Puddle Pies

This rich and luscious recipe makes two pies. One for your family and one to give away. Share the yum and the calories. A win-win for everyone!







After being at our cabin Easter weekend, the dominant outdoor condition was mud puddles, everywhere! If we got off the gravel, we were sucked into the brown goo. That experience was the genesis for these little puddle pies. I usually make this recipe in a 9 x 13 pan but I found that if I split it up into 2 pie pans we could eat one and share one. We did just that this week with a new mom and her family. I think everything is better when it is shared!

I left the white in recognition of the snow that was still evident in patches around the puddles.

Since you can't really get out and around on the Mountain a great deal right now, why not stay indoors and make a couple of puddle pies and share one with your neighbor!








Cooking tip: After I get the pie crust pushed into the pan, I cover it with wax paper and go over the area with a teaspoon. It helps to get a smooth, even crust.

Cooking tip: My favorite way to crush nuts like walnuts or pecans is to put the nuts in a zip baggie inside another baggie and then crush everything with a rolling pin. I can really control how fine I want to get my nuts, even rolling them at the end to get a really fine crush. Then you just need to throw the zip baggies away. No messy clean up.

Butter Nut Crust

2 cups chopped walnuts or pecans
2 cups flour
4 Tbsp. powdered sugar
1 cup butter, softened but not melted

Mix nuts, flour, powdered sugar and work butter into dry ingredients. Divide mixture in two parts and put half in each pie pan or put all in a 9 x 13 inch pan. Bake at 300 for about 25 minutes. Cool completely!

1 (8 oz.) tub cool whip
2 (8oz.) pkg. cream cheese, at room temperature
2 cups powdered sugar

First, beat cream cheese until smooth with a mixer, then add the powdered sugar and beat, and then add this mixture to the cool whip and beat.

Pour this mixture over the cooled pie crusts or put all in a 9 x 13 inch pan with cooled crust.

Refrigerate 2 or more hours.

1 small pkg. jello chocolate fudge instant pudding
1 cup cream
1 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Combine pudding, cream, milk, and vanilla with a mixer at low speed until mixture begins to thicken. Spread on top of cream cheese layer and refrigerate overnight or several hours.

Note: If you choose to do this in a 9 x 13 inch pan, you may want to double the chocolate layer.

Garnish:

1 chocolate bar

Make chocolate curls using a potato peeler and put on top of pies.

********************* April 12, 2009***************

I took this shot just as the sun was going down and there was a sunbeam coming through the oaks. I loved the glow of light and reflection on the snow and puddles

In this picture, I loved the reflection of the stark bare oaks in the puddles in contrast to the sunlight. I believe there is beauty everyday on our Mountain, even in the mud puddles.

-Debbie -