Remembering Forward


apple pie

Last week at my favorite yoga class, the instructor started talking about the concept of Remembering Forward. It’d been a long tough class and my mind was wandering over to latte land, but as I half listened, the concept grabbed me. It goes something like this: Imagine one year from today. So it’d be November 17, 2011. Now imagine one area in your life that you want to work on or make a change in. This could be your relationship, a friendship, work. Anything. Think about one specific change that you’d like to see happen in that area, and then you turn to a friend or your partner and you play the ‘Remembering Forward’ game. You’re now in November 2011 and that change you wanted to see happen? It did. Your dialogue with your friend or partner makes it come alive.

For example, when I was listening to the instructor talk about the concept I started running through what mine would look like:

Friend: Gosh, remember the opening of your bakeshop and you had those little pies for everyone to take home?
Me: Oh my god, that seems like so long ago. Yes, of course I remember! Remember how packed it was? Janet was there. And Allison and Denise, Anne and Kasey. Danielle drove over, and picked up Tracy on the way. Kristin and even Nate came.
Friend: Oh yeah, I thought you were going to run out of pies. That apple was a hit.
Me: Phew, me too. And remember how we were painting the walls up until that very day and I was all stressed out about getting the perfect yellow color?
Friend: Numerous phone counseling sessions on that one; how could I forget? And then remember how the newspaper was there and they did that little profile on the shop?
Me: That was my fifteen minutes…
Friend: God, I feel like you’ve been baking forever and now you’ve got all these new neighborhood friends and local vendors who stop in all the time.

Me: I know! I love the ‘hood.
Friend: I’m not gonna lie though, I miss those days when we had so much free time that we could meet up in the city for lunch in the middle of the day.
Me: I know, I know. But now I bring you lots of treats whenever I see you. So that counts for something.


So the idea of Remembering Forward is that instead of kind of passively hoping that something will happen or working towards something and crossing your fingers that it may come to fruition someday–you’re declaring that it will.  In one year, actually. You’re bravely making a definitive statement to yourself that at this time next year, that little (or big) something will have happened and you’ll look back on it and smile. There’s something pretty powerful about envisioning it’s already happened. Try it.

So think ahead and then allow yourself to play it back. For me, that thought involves hope and faith and pie. A double-crust apple pie, to be exact.

Double-Crust Apple Pie

Double-Crust Apple Pie

  • Yield: One nine inch pie
  • Prep time: 30 mins
  • Cook time: 1 hr
  • Inactive time: 1 hr 30 mins
  • Total time: 3 hrs

I’ve tweaked the spices and the amount of apples in this recipe to perfection. I favor using flour as a thickener here rather than cornstarch or tapioca–it lends a nice creaminess that’s perfect for an apple pie. And don’t skip the macerating step: if you let the apples sit with the sugar for at least a half an hour, they’ll really settle in and you can fit far more apples in your pie. Always a good thing.

Ingredients

3 1/2 pounds apples, peeled, cored and cut into ¼ inch slices (Granny Smith, Empire, Rome are the best)
¾ cup brown sugar, packed
¼ cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
For egg wash: 1 egg yolk & 1 tablespoon heavy cream
sanding sugar, to top

Instructions

Roll out first disk of pie dough to a 12” round with 1/8” thickness. Brush off any excess flour with a pastry brush and fit into a 9” pie pan. Trim  to ½” overhang. Roll other disk out in a similar fashion and lay flat on a piece of parchment paper or baking sheet. Refrigerate both for 30 minutes.

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolk and cream and set aside to use later for egg wash.

In a large bowl, toss together the apples, lemon juice, sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Once the pie shell is chilled, remove from the refrigerator and fill with the apples. Dot with butter. Brush the rim of the pie shell with egg wash and place the second piece of dough on top, gently pressing over the apples and on the top and bottom of each piece to seal.

Using kitchen scissors, trim the top piece of dough to about a 1” overhand and tuck dough under. Crimp however you like. Brush entire surface with egg wash and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Cut three vents in the top to allow steam to escape when baked. Freeze until firm, about 30-40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 F.

Place pie on baking sheet and bake until crust turns golden, 15-20 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350 F and continue baking until crust is a deep golden brown, 40-50 minutes more. Transfer pie to a wire rack to cool.

Pie can be kept at room temperature, loosely covered for up to 2 days

Comments

  1. Angharad

    What a cool and beautiful concept! I super hope you open an adorable pie shop!

    Apple pie is my absolute favourite - such a classic. This looks just gorgeous.

  2. Anne Zimmerman

    Remembering forward: I love it. My past few weeks have been filled with big things: a move, a birthday, a book. There's so much new on the horizon. It has made me think of last year at this time, and how bleak it all seemed. If I had remembered it forward then, I would have wished for everything I have now, but I would never have believed it would actually happen.
    Anyway, I'm rambling. Loved this sentiment and I am SURE good things are happening for you.

  3. Nicole

    So, does this have anything to do with your secret from the last post?

    1. megang

      Nicole: Maybe! The secret's being slowly revealed :)

  4. Tracy

    teeeeeee!! and so it begins!! I can't wait to hear more. I love this.

    btw, you should try http://futureme.org/

    you can send yourself an email in the future! It's pretty fun!

  5. Katie

    Megan, I love this post! So inspiring. Thanks! And I'll be watching for your post about the opening of your pie shop...

  6. Danielle

    Something about this post made me tear...perhaps it's the conversation you're having with your imaginary friend about your future success that I *know* is going to happen.

    I've been doing a lot of reflecting about the past year recently, amazed and deliriously happy at how life has unfolded itself, and it looks like I need to do some Remembering Forward myself! With a slice of that pie. Please! :)

  7. burt kozloff

    Now let's see if I can talk Van into using this recipe for Thanksgiving.

  8. Lauren

    Time travel confuses me! Is the pie shop open? About to open? :) Regardless, I look forward to future accounts. That apple pie makes me want to chew my screen.

    1. megang

      Hi Lauren! There is not a bake shop open...not exactly about to open, either. But feeling pretty good about the fact that it will in a year's time!

  9. Anna

    My mouth is watering at your beautiful picture of pie and my mind is racing with the possibilities and ideas of remembering forward. I love it!

  10. El

    Megan- this is great! Now if only I had the equivalent of a bakeshop to get excited about. Yikes. I'm stuck! A know a piece of that pie would help. I can't get over how flaky the crust is. I could really go for a piece right now.

  11. Mary

    Megan, with your mad talent I know whatever 'Remembering Forward' you do will happen. So excited for you!

  12. Sanura

    "Remembering forward" is very inspiring and appropriate for this time of year. It's like an early Happy New Year's advice. Actually, it's great for Thanksgiving, too. I'm giving thanks to all my goals accomplished next year.

  13. Lori

    Megan, You are awesome. I always look forward to your posts as though they were letters from friends.
    L

  14. Lana @ Never Enough Thyme

    I really love the idea of "remembering forward." The concept of visualizing what you want as having already happened is pretty powerful. Thank you so much for sharing this.

  15. Joy

    Thank you for the reminder about "Remembering Forward". I didn't even know what it was then, but when I was younger I would pretend that what I wanted had been accomplished, and so forth. And they did. Time to dream again. :)

    So I would be coming over next year for pie, right?

  16. wizzythestick

    Inspiring thoughts and good food, feeding mind and body in one go :-)

  17. kickpleat

    Eeeek, I love this. Great idea. All of it. Pie. Mmm.

  18. Lisa Waldschmidt

    I have been doing to much of looking back a year ago and how happy I was then. Now I have to look forward and project that I will be happy again and back in SF a year from now. Mopping your floors.

  19. Cheryl

    I do want to point out a tiny hole to your future self: I, too, will be at the opening of your little pie shop to help you celebrate.

    FutureMegan, take note to make enough little pies for one more.

    1. megang

      CHERYL! Of course you will! I think subconsciously I knew that you don't fancy driving this far all that often, but looks like exceptions can be made :)

  20. Janet

    Oh, I love this concept! I could use a little remembering forward. And heck yeah, you better believe I was (will be) there. I hope it all comes true! And we can come visit YOU during the day!

  21. Dana

    I love this idea. And I love the tease you are giving here. Can't wait to hear more.

  22. Denise | Chez Danisse

    I've imagined myself in the future, but never in such a detailed way as creating dialogue. I love it.

  23. Kasey

    I just reread this post, as I am baking a pear pie, using your crust and technique and thinking to myself just how far we've come in the last year! I can't wait to see you on Sunday. xo lady.

  24. Herrenhäuser

    I have read so many articles about the blogger lovers except this article is genuinely a pleasant paragraph, keep it up.

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