Some of you may know that my love for creating often manifests itself in the kitchen rather than my studio! I love getting ideas from The Food Network and trying them out on my husband for dinner. Of course, the competitions are always great to watch, as they inspire creative approaches to a sometimes ordinary dish.

So this week, I find out that the small town of Nolensville, TN (just a stone’s throw away from our Brentwood home) was hosting a Pie Bakeoff Competition as part of their 4th of July Celebration. I’ve always wanted to enter a food competition, so I enlisted my husband Nate to join me in a little challenge!

We made a “tester” pie the day before that was delicious, but not award-winning (A double crusted Peach Raspberry Pie). We decided to shift gears and give a cream pie a chance for the big day. I found a photo of a gorgeous one online. gathered some extra inspiration, and proceeded to customize a with my own artistic flair. Nate consulted and approved of said flair, and we set to baking!

We were thrilled when they announced the winners and we learned that we had placed 2nd! Even better? We got to enjoy and share what was left of our pie with our friends who were with us.

Check out a detail shot of our completed pie!

A few friends have already requested our recipe, so here it is:

Red, White, and Blueberry Cream Pie

INGREDIENTS:

9 inch Graham Cracker Crust:

1½ cups Graham Cracker crumbs
¼ cup crushed almonds
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted

Blueberry Filling:

2 cups fresh blueberries (frozen are fine if it’s all you have)
2 T. sugar
½ T. cornstarch
1 T. lemon juice
Zest of half a lemon (or more if you’re feeling adventurous!)

Filling:

8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup lemon juice (2 lemons if you have a nice juicer)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Topping:

1 cup sliced fresh strawberries
½ cup fresh blueberries, rinsed and drained

Directions:
Graham Cracker Crust:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine Graham Cracker crumbs, crushed almonds, cinnamon, sugar, and melted butter. Stir until thoroughly mixed and mixture is crumbly.
3. Pour the crumb mixture into a deep dish 9 inch pie pan. Using the back of a large spoon or the flat bottom of a measuring cup, press the crumb mixture evenly across the bottom and against the sides of the pan.

   Bake:

4. Bake the crust for 10 minutes. The edges may be slightly browned. Remove from oven and cool completely on a wire cooling rack.

   Filling:

5. In a saucepan, combine blueberries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes until thickened.
6. Place blueberry mixture in the cooled crust in a single layer. Set aside.
7. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add sweetened condensed milk, lemon juice, and vanilla. Beat until mixture is smooth and fluffy. Pour mixture on top of the blueberries in the crust.
8. Cover and refrigerate 3 hours or until the filling is set.

   Topping:

9. Decorate the top of the pie with blueberries and sliced strawberries.
10. Cover pie and refrigerate until ready to serve.

So… this blog is about creating, right? There’s more to me than fine art and graphic design, and this was a recipe I couldn’t pass up sharing.

Saturday night, Nate and I decided to try a coveted recipe that he had begged and pleaded to obtain: Lemon Soufflé Pancakes. They were the signature breakfast dish at a lovely bed and breakfast on the East Coast, and the chef was kind enough to share. Now, I don’t use “delightful” to describe many things, but these really deserve the compliment.

Enjoy! Let me know what you think, and be on the lookout for a brand new blog devoted to recipes we love and our other creative experiences as Nate and I journey through married life.

(Not our photo - we were too hungry!) Thanks to a Flikr user named "aprevite" for this one.

Pancake Ingredients:

6 eggs, separated
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cup ricotta
1/2 cup melted butter
4 T. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
zest of two lemons
1 T. fresh lemon juice

Separate the eggs and beat the egg whites until they hold stiff peaks. In another bowl, stir together the egg yolks, flour, ricotta, butter, sugar, salt, and lemon zest until well mixed. With a large spatula, fold the egg whites into the mixture. Gently stir. There should still be small amounts of egg white showing.

Heat skillet over medium heat. Grease lightly and spoon out about 2 big spoonfuls of batter for each pancake. Cook slowly for about 1 1/2 minutes (or until they can be flipped without making a big mess), then turn and cook for another 30 seconds or so. These will be lighter and fluffier than your typical pancake. Keep the pancakes warm in 250º oven until ready to serve. Top with berry syrup (recipe below) and whipped cream! Makes about 12  4 inch pancakes (we had no trouble eating them all between the two of us).

Berry Syrup Recipe

1 cup fresh or frozen berries (we used a mixture of raspberries and blueberries and it was perfect!)
1 T. fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup maple syrup
2 T. butter

Meanwhile, in a small sauce pan over medium heat, combine 2 tablespoons butter, syrup, and blueberries. Heat, stirring occasionally, until butter melts, about 3 minutes. This complements the pancakes wonderfully!