Several years ago, I baked  a couple non-traditional pies as my contribution to Thanksgiving dinner.  And as these things go, my non-traditional pies became a tradition among our Thanksgiving tribe.  

So, in honor of International Pi Day, here is the recipe for one of those pies.

Turtle Pie
(originally published by Borden)

1 (9 in) baked pie shell
12 carmels,unwrapped
1 (14 oz) can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk (not evaporated)
2 (1 oz) squares unsweetened chocolate
¼ cup margarine or butter
2 eggs
2 tab water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
dash salt
½ cup chopped pecans (I usually use more)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In small heavy sauce pan, over low heat, melt carmels with 1/3 cup sweetened condensed  milk.  Spread evenly on bottom of prepared pie crust.

In medium sauce pan, over low heat, melt chocolate with the butter or margarine.

In large mixer bowl, beat eggs with remaining sweetened condensed milk, water, vanilla, and salt.

Add chocolate mixture; mix well. Pour into pie shell. Top with pecans.

Bake 35 min, or until center is set. Cool. Refrigerate leftovers (if there are any).

It’s not unusual for Boulder to get a first snow in mid-October. What is unusual is the extreme cold front that brought it in. The low last night was 18, compared to a previous record low for that date of 27. Br-r-r-r.

Fortunately, my plans for the day were mostly stay-at-home plans – just a few errands that needed to be run, so I decided it would be a great day for a pot of soup. I decided on Potato-Kale Soup with Gruyère from an old Cooking Light magazine. The article also features Walnut and Rosemary Loaves. I’d made the soup before, but not the bread.

I stopped at the Boulder Farmer’s market, where the parking was uncharacteristically plentiful, and only a few hardy vendors were on hand. One of my favorite vendors, Abbondanza, had some yukon gold potatoes and beautiful kale that wasn’t frozen. Perfect! I also picked up some chiogga beets because they’re so pretty. They’ll go in a salad later in the week.

I talked about the practices of Diets Don’t Work in a previous post. Since then, I’ve redefined the second practice (originally, “eat exactly what you want”) to “I eat foods that nourish and delight me.” And this meal is a perfect example: the soup is earthy, without being rich. The bread, with the light woody flavor of rosemary infusing each bite, is simply amazing. Fortunately, the fourth practice, “I stop eating when I’m no longer hungry” prevents me from eating slice after slice after slice.

Nourishing is more than a physical thing. Yes, I used fresh, organic produce in the soup; fresh rosemary (an inside plant, so it didn’t suffer from the hard freeze last night – my basil and nasturtiums are another story) in the bread. But it is also the feel of the bread as I’m kneading it, the scent of the rosemary on my hands after chopping it – savoring all these sensations, that nourish me, as well. That I was willing to cook for myself, a single woman, a dinner that delights.