At Thanksgiving, I blew it.
Through a wellness program at work, I’ve been receiving monthly coaching
to meet some health-related goals. The
week of Thanksgiving, I had a call from my coach. I had met one of my major goals in the six
months of the program, so we spent some time discussing that success. Then, she asked what my goals were during the
holidays. Because I have a bit of a
problem with scale in my life, I said, “I will plan only one dessert for
Thanksgiving dinner.” The whole week of
Thanksgiving I thought of my goal. I
really planned to scale back (in more ways than one) during the holidays.
On Wednesday, my oldest daughter made an upside-down Pumpkin
Patch Pie Cake that has been a favorite from a 4-H demonstration by Kylee and
Claire Ruckman years ago. She was also
planning to make whipped cream. That
should have been enough. It was one 9x13
dessert. And then, something
happened. A little thought, about the
size of a pecan, started forming. Surely
a pecan pie would add to the meal.
Before I knew it, I was making pie at 9:30 p.m. The only problem was that the pie crust
recipe made enough for two pies. The
next problem was that my husband starting talking about what pie crust is
best. He likes the Gerry Smith pie crust
we learned to make during a 4-H Clover Class – super flakey. But, the pie I made used the Baker Bob pie
crust, learned during an Extension class. Of course, my mom got in the mix telling me
that the pecan pie recipe she uses is lots easier (which I took to mean better)
than the one I use. Seriously, I am
using a pecan pie recipe from my southern relatives and she is using one from
the northern relatives. Which one do you
think is better? The debates had to be
settled. By midnight, not only did we have the Pumpkin Patch Pie Cake, but two
pecan pies and two pumpkin pies – one type of pie from each crust. Six people for Thanksgiving Dinner and five
desserts. Uh-oh. Remember the goal? One dessert.
As predicted, my problem with scale was soon going to be a problem on
the scale! On the upside, my teenage
daughter likes to make pie, so she and I had a pretty enjoyable time in the
kitchen that night.
As a teacher, I set goals of what I want students to learn
by the end of a lesson. Most of the best lessons are intentional and start with
the end in mind. One of the classes I’ve
been teaching lately is called, Powerful
Tools for Caregivers. At the end of
each class, participants are asked to write an action plan for the week. The assignment is to do something for
themselves that they really enjoy and want to do. The goals have varied from going on a date
night with their spouse to learning a new crochet stitch. Once the goals have been written, each
participant is asked to share their goals aloud. The next week, at the beginning of class, we
report on whether or not we’ve met our goals.
Guess what? Nearly everyone
always reaches their goals. There is
power in writing and sharing goals.
We know that writing and sharing a financial or savings goal
greatly increases the achievement. You can go to www.montanasaves.org to write/share your
goal and receive support to reach it. We
know that for health goals, writing and sharing them accelerates the
probability that the goals will be reached.
I would bet that writing goals for how to manage your holiday schedule
and stresses would even improve the odds of successfully navigating the season in
style!
The other good part about goals is that by stating them, you
will have a way to evaluate progress. In
my case, if I hadn’t have stated a goal, I might not have even recognized I had
gone a little overboard.
Whether it is health, wealth, or holiday happenings, I
encourage you to take a minute to write and share your goals for this week and
this month. After you get a little
practice, start writing some long-term life goals. Pretty soon reaching your goals will seem
like a piece of cake … or is that a piece of pie?!
Pumpkin Patch Pie Cake
1 30 oz can pumpkin pie filling
2 eggs
1 5 oz can of evaporated milk
Mix together and pour into ungreased 9x13 pan.
1 yellow cake mix (no pudding)
½ c. butter slightly softened
Mix together with pastry blender or hands to make a crumbly
mix. Sprinkle over pumpkin. Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees F. Let cool.
Refrigerate. Serve upside down
and top with whipped cream.
Whipped Cream
Heavy whipping cream
Powdered sugar
Vanilla
Use amounts to suit your needs and taste. Pour heaving whipping cream into bowl. Whip on high until it starts to get
fluffy. Add powdered sugar. (Granulated sugar will work, too, but it
seems that it will separate less in storage with the powdered sugar.) Add vanilla to taste. Beat until nice and fluffy, but not so long
that it becomes sweet butter.
Gerry Smith’s Pie Crust Recipe from 4-H Clover Class
2 c. flour
½ tsp salt
½ tsp baking powder
2/3 c. vegetable oil (scant)
½ c. cold water
Mix dry ingredients in covered plastic container. Add oil and water. Put lid on container securely. Shake 3-4 times and the dough will form a
ball. Roll between waxed paper to size
for pie pan.
*An addition my daughter learned from another 4-H family –
add freshly ground nutmeg to dry ingredients if making crust for pumpkin
pie. I can imagine different spices
could be added depending on type of pie.
Wonder what a little lemon zest would do for a lemon meringue pie?
Baker Bob’s Pie Crust from an Extension Class on Irish Pasties
½ recipe makes two pie crusts
4 c. flour
2 tsp salt (I’d
reduce by ½ for pie instead of pasties)
1 ½ c. lard (or shortening or butter)
10 tablespoons ice water
Place flour, salt and lard in bowl. Quickly rub lard into flour with your
fingertips until it resembles small peas.
Pour in the ice water and form into a ball. Add more water if it feels to dry. It is suggested to wrap in plastic and chill
for an hour before rolling.
Pecan Pie
1 unbaked pie shell
Mix together
3 eggs, beaten well
¾ c. sugar
¾ c. dark corn syrup
1 c. pecan halves
1 Tbsp. melted butter
Pour into pie shell.
Bake at 425 degrees F for 10 minutes, then finish until set at 325
degrees for approximately 30 minutes.
Southern Pecan Pie
After the great pecan pie debate at my house, I think this
recipe produces a smoother pie.
1 c. sugar
1 c. light corn syrup
1/3 c. butter
4 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract
¼ tsp. salt
1-1
½ c. pecan halves
1 unbaked pie shell
Combine first 3 ingredients in medium saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly,
until sugar dissolves and butter melts; cool slightly. (Has to be cool enough not to cook the eggs –
you can temper the mixture) Add eggs,
vanilla and salt; stir well. Pour filling
into pie shell; top with pecan halves.
Bake at 325 degrees F for 50-55 minutes.
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