It's Birthday Celebration Time

Like I mentioned in today's earlier post, tonight we celebrated my dad's 58th birthday over at my parents' house.  Weeknights are always busy, but it's so worth it to take time out to spend with the ones I love.

The Birthday Boy

My mom absolultely outdid herself with the food for tonight. 

Delicious appetizers: Rusk Rounds, 'Bruschetta' Flavored Spread & Garlic Stuffed Olives

Main Course: Grilled Salmon, Broccoli and Brown Rice

It's almost time for Birthday Cake...er, I mean Pie (photo by R)

I was so nervous about this pie and wondered if it was even going to be edible.

Turns out it was edible. More than edible.

We ate HALF of the thing!  Wow, we are some piggy people...

All four of us came to the following conclustions about the cherry pie:

1. The filling to crust ratio was way off.  The filling portion of the recipe needs to be doubled and it does not need a full crust on top. I think a lattice-style top crust would be much more appropriate and provide a much more balanced texture.
2. The flavor of the filling was outstanding. Not too tart, not too sweet. I was also really pleased with the whole cherry to 'cherry goo' ratio. 

All in all, I was pleasantly surprised with the results. 

I'm looking forward to making an adjusted version of this pie for my dad for many years to come.