

Although I will admit that the end result (prior to baking) looked rather impressive:

What did it cost?  A grand total of $2.25.  How much time was involved?  Well...with clean up...I'd say about an hour and a half.  But that included putting a little white dog in and out a couple of times, and chasing him out of the powder room a few times.  (He must have felt neglected or something.)

Was it worth the effort?   Well, the real test won't be until Thursday, when we taste test the finished product. 

In the meantime, I thought that I spotted this little guy laughing at me.

We'll see......