Debbie's Point of View: Doctor, Doctor

A long, long time ago, my cousin Henry asked me to make him Minced Meat pie. Who in their right mind EATS minced meat pie?! I had never seen one, made one, heard of anyone eat one. Whatever. He asked, and by golly, he shall receive!

What started out as a great idea turned into a financial nightmare. My original recipe I found frantically searching my Grandma's cookbooks had me driving all over creation for the huge list of specialty ingredients. My nerves. The liquor pushed me over the monetary edge. $60 for a bottle that I would never drink- it wasn't beer. Whacked out. All this for one pie that I am unsure of its edibility.

I called him, verifying this indeed is what he was hoping for. "For heaven's sake, Deb, you open a jar and dump it into a crust." Whaat?!

I am not a fan of ready-made anything that I can call my own. But, for the love of my cousin, he said dump. I returned the specialty items in exchange for 1 jar of minced meat.

With my homemade pie crust ready for filling, I hesitated pouring this brown, chunky gunk into it. Actually, I couldn't do it. I just could not find it in my heart to give my cousin this store bought concoction. Love him too much, and he's not a baker to know what's good for a pie.

Realizing that spaghetti sauce comes from a jar, but before serving it over noodles, you doctor it up. Doctor it up!!!! The creative juices are flowing now!! I decided to use the filling as a base and add my touch to it.

Wallah- masterpiece! This pie is my favorite thing to make! The smell is so incredibly rich; my home is filled with the scent of cloves, cinnamon, raisins, apples and liquor. Seriously, the air is edible! Talk about setting the mood for the holidays! Love it!!

I have no clue, honestly, if this is what a minced meat pie is supposed to taste like. I hate it. I won't eat it, ever. But, Henry does. He does with such delight that it makes my heart happy every time he asks me to bake him one. Call me "Doc", I've got it made!!