Pie time

I made another peach pie this weekend.
I wanted to perfect some things I had been playing around with.
This one was peach and raisin like last time, but this go around I used golden raisins that I soaked in rum for awhile beforehand.
I also perfected the edge on the crust...I reserved a bit to place over the lattice work middle and then pressed a fork pattern into it that created those nice striations around the perimeter. I think the whole thing came out nicely...picture perfect. And the best part was how it tasted...DELISH.

Peach & golden rum raisin pie

Instagramming

I love the random way that pictures come up on Instagram and form a statement all by themselves as a grouping. Last week my page was feeling particularly "Sag Harbor-ey" because of my most recent posts.

All shots from Sag Harbor ()except the bottom right..duh)

A vine covered cottage

The English ivy that covers the bed at the back of the house has really taken off this season.
The leaves are super big and it's growing like crazy. I have to keep trimming it so it doesn't cover the dining room windows. I love the way it looks but it does worry me that it will damage the cedar shingles somehow. I think I just have to keep an eye on it and make sure it doesn't uproot any of the individual shingles and let water in.  But I sure love the way it looks. I always wanted to live in the vine covered cottage and, well, now I've got me wish :)

Peach pie

I was in the mood to bake today. And peach pie sounded nice.
In this case it's a peach, raisin from a simple recipe from Mark Bittman's "How to Cook Everything". I had a piece for an afternoon snack and it was heaven. I'm thinking the next time I make this I'll add a splash of bourbon...yum.

The vespa tantalization

I'll admit it.
For years, if not decades, I have wanted to own a scooter, or 'vespa' to use the brand name generic.
I would never have one in the city, the idea of negotiating Manhattan traffic on a little vehicle like that makes my blood run cold, but the idea of having one in the Hamptons has always held a special allure. But having owned a car of some sort for the last 18 years that I've owned the house has always made the notion of a vespa seem redundant. Until now.
I've been without a car since Spring of last year. Living so close to Main Street where the Jitney drops me off makes it pretty easy to visit the house on weekends. It's a little annoying having to lug my grocery shopping 6 blocks, but certainly manageable. What would be nice is to be able to pop over to friends' houses in, say, East Hampton. And now that the weather is getting so nice the tug of owning one is getting stronger.
And now it's stronger than ever. Why? Because I found out an acquaintance of mine who lives in Amagansett  is wanting to sell his vespa, a nice buttery cream colored one. It's a real 2001Vespa brand scooter that looks to be in great condition (I've only seen the below photos). There is a catch though: it doesn't run. The owner thinks it might be something as simple as needing a new battery...but it might be something much worse. The jury's out. He's going to sell if for a fair price that I had corroborated by an old friend of mine who is a major scooter enthusiast. A mechanic is going to give it a once-over and get it primed to sell for that fair price.
And guess who's getting first dibs once it's ready? You guessed it. To say I'm very excited is putting it mildly. So stay tuned for further developments. You'll be the first to know how this all shapes up.