If there's anything a writer loves more than typing "The End", it's procrastinating. Er, I mean "doing research". This week my research happened while I pondered what to write next in Driving Miss Crazy.
I had to do something while I was giving my brain some room to breathe, so I decided to make my favorite apple pie. One reason it is my favorite is because I don't have to make a crust. I made a pie crust once--maybe twice, if you count that time I did stuff to earn my Girl Scout cooking badge way back when.
But there's a lot of effort involved in making a pie crust, not to mention a ton of guesswork. How much flour do you put on the rolling pin? Too much will cause one dire result, too little will cause a different one. No matter which choice I make, it pretty much looks like PlayDoh when I'm done, which explains why there have been decades between my pie-crust-making episodes.
A few years ago on Twitter somebody retweeted a link to "The Best Apple Pie Recipe Ever". Naturally I wanted to know WHAT made it the best. So I clicked on the link, and my heart was captured as soon as I saw there is no pie crust to make. You slice up apples and put them right in the pie plate. It does have a crust on top, but it's almost like a sugar cookie--kind of chewy and a little crunchy and easier than easy.
Normally I'm a fussbudget about wanting exact, precise measurements--primarily to help stave off epic disaster. But how could I resist a recipe that calls for "a fist of sugar and a fist of cinnamon"? It sounds like a Clint Eastwood spaghetti western, only with pastry instead of pasta.
Since it's not my recipe, I'm not going to reproduce it here. But I'll give you the link again, so go check it out. It's SO easy. Seriously. I've made it many, many times, so that should tell you how simple it is.
When I made this recipe again the other day, it didn't turn out quite as good, and I wondered if it was because I didn't use the right kind of apples. Don't get me wrong. It's still edible. It goes great with that first cup of coffee in the morning. And again later when I need dessert after getting in my NaNo word count.
But, this is where the research comes in. . .
I had to find out more about the apple I'd used. It was labeled "Cripps Pink", which I didn't recognize. According to the Washington Apples website, this variety was developed in Australia, and it is a cross between Golden Delicious and Lady Williams. (Yes, I'm beaming that this fruit has a title of nobility.) According to this same site, this apple is also known as Pink Lady, it's the last of the apples harvested each season, and it is excellent for baking.
What? Maybe I just got an under-performing batch of ladies.
Since I was doing so well in research mode, I thought I'd find out why Eve is always shown tempting Adam with an apple, when the phrase is "fruit of the forbidden tree". This is when research typically goes amok, because you find one interesting thing, which leads to another one, and next thing you know, it's a day later and you can't find your way back to the first page of Google search results to figure out what the heck you started researching.
Instead of finding the answer to my original question, I discovered there's a Garden of Eden Apple suite in the Poconos, complete with a massive heart-shaped tub. Candy-apple red too. Not really what I was looking for--
Wait a minute. This is perfect. My hero and heroine in Driving Miss Crazy are on this long road trip, and they have to stay in a couple of motels along the way. What if. . .
Okay, research time is over. Enjoy the pie!
You gotta love it when it all comes together!!! :) And, now, I'm off to check out that recipe...
Posted by: Lorraine Paton | November 06, 2013 at 10:43 AM
It IS great when it all comes together -- even if I wasn't the one in charge of that happening!
Hope you like the recipe. :)
Posted by: Donna Cummings | November 06, 2013 at 02:20 PM
That's awesome, to end up with dessert AND an idea! Fun blog :-)
Sam
Posted by: Samantha Hunter | November 07, 2013 at 09:02 AM
Thanks, Sam! I like having an idea and dessert all at the same time. Multi-inspirational. :)
Posted by: Donna Cummings | November 07, 2013 at 09:16 AM
I've wondered about the apple being assigned tree of knowledge status. I've never felt any smarter after eating an apple.
Appreciate the recipe link too. I've got a character who bakes and I'm wondering if I should come up with an original recipe for her. But before I do that I need to find out what kind of baking she does. So I need to make (and eat) different desserts. The things we suffer for our art. ;o)
Posted by: Kate Warren | November 07, 2013 at 07:03 PM
LOL, Kate -- that is the kind of suffering for art that I could embrace. :) Feel free to share the results of any of the baking you do -- for research purposes of course!
Posted by: Donna Cummings | November 07, 2013 at 11:13 PM