Re: Poll: What's your favorite time of the year to bake a pie?
I grew up in a family with not one, but two caterers - my aunt and uncle had a catering business; and my paternal grandmother had a catering business. You'd think with a family full of GOOD, GOURMET cooks, I'd be pretty handy in the kitchen, but I HATE cooking - unless I have at least 10 people to cook for! I didn't learn the skills and had no talents for cooking, but I did learn more than average; I especially learned about the are of PRESENTATION - making even the simple seem supreme by way of how you dress the table, buffets, counters and most importantly, the food! If it LOOKS good, that helps it taste even better than it really is! I do love baking pies and breads. I tend to do more of my baking in November - February because that's the time of year I have to find something to do in the house because it's too dark to be outside! I often make extra pies and breads to freeze so they'll carry us through the summer, until at least July. Once harvest season starts again, then basically so does my baking. But, I've also learned from my family of cooks: don't spend the HOLIDAY cooking and cleaning! Do all the major baking and preparations the weekend and day BEFORE holidays so that ON the holiday, all you're doing is WARMING or CHILLING things. That gives you more time to spend lounging or with guests rather than spending the holiday cooking. Holidays should be about time with friends and family - not cooking and cleaning all day. Save the clean-up for after guests leave - the dirty dishes can wait until the next day, but your guests are only there for a short time.