Thursday, March 4, 2010

Beer, Whiskey and Pie

Peggy and I became dear friends which was handy as our husbands worked together as linemen for the Rio Grande Railroad. They were based out of Pinecliffe, Colorado, a very small mountain community near where we lived. One of the perks of working for the RR in the “good ole days” were free trips on the Zephyr from Denver to Salt Lake City. We often took the train to Glenwood Springs or on to Grand Junction where our mutual friends Trout and Ginger lived.

I used to make homemade ham salad for sandwiches and Peggy, who was not much of a cook, brought chips and cookies. Before one trip Peggy announced that she was bringing a home made cherry pie. “Fantastic” was the general consensus; anything that went good with beer and whiskey was always welcome. Cherry pie sounded like a real treat!

When we met up with Fooz and Peggy for the trek down to Denver’s Union Station to catch the train, Fooz was already making jokes about the pie. He handed it to Steve, who immediately arched his eyebrows and said, “What did you bake this in, a cast iron skillet?”

Poor Peggy, always the good sport, just laughed. “Oh no, I bought a new Pyrex pie dish.”

“It’s a heavy one, that’s for sure,” Fooz said grinning. “Good thing we don’t have to pay for it by the pound!”

Peggy had never made a pie crust and she did not have Crisco in her pantry ~ so she substituted the shortening with the same amount of liquid vegetable oil. The crust was heavy and the consistency of soggy corrugated cardboard. We ended up setting it in the center of the table, peeling off and discarding the top crust, and devouring the baked pie filling right out of the middle. We washed it down with a few beers and a round of Jack Daniels and enjoyed every cherry. That poor pie became famous as the story was enjoyed for years to come.

Disclaimer: I must admit, since I have re-told Peggy’s foible so easily, that I have yet to conquer the elusive light and flakey pie crust. My mother’s sets such a high standard, my hat is still tipped to her.

* annette

No comments: