I can't remember if I put mascara on this morning and it's really bothering me
Sunscreen is a menace, you guys. This is not to say that it's not important, of course it is, we are all smart people and know all of the things that it prevents. But the need to put it on every day, and multiple times a day when you're out in the sun a lot, is a pain in the ass. And if you get it wet with either water or sweat, it runs into your eyes and stings like hell. And it is an ESPECIAL pain in the ass for those of us who have brown skin, because most sunscreens give our skin a white cast that somehow makes us look purple, and I'm not a fan of that at all. But I have two major sunscreen solutions to tell you about today. The first is for those days when you're at the beach or in the pool (or like, running or hiking outside) and need both a sunscreen that doesn't bug your eyes: BABY SUNSCREEN. I think it's more expensive, but it's worth it to not have to deal with that sunscreen in your eyes problem. It does have the purple cast problem, though, so for every day stuff where you know you need to wear sunscreen over 15 SPF but you don't want your skin to have that white cast to it, this stuff is magic. It takes forever to get to you, but it's the best face sunscreen I've ever used. No white cast, goes on easy, and it doesn't irritate my skin, which I thought was impossible. And since I've been thinking I need to go outside more, after spending the past few months mostly inside writing, and then reading this great piece from Rahawa Haile (you should read everything she's written about hiking the Appalachian Trail) and this one from Laura Ortberg Turner, so this is mostly a reminder to myself to put sunscreen on when I attempt to do that.
I've been in a REAL reading slump for the past month or so. I keep picking up books and abandoning them a few chapters in, or even getting halfway through before I just couldn't keep pushing myself to read them anymore. It's not the fault of the books, let me make that clear -- it's just that for months I was in one kind of reading mood, but I'm not in that mood anymore, and I couldn't figure out what I wanted to read. What I wanted in a book was less what I wanted the book to be about, but more how I wanted to feel about it. I knew I wanted a book that would grab me from the beginning, one of those books where after starting it, I didn't want to do anything but read it for hours and days, but I had no idea what book that would be. Enter MARLENA. I started it on Wednesday night, in the same way I've started five or six books over the past three weeks, and it was just what I needed. I forced myself to go to bed that night, because I knew otherwise I would stay up all night reading. I stole time all day yesterday to read it on my phone, I got home from work yesterday and immediately started reading it again. I've paced myself a little so that I can draw it out, but every moment of the day, I can't wait to get back to it. Everyone go read it this weekend and then email me so we can talk about it.
Okay. I know when I say these words it will scare some of you, but I have faith in you, I know you can do it. Today, I'm going to give you my favorite pie crust recipe. Look, there is no shame in purchased pie crust, I've bought it plenty of times (I've gotten many compliments on Trader Joe's pie crust). But if you want to learn how to make pie crust to go with all of your great summer fruit, this recipe is my go to. It's all butter, which makes it delicious, but the technique means it's very easy to work with, unlike most all butter crusts. Go read that link, but I've changed it a little bit after doing it a few times, so below is the way that it works best for me.
The Pie Crust to Rule Them All (enough for two 9 inch rounds, or one top/bottom pie)
250 grams or 2 1/4 cups flour
225 grams or 8 ounces butter
(she says salted butter, I use whatever I have, and just add salt if I use unsalted)
60 ml or 1/4 cup cold water
Measure the flour and dump it in a big wide bowl (she says to do this on the counter top, doing it in a bowl is much easier and less messy for me). Cut the butter into relatively thin slices, and drop them on top of the butter, making sure to shake the bowl between every four slices or so so the butter gets coated in flour. Once it's all in there, press the butter with the heels of your hands over and over again, so the butter gets worked into the flour. Once it looks mostly worked in (see pictures from the link for examples!) make a well in the middle of the pile and pour the water in, and then use your fingers to mix it all in, just until it becomes a cohesive dough. Then wrap it in plastic wrap and stick it in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
Now! Take it out of the fridge, liberally flour your counter or cutting board, and roll it out into a long rectangle. Fold the rectangle into thirds like a letter, turn it, and roll it again. Do this three or four times, refrigerate again for 30 or so minutes (or, at this point, you can cut the dough into two sections, wrap well and freeze), and you're done! Now you can roll it out for any pie you want to make. OR you can use it to make pop tarts, which I've done for this pie dough a number of times, basically using the way she says in this post.
Email me if you have any questions about how to do any of this! And if you have any friends who you think would like this newsletter, forward it to them and/or tell them to subscribe.
Have a great weekend!
Jasmine