Blueberry Pie & Bake for Good

A few weeks ago, I joined ten wonderfully talented bloggers at a Bake for Good event sponsored by King Arthur Flour. The mission behind the event was to bake—bake bread, rolls, brownies, and pies—and serve it alongside a meal at the Family Service Center in St. Paul, MN. When I was invited to this event, I immediately agreed. Volunteering my time and skills to help others is something I have grown up doing, something I wish to continue doing throughout my life.

As we kneaded dough and assembled pies, I searched inside to figure out what baking for good meant to me. I bake for others often, bringing cakes and pastries to work to share with my colleagues. The plate is often empty by lunch, with just a few crumbs to prove it was once full. I like to think that it brings a smile or two to someone's face, adding a little bright spot to an otherwise normal Monday morning. Is this baking for good?

When the next door neighbors at my childhood home had a baby, I made a batch of sugar cookies and decorated them to mimic baby buggies, bottles, and onesies. After I walked the plate over, I hoped they would fuel the late nights and act as a quick treat for any visiting guests. Is this baking for good?

I bake for the people I love in my life, finding time to make my boyfriend's favorite dessert when he needs a pick-me-up. A s'mores pie gets pulled out of the oven at least twice a year for my sister, for no other reason than she adores it. When the weather gets warm, I make a banana cake, because it reminds my father of summer (and it is a nostaglic memory for me too, as my mother made me the same cake when I was young). Is this baking for good?

After we served the families our meal, scrubbed down the kitchen, and stocked the freezer with leftover loaves of bread and pies, I had a moment to breathe and to dwell on the answers to these questions. Could all of these reasons be baking for good? I would like to believe so.

Baking for good is baking for joy. It is making a blueberry pie to share with your dearest friend for an afternoon snack. Baking for good is baking for need. It is bringing a meal or dessert over to a neighbor undergoing a new experience, whether the news is bad or good. Baking for good can come in dozens of forms, as long you put forth an effort to heal or to help or bring happiness to someone else.

For the blueberry pie above, I used my favorite pie dough recipe for the crust and this blueberry filling recipe.

Front Row: Jena, Little Rusted Ladle | Natasha, King Arthur Flour | Alice, Hip Foodie Mom | Shaina, Food for My Family | Erin, The Law Student's Wife
Center Row: Julia, King Arthur Flour | Kathryne, Cookie & Kate | Chef Susan Reid, King Arthur Flour | Stefani, Cupcake Project | Taylor, Greens & Chocolate | (me)
Back Row: Amanda, I Am Baker | Brenda, A Farm Girl's Dabbles | Jim, Little Rusted Ladle

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Blueberry Braided Bread From Emma of Poires au Chocolat

I discovered Emma's blog, Poires au Chocolat, soon after starting my own. The French name drew me in, validating my equal love of chocolate and pear cake, one of the recipes that inspired me to begin blogging. Emma's photography mixes simplicity and honesty with ease and grace, making it feel as if I am in the kitchen alongside her. Her voice is so real and truthful that I feel like I've gotten to know her well, despite living an ocean away. Simply put, her blog is lovely.

I'm honoured to be writing for Pastry Affair today. I've been following along for a few years now, watching Kristin's path weave side to side, just like my own.

In short (if only life was this simple and factual), I started out studying medieval literature (Old and Middle English, Old French, Chaucer, Julian of Norwich and so on). In my final year, after two years of blogging, I decided to train in pâtisserie. I spent six months at Cordon Bleu. A few months later, I left pastry and my first cookbook proposal to return to Oxford and medieval literature.

Yet my path soon twisted again and last Christmas I chose to return to food instead of pursuing a career in academia. I've stayed in my favourite city and as well as working on my blog (supplemented by tutoring, much like Kristin did), I'm now developing another book idea. It's a book that will be all the better for the twists and turns of the past few years.

As Kristin said in a post last year, "my path may be riddled with curves, but I've learned to embrace the zigs and zags of my road."

Just like the braids of this bread, sometimes our dreams can be multiple and interwoven, each one taking priority at different times. One strand is at the front, then the next. Neither one ever goes away and both are always connected to the centre.

I'll always have my studies in the background, nudging me every now and again - is it my turn yet? I don't know at the moment if it will ever get a turn again - but then maybe it will, in one form or another. I've learnt that I never know until I hit the peak - that glorious, heady moment as a child when you reach the top of the swing, legs kicking to get higher, before you hurtle backwards again.

It's that moment when you realise you have no choice but to change, to pull the next strand on top, creating your braid. It repeats until you reach the end and the final strand is tucked under. How do I know if I have reached that point? I can only trust.

Though the braiding technique can look a bit intimidating, it's not bad once you've got your head around it.

There are lots of different ways to fill these braids. The first one I tried used lemon curd along with the creamy filling. I've also made a version filled with salted caramel, walnuts and meringue and a different bread recipe, which was pretty amazing (I made it for a challenge, I don't think I'd include meringue again). I like the creamy-fruit type for breakfast or brunch. I made a simple blueberry compote here but you could use other fruits or possibly use a not-too-sweet jam.

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Berry No-Bake Cheesecake Tarts

The Fourth of July is one of those holidays that I hold close to my heart. It may not have the magic of Christmas or the table spread of Thanksgiving, but it has its own charm. Laughter, love, hot plates of grilled food, the boom of a good firecracker, and the glow of a flickering bonfire—these are things that define the holiday for me. During the long days of summer, taking a break, even for a day, to start up the grill or enjoy the warm sun with friends and family feels like a blessing.

This year I can't wait to lay beneath the stars and watch the fireworks explode brilliantly above.

For celebrations and get-togethers, I like to challenge myself to come up with a new dessert to serve my loved ones. In the case of the Fourth of July, when potlucks and picnics are plentiful, the dessert should be portable and require no special dishes so they can be quickly snatched from the table and enjoyed on the run. While I debated between popsicles and pies, ultimately the decision made itself when I spied the red and blue berries at the market.

Though these do need to be kept chilled, these festive no-bake cheesecakes fit the holiday just right. The cheesecakes can be whipped up in less than an hour, making them an easy dessert to prepare (and an even easier dessert to devour).

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Berry No-Bake Cheesecake Tarts are a fantastic way to celebrate summer. A soft sugar cookie crust is filled with a heaping helping of vanilla cheesecake filling. The filling is whipped, which gives the tarts a light quality. Topped with fresh raspberries and blueberries, the tarts play between sweet and tart, never swaying too far in one direction. These tarts make for a lovely end to a vibrant summer meal.

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