I’m on the road again! This time I’m heading back to Houston for Thanksgiving – low key not my favorite holiday. Not even in the top three. It goes Christmas, Halloween, then Valentine’s Day. (What? I love pink stuff!) But it is an excuse to visit my favorite grocery store, H-E-B – er, I mean, my family who I love dearly. 😇
You know how they say you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone? That’s how I feel about H-E-B. Yes, I understand each region has its own grocery store that they claim to be the “best” – your Publixes, your Wawas, your Wegmans. The difference is that H-E-B has tapped into something that none of those other stores ever could: Texas pride. Texas pride is a powerful force (one that may seem incredibly annoying to those in the 49 other states). In fact, Texas pride may be the state’s most lucrative natural resource. Besides oil, of course.
If you’re not from there, the state may seem like it’s full of cowboys and Republicans, but anyone who has been there can confirm that the state’s identity is actually quite complex. You have your honky-tonk Texas, your hipster Texas, your Latinx Texas, your wealthy AF Texas, your Vietnamese Texas, your chopped ‘n screwed Texas...etc. And the one thing all of these seemingly unrelated groups have in common? They rep Texas hard. You might add your home state to your bio, but being from Texas is a lifestyle. Just ask my friends with their Texas tattoos.
Anyway, catch me on the way home with a cooler full of Texas-shaped foods next week!
November Cookbook: The Book on Pie: Everything You Need to Know to Bake Perfect Pies by Erin Jeanne McDowell
I took it easy on myself this week and made the eton mess pie (pg. 282). (I don’t have it in me to fail at another pie dough.) For those who don't know, “eton mess” is traditionally a mixture of strawberries, meringue, and whipped cream. Yum, right? It is usually served in a cup or bowl and, well, it looks like a delicious mess. But this month is all about pie so this is Erin's pie-ified version!
I started with a meringue crust (pg. 72) which went surprisingly well. I whipped the egg whites with sugar until I had medium peaks, piped it into a pie dish and baked low and slow for about two hours. After it completely cooled, I was able to unmold it with ease! For the filling, I decided to go with cranberries to keep it in season. I just cooked the cranberries down until they were nice and jammy, then gently folded that into the mascarpone whipped cream (pg. 111). I added some sugared cranberries on top for decoration. As a heads up, this isn't the kind of pie that gets served in perfect little slices. It’s the kind you have to scoop into a bowl. We call that “rustic.”
Besides taking two days for the dough to rise in my cold apartment, the pumpkin brioche was also a success this week. Super fluffy and paired perfectly with butter and jam.
Thanks for reading, sweeties! 🍎