Imperfect

I haven’t been able to write lately.

I don’t mean that someone has physically been holding me in a headlock and wrestling me away from any available writing instruments– but rather that, mentally, I’ve been in a bit of a funk.  When you get too self-conscious about something, it’s only a matter of time before your creativity runs dry.  However, it’s difficult to completely not care what anyone else thinks about you; in my experience, it’s downright impossible!

Enter: these blondies.  They’re far from being the most attractive thing I’ve ever made.  They aren’t going to win Miss America anytime soon– Miss Congeniality, maybe, but these blondies know that they aren’t “leading lady” material.  They’re a little under-baked, a little quirky, a little off-kilter.  They have their good points, though: the buttery, dense structure, the chewy texture, and the bright-flavored strawberries.

They aren’t perfect, but they’re pretty tasty just the same.

After all, I’m sure even Scarlett Johansson has a pimple somewhere.

 

Blueberry blackberry pie

I started out with low expectations– not because I didn’t believe that this recipe was amazing, but because I had never made a pie at home before.

Shocking, I know.

I had churned out pies in baking school with the help of specialized and (slightly scary) expensive equipment, but I had never set out to make one by myself. Despite my skepticism, however, this pie admittedly turned out pretty awesome.  My boyfriend, the berry lover, was awestruck and claimed it was the best pie he’d ever had.  If that isn’t a good enough argument to make this pie immediately, then I don’t know what is.

The original recipe is just a blueberry pie, but I decided to change it into a blackberry pie.  Then the filling looked a little sparse, so I added some blueberries to the mix.  You could substitute any kind of berry in this filling, but you would have to tweak the amount of berries a little bit depending on what kind you use.  Other than that, I wouldn’t recommend changing this recipe at all!  If you’re “weirded out” by the lemon juice in the recipe and want to leave it out…Don’t.  It’s an absolutely essential little addition that takes this recipe from “good pie” to “I’m on my second slice.”

I got this recipe from http://unegaminedanslacuisine.com (who saw it on http://www.joyofbaking.com/BlueberryPie.html).