I Only Have Pies for You, page 15
“Oh.” The soft squeak in that Oh was the only thing that gave any hint of Julip’s defeat. “Yes, well, it was an honor to hold it in my hands. A priceless family heirloom like that.” She smiled seamlessly for the camera as she slid the piece of paper from her pocket into my palm. “Even for a little while.”
I nodded. “I’d be glad to talk with you more about GG Hazel, but first, I think I have some pies to give out.”
“Yes,” Julip said dazedly. “Of course!” She motioned to the cameras. “Folks, let’s head over to the food trucks to see if any of that delicious-smelling chili is ready for tasting!” She stepped away from me, and the cameras followed her.
I heaved a sigh of relief, and a second later, Maria, Bree, and Zari crushed me in a group hug.
“That was fantastic!” Maria whispered gleefully.
“Thank you so much, guys,” I said. “What are you doing here early? I figured you’d be sleeping in.” They’d baked for nearly as long as I had last night, and I knew how tired they were.
“You’ve got to be kidding.” Zari waved at the line of customers. “I’ve got two hundred new subscribers to my Bonnet Buzz channel on YouTube. And I’ll bet that somewhere in this line is someone who has connections at the New York Times. Six degrees of separation and all that.” She pulled a stack of her Beehive business cards from her pocket. “Don’t mind me. I’ll be spending the next few hours networking.”
She started for the line, but I called after her teasingly, “Wait a sec. Aren’t you going to help me hand out pie?”
“Well, there’s a little bit of a problem with that,” Bree said.
Maria nodded. “Most of these people want to talk to you.”
I balked. “What? Come on …” But my disbelieving laugh died in my throat when I glanced at the first woman in line—a frail, weathered woman who looked like she might’ve been close to one hundred. Her ancient eyes were gazing at me expectantly.
“Excuse me, young lady.” Her voice trembled. “Are you Hazel Culpepper’s great-granddaughter?”
I nodded, and she reached out an impossibly slender hand, her eyes filling. “I knew your GG Hazel. She gave me a slice of her pie once.” She smiled. “And I’ve been waiting all these years for a second slice.”
“I’d love to hear that story.” My heart swelled as I cut a generous piece of Heartstring Pie and handed it to her. She took her first bite, her eyes lit up, and she began talking. And that was the beginning of the stories. With each slice and each new customer came a different story. Some of the stories were happy; some were sad, but they all seemed to have one thing in common: They all needed to be shared with me.
It took a couple of stumbling starts, but after the first few customers, I figured out what my real job was. It wasn’t to hand out slices of pie. Zari, Maria, Bree, Chayton—they could all help with that. My job was to listen, and even, when needed, take someone’s hand or offer them a hug.
It felt even more natural than baking the Heartstring Pie had.
Finally, when the sun had climbed to an impressive height in the cloudless sky, I glanced up to see that the last person in line was my mom.
She smiled at me, a few stray tears spilling down her cheeks. “I’m speechless, Dace,” she choked out, and grabbed me in a fierce hug.
“You? Speechless?” I murmured into her shoulder. “Never.”
Mom laughed. “I know. You’re right. That would be impossible.” She stood back to look at me. “I’ve been watching you for the last hour, and I’m so proud. So very proud. What you’ve done.” She waved her hand at the nearly empty pie table. “Well. It’s incredible. And do you know that Julip actually apologized to me?”
I gaped. “Really?”
Mom nodded. “Came up to me and admitted to taking the recipe, and even started crying. I think she really has had a rough time lately with the show. It’s too bad, and I wanted to make her feel better …”
“Mom? You didn’t actually—”
“Of course I offered her a slice of Heartstring Pie! I had to!”
I laughed. “You’re unstoppable.”
“So are you. And you’re a natural. You’re going to take my place someday—”
“Mom,” I stopped her. “I’m not going to take anybody’s place. I want to take my own.”
Mom smiled. “Yes. Exactly.”
“But … those hundreds of Heartstring Pies.” I met her eyes. “Mom, I gave them all away. How did that help Pies N’ Prattle?”
“Dacey, let me show you something.” Mom took out her phone and pulled up email. “Five hundred emails to my Pies N’ Prattle account since Thursday. They’re all from potential customers wanting to place orders for pies. Not Heartstring Pie, but every other pie we make. And they’re from all over the country.” She grinned. “Dace, we’re going to have to start selling pies nationwide. Shipping them out of state. I didn’t want to do that before, but now … why not? Heartstring Pie will only be available at the shop. But our other pies? Why not let everyone enjoy them, no matter where they live?”
“Wow,” I breathed, scarcely able to believe it. “But what about the other businesses in Bonnet? The Gonzalezes and everyone else?”
“I don’t know,” Mom said, “but I’m hopeful. We all are.” She hugged me again. “You’ve given us that.”
I glanced around. The fair was in full swing now, and I saw that Mom was right. Ms. Jackson sat with her laptop on a picnic blanket, happily typing and nibbling Heartstring Pie. Doctor and Mrs. Higgins were sharing a slice as they rode the Ferris wheel. Little Alma was eating a slice as she sat on Mrs. Gonzalez’s lap, listening to Julip conduct an interview with Mr. Gonzalez about The Whole Enchilada while Marco gurgled happily. Everywhere I looked were Bonneters laughing, smiling, hugging, enjoying the moment. It was as if the town had been sitting under a gray cloud for so long, but now the sun was shining bright and full.
Then I saw Chayton walking toward me. Mom followed my gaze, then elbowed me. “That’s my cue. I’m off to find your dad. That man always rides the Tilt-A-Whirl one too many times …”
She blew me a kiss as she left, and then Chayton was beside me, holding a pie box in his hands. My heart performed the little happy dance it always did when I was near him.
“Hey, are you okay?” I asked. “You disappeared when I was talking to your mom before and I thought maybe—”
“That I was mad?” A trace of sadness flickered across his face. “I was. But not at you.” He paused. “It’s more like I’m disappointed. Sometimes I have a hard time dealing with the fact that my mom’s probably not ever going to change.”
“I’m sorry.” I held his gaze.
“Me too,” he said. “But … I don’t want to spend today being sorry. Because today is your day. And anyway, I have some good news. At least, I think it’s good news.”
“More good news?” I laughed. “How could there possibly be more?”
He grinned. “What if I told you that when my mom leaves for her next filming location, I’m staying here instead of going with her?”
“Really?”
He nodded. “Granddad and Granny want me to stay with them. I love working on the ranch, and Mom travels so much … This was a good solution. I’ll still see Mom every week or so when she comes back to Bonnet between filming, and I can travel with her whenever I want to. This just works out better for everybody right now.”
“That is good news.” I smiled at him, loving the way his eyes lit up at my words. “That means we’ll have so much more time for spelling bee competitions, and pie-throwing matches, and—”
“Pie-baking contests?” he finished, nodding to the pie box in his hands.
“No.” I stared in disbelief. “You didn’t.”
“Oh, I did. I made it just for you. I call it Head Over Heels pie.” Chayton opened the lid to reveal a pie plate piled high with gummy hearts, heart-shaped lollipops, and chocolate hearts.
I burst out laughing. “That is the ugliest pie I’ve ever seen.”
“But …” He grinned. “It was made by the sweetest guy you’ve ever seen.”
I laughed again—and then I noticed the words written clumsily in white icing over the top of the candies. My heartstring is forever tied to yours. My pulse cartwheeled as I looked up at Chayton. “That was what was written under the stool at the Bonnet soda shop.”
He nodded. “I wrote that. On the pie and …” He sucked in a breath. “Under the seat at the shop. The day after we tied for the fourth-grade spelling bee.” He blushed burgundy. “You always sat in that seat, and well, I wrote the words for you. Back then … and now.”
“Chayton.” My heart burst into a thousand fireflies of happiness. “I had no idea …”
“It’s always been you, Dace,” he whispered. “I thought maybe if I wrote the words, somehow you’d know in your heart, and you’d fall head over heels for me.”
I glanced down again at the words on the pie. “Head Over Heels pie. It does have a nice ring to it.”
Chayton grinned, looking immensely relieved that he’d exposed his heart to me, and I hadn’t trampled it, and that we could still tease each other. Teasing and having fun was what we seemed best at. “I thought so,” he said, playing along.
“And I suppose you want me to taste it to see what happens?”
“Only if you’re willing to risk the consequences.”
I cocked an eyebrow at him, then reached into the pie box and plucked out a chocolate heart. I bit into it, then fake-swooned, making him drop the pie box and catch me in his arms.
“Did it work?” he whispered in my ear.
A thrill shot through me as I looked into his eyes. “Not yet. It’s missing something. A special ingredient.” I leaned close and gave him a sweet kiss. He wrapped his arms around me and kissed me back. Then I smiled up at him. “Yep. Head over Heels is definitely my favorite kind of pie.”
Are you ready for the cozy comfort of a slice of Pies N’ Prattle magic? Give some of these recipes a try, and you’ll fall head over heels for their sweetness! Just remember to always have adult supervision when you’re using an oven or stovetop, or handling hot foods.
Ingredients for pie crust:
Parchment or wax paper
2 store-bought pie crusts
3 Tbsp unsweetened baking cocoa powder
1 Tbsp powdered sugar
Directions for pie crust:
Unroll each individual pie crust onto a counter covered with parchment or wax paper. Scoop 1½ tablespoons of cocoa powder and ½ tablespoon of powdered sugar into the middle of each circle of dough. Fold the edges of the crust toward the middle and start kneading. Knead the dough for several minutes, until the color becomes a uniform brown and the sugar and cocoa are thoroughly blended into the dough. Once you have two balls of dough, roll each back out with a rolling pin. Put aside until ready to use.
Ingredients for pie filling:
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 cup fresh blackberries
1 cup fresh raspberries
1 cup quartered strawberries
½ cup granulated white sugar
¼ cup minute tapioca
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1½ cups semisweet chocolate morsels
Directions for pie filling and baking:
Preheat oven to 350º Fahrenheit. Wash and dry all of the berries and place in a large mixing bowl. Add ½ cup sugar and ¼ cup tapioca to the berries. Stir gently until combined and let sit for fifteen minutes so tapioca can soften and absorb the berry juice. Pour in 1 tablespoon vanilla extract and ½ cup semisweet chocolate morsels and stir.
Press one pie crust into the bottom of an ungreased glass pie pan. Pour 1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels into the bottom of the pan and spread them into an even layer. Pour the berry and chocolate pie filling over the layer of chocolate morsels. Cover the pie filling with the second pie crust and crimp the edges of the dough. Place thin strips of aluminum foil around the outside of the pie pan to keep the upper crust’s edges from burning. Using a knife, make several small slits in the top of the crust.
Place the pie in the oven and bake for approximately 50–60 minutes, or until the crust is cooked thoroughly and the filling is bubbly. Enjoy!
Ingredients for homemade pie crust:
Parchment paper
2 cups flour
1 Tbsp powdered sugar
1 Tsp salt
¾ cup cold unsalted butter, cubed
1/3–½ cup buttermilk (add more as needed)
Directions for homemade pie crust:
Combine flour, sugar, and salt in a standing mixer. Add the cubed butter until the dough forms pea-sized lumps. Pour 1/3 cup buttermilk into the mixer and blend. The dough should still be crumbly but should be sticky enough to mold into larger pieces by hand. Turn off the mixer and, using your hands, press and shape the dough into one large ball. Then, divide the ball in half and shape again into two separate balls. Wrap these in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour, or freeze for 15–20 minutes. Remove the chilled dough from the refrigerator or freezer, and using a rolling pin, roll out the dough onto a sheet of parchment or wax paper until you have two flat, circular crusts. Set aside.
Alternative directions for super-easy pie crusts:
Two store-bought pie crusts, and voilà, you’re done! ☺
For pie filling:
5–6 cored, peeled, and sliced Granny Smith apples
½ cup granulated white sugar
1 Tsp cinnamon
Caramel sauce
For caramel sauce:
½ cup white granulated sugar
1/3 cup water
2 Tbsp butter
¾ cup heavy cream
½ Tbsp vanilla extract
Directions for pie filling and baking:
Preheat oven to 425º Fahrenheit. Wash and dry 5–6 peeled, cored, and sliced Granny Smith apples. Place them in a large mixing bowl. Add ½ cup sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon to the apples and stir until combined. Prepare the caramel sauce in a medium saucepan on the stovetop. Pour ½ cup sugar into the saucepan and make level. Add 1/3 cup water and stir over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved and the liquid becomes clear. Turn up the heat to medium high and stir until the sugar mixture caramelizes, turning a golden brown. Add 2 tablespoons butter, stirring until melted. Remove from heat and add ¾ cup heavy cream and ½ tablespoon of vanilla extract. Stir all ingredients until the caramel mixture is syrupy in texture. Set aside.
Press one pie crust into the bottom of an ungreased glass pie pan. Pour the caramel sauce into the bottom of the pan. Pour the apple filling over the caramel sauce. Cover the pie filling with the second pie crust and crimp the edges of the dough. Place thin strips of aluminum foil around the outside of the pie pan to keep the crust’s edges from burning. Using a knife, make several small slits in the top of the crust.
Place the pie in the oven and bake for approximately 50–60 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbly. Enjoy!
For pie crust:
Parchment paper
1 tube store-bought premixed chocolate chip cookie dough (or you can make a batch of homemade chocolate chip cookie dough! Whatever you prefer!)
½ cup Heath Toffee Bits (found in the aisle alongside baking chocolate morsels at your grocery store)
Directions for pie crust:
Spray the bottom and sides of a glass pie pan with cooking spray. Cut a circle of parchment paper to fit the bottom of the pie pan and place the paper in the bottom of the pan. Combine the raw cookie dough with ½ cup Heath Toffee Bits, stirring until well blended. Press the raw dough into the bottom and sides of pan to form a thin layer, which will bake into a crust. Set the pan aside. (Note: If you’d prefer to use a cookie crumb crust, crush 12-14 store-bought or homemade chocolate chip cookies and combine with 1½ tablespoons melted butter. Don’t forget to add the Heath Toffee Bits. Stir until the crumbs stick lightly together. Press into the bottom of the pie pan.)
For pie filling:
½ cup butter, softened
1½ cups white granulated sugar
3½ Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp vanilla
3 large eggs
¾ cup buttermilk
½ cup semisweet chocolate morsels
¾ cup Heath Toffee Bits
Insert your own secret ingredient here!
Directions for pie filling and baking:
Preheat oven to 350º Fahrenheit. In a large mixing bowl and a hand mixer, combine the softened butter, sugar, flour, vanilla, and eggs. Blend on medium speed for approximately two minutes. Pour in ¾ cup buttermilk and blend for an additional minute. Spoon in ½ cup semisweet chocolate morsels and ¾ cup Heath Toffee Bits. Stir until combined. Add your special secret ingredient and stir. Pour the mixture into the pie pan.
Wrap aluminum foil around the bottom of the glass pie pan. (This will prevent the cookie dough crust from burning.) Bake the pie for approximately 60–65 minutes, until the middle of the pie is set (it will be slightly jiggly). Don’t worry if the top of the pie turns dark brown. This is normal and means you’ve created a natural, deliciously buttery top crust! If it looks like it’s beginning to burn, you can cover it loosely with aluminum foil for the last 10–15 minutes of baking. Let the pie cool at least 30–45 minutes before eating, because the filling will get firmer as it cools. Enjoy, and remember: One heart today, GG Hazel, and more hearts tomorrow!
Suzanne Nelson has written several children’s books, including Cake Pop Crush, You’re Bacon Me Crazy, Macarons at Midnight, Hot Cocoa Hearts, Donut Go Breaking My Heart, and Sundae My Prince Will Come. She lives with her family in Ridgefield, Connecticut, where she can also be found experimenting with all kinds of cooking. Learn more about Suzanne at suzannenelson.com, or follow her on Twitter at @snelsonbooks or on Instagram at @suzannenelsonbooks.
Turn the page for a sneak peek at Sundae My Prince Will Come!
“Okay, ladies!” Ms. Faraday called, standing in front of the studio’s mirror. “Pas de chat now. One, two, three, and …”
