THE VILLAGE VOICE

" May all your troubles last as long as your New Year's resolutions." ~ Joey Adams ~ Cheers! _________ TOURTIERE ~ Traditional French Canadian meat pie __________ TRADITIONAL PASTRY FOR TWO LARGE PIES 3 cups unbleached flour 1 cup vegetable shortening like Crisco (lard for the purest) 1 scant tsp. salt 1 large beaten egg 1 Tbsp. vinegar ice water Place flour, salt, and shortening in food processor or large bowl. Process with machine or pastry blender until mixture resembles course corn meal. In large glass measuring cup, beat the egg. Add vinegar and enough ice water to equal 1/2 cup. Pour over flour mixture. Blend only until dough holds together in a ball. Shape dough into thick, flat rounds. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until easy to handle (about 1 hour). Note: Skip the ABOVE and head for the refrigerated section at the market. Purchase Pillsbury Pie Crusts ... unroll (dust with 1 Tbsp. flour), spread into pie pan, flute, fill and bake. Not as good as above ...

~ YOSHINO CHERRY BLOSSOMS MICHIGAN CHERRY SOUP ~ from The Bountiful Arbor "This soup is a beautiful pink color; it's as lovely to look at as it is delicious for either a first course or a dessert." 3 cups cold water 1 cup sugar 2-3 cinnamon sticks 1 1/2 pounds fresh or frozen stemmed and pitted tart cherries 1 Tbsp. cornstarch 2 Tbsp. water 3/4 cup dry red wine 1/4 cup heavy cream In stockpot over medium heat, mix water, sugar, and cinnamon sticks. Boil until sugar dissolves. Add cherries and simmer 35 minutes (10 minutes if cherries are canned). Whisk cornstarch with water; whisk into soup mixture. Boil 2 minutes or until thick. Cool in refrigerator several hours or overnight. Before serving, stir in red wine and cream and remove cinnamon sticks. If desired, add more wine to taste to reduce sweetness. Garnish with a white or purple flower. (serves 4-6) CHICKEN and WILD MUSHROOM STRUDEL with DRIED CHERRIES ~ from The Bountiful Arbor "Truly Michigan." 3/4 c...

TOURTIERE (French~Canadian Meat Pie) Originally ‘ tourtieres ’ were made with large birds, called ‘ tourtes ’ until these became extinct. According to some authorities, some tourtiere recipes obtained their name from the deep baking dish ( tourtiere ) in which they were baked. Since the disappearance of tourtes , fresh pork or a mixture of different kinds of meat is used in this food specialty. --Yvon Paul In France the tourtiere pie-dish was a kitchen utensil f or cooking pigeon and other birds. The contents of the dish were known as ‘piece tourtiere ’ and during the first years in New France these distinctive words were used. Over the years the word ‘ tourtiere ’ came to mean a pate of fowl or game cooked and seasoned according to a special household recipe in the family stew pan, for into it went not merely turtle-doves but every kind of edible bird. Every housewife possessed her own secret recipe, jealously preserved from generation to generation . It was in this way that some v...