WONDER-FALL

"If you don't know where you are going, any road will take you there." - Lewis Caroll

We all feel a bit like Alice from time to time, down the rabbit hole and out the other side into a world turned up-side-down. Shrinking and growing, a metaphor for the ups and downs, the contractions of our lives, and the ever present feelings of restlessness and anxiety in all its many forms. Alice chased the rabbit down the hole and through the tunnels without once considering how she'd get herself out. We throw ourselves headlong into situations without considering the consequences. But even Alice took the time to look about and take it all in as she fell down the deep well. To wonder what was going to happen next. And when she discovered a garden just beyond her reach on the other side of that little door, she did whatever necessary to get herself there, never considering the impossibility of the situation. "For, you see, so many of the out-of-the-way things had happened lately, that Alice had begun to think that very few things indeed were really impossible." And likewise, we should all grasp tight to the promise of possibility, and let go of the limitations we impose on ourselves. There's always an answer around the corner, a solution to every situation. The trick is not to give up after you hit the first wall, nor the second or third. Nothing is impossible when you embrace life with zeal, curiosity, and imagination.

"If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?" - Alice

NEVER SAY NEVER

Never say never - English idiom. "nothing is impossible."

"Sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast." - The Queen

Impossible pies, more pie-shaped than pie-like, are convenient baked dishes that make their own crusts, offshoots of the more traditional cobblers and fruit buckles. A batter is poured over sweet or savory ingredients and, while baking, binds all the ingredients together so the finished dish can be cut into pie-shaped wedges. Impossible pies were made popular in the 1960's by Bisquick, a pre-mixed baking product sold by General Mills under their Betty Crocker brand, It consisted of flour, shortening, salt, and a baking powder, and was introduced to grocer's shelves in 1931, originally as a quick way to make biscuits. Betty Crocker in the 1980's published a cookbook of over 100 Bisquick recipes, that included original grassroots recipes like Impossible Coconut Pie. Left in charge of cooking the family dinner at the age of 12 or 13 years old, I quickly discovered the miracle of Bisquick. Not only did it make biscuits and pancakes, it made pizzas and pastry crusts - truly a wonder baking mix.

Original Impossible Coconut Pie

2 cups milk

4 large eggs

3/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 cups biscuit mix (or self-rising flour)

1 cup flaked or shredded coconut

1/4 cup butter, softened

Hint: If you are making a single recipe and use a blender, you can use self-rising flour in place of Bisquick.

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Lightly butter 9-inch pie plate. Blend all ingredients with a blender on hi-speed for approximately 15 seconds.
2. Pour into pie plate. Bake 50 - 55 minutes, or until golden brown and inserted knife comes out clean.

The following is a basic "base" recipe for Impossible Pie for savory fillings like meat, cheese, and vegetables.

Base (Large)

2 cups milk

1 cup biscuit mix (Bisquick®)

4 eggs

salt and pepper

Fillings:

1/2 - 1 cup chopped cooked meat

3/4 - 1 cup shredded cheese

3/4 - 1 cup chopped cooked or raw veggies

1. Preheat oven to 400° F. Grease a 10-inch or larger quiche pan. Sprinkle in filling ingredients into pie plate.
2. Beat base ingredients until smooth, approximately 15-30 seconds in blender, or 2 minutes by hand. Pour into pie plate.
3. Bake 25 - 35 minutes, or until golden brown, and inserted knife comes out clean. Cool before serving.