All American Apple Pie Crust Recipe

[Picture Source: Pinterest]

We're all about the patriotic spirit!  In honor of one of our favorite holidays, the 4th of July, we decided to get a head start on the festivities by whipping up some All American Apple Pie.  Instead of getting a store bought crust, we decided to go the homemade route for something extra good. Former TSS It Girl Avery shared her favorite apple pie crust recipe with us, and boy is it ever delicious.  The best part?  It's buttery and flakey... melt in your mouth good!  The secret?  A secret ingredient-- vodka!  (For our readers under 21, please be responsible and ask someone of age to help out.)

Foolproof Pie Dough for a Single-Crust Pie (from Cooks Illustrated)

Recipe yields one 9-inch single crust pie
*Vodka is essential to the texture of the crust and imparts no flavor- do not substitute.  The dough will be moister and more supple than most standard pie doughs, and will require more flour to roll out (up to 1/4 cup).

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (6 1/4 ounces)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (3/4 stick), cut into 1/4 inch slices
• 1/4 cup chilled solid vegetable shortening, cut into 2 pieces
• 2 tablespoons vodka, cold
• 2 tablespoons cold water

Instructions:

1. Process 3/4 cups flour, salt, and sugar together in food processor until combined-- about 2 one second pulses.  Add butter and shortening and process until homogenous dough just starts to collect in uneven clumps, about 10 seconds (dough will resemble cottage cheese curds with some very small pieces of butter remaining, but there should be no uncoated flour).  Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl with rubber spatula, and redistribute dough evenly around processor blade.  Add remaining 1/2 cup flour and pulse until mixture is evenly distributed around bowl and mass of dough has been broken up (4-6 quick pulses).  Empty mixture into medium bowl.
2. Sprinkle water and vodka over mixture.  With rubber spatula, use folding motion to mix, pressing down on dough until dough is slightly tacky and and sticks together.  Flatten dough into 4-inch disk.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 45 minutes or up to 2 days.  
3. Adjust oven rack to lowest position, place in rimmed baking sheet on oven rack, and heat oven to 425 degrees.  Remove dough from refrigerator and roll out on generously floured (up to 1/4 cup) work surface to a 12-inch circle about 1/8 inch thick.  Roll dough loosely around rolling pin and unroll into pie plate, leaving at least 1-inch overhang on each side.  Working around circumference, ease dough into plate by gently lifting edge of dough with one hand while pressing into plate bottom with other hand.  Leave overhanging dough in place; refrigerate until dough is firm, about 30 minutes.
4. Trim overhang to 1/2 inch beyond lip of pie plate.  Fold overhang under itself; folded edge should be flush with edge of pie plate.  Flute dough or press the tines of a fork against dough to flatten it against rim of pie plate.  Refrigerate dough-lined plate until firm, about 15 minutes.
5. Remove pie pan from refrigerator, line crust with foil, and fill with pie weights or pennies.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Remove foil and weights, rotate plate, and bake for 5-10 minutes additional until crust is golden brown and crisp.

Now for the other yummy part-- the filling!  This filling will help to cut the time in half when making the rest of the pie, plus it tastes just like homemade!

Enjoy your All American Apple Pie!

May Designs: Giveaway & Promo Code!

 Planners: May Designs

Well now I don’t know about you guys, but the only way that I am able to accomplish anything school wise is to motivate myself with my planner… so naturally, I have to have the cutest planner out there. I’m obsessed with finding something that is unique and usable. Although I have used Erin Condren and Lilly Pulitzer planners in the past, my whole life changed when I stumbled upon May Designs products!

Who doesn’t love personalized everything!? I know that if it wasn’t weird, I would tattoo my monogram on my own body. This is one of the main reasons May Designs is the epitome of perfection for me. Every planner can be personalized for exactly what you want it to be! But wait…they don’t stop at planners. You can order personalized plain and lined paper notebooks, so you can stay stylish and be the envy of every girl in your class. And if that’s not enough, you can also order a budget journal, or exercise and diet diary! These two are my personal favorite of the bunch because they really keep you on track and make it easy to set goals and stick with them. These May Books are the perfect size and can fit them into any purse, backpack, or can even slip into the same case as your ipad mini!

If the beautiful books didn’t get ya, then than personalized paper products totally will! I LOVE to write personalized cards to anyone and everyone. They are just so much more fun then writing an email...am I right?  Sending out cutely decorated cards, really makes a statement and the more memorable you can be the better!

Even more exciting, the ladies of May Designs are doing BOTH a Giveaway & a Promo Code for TSS readers!  Enter the Promo Code sororitysecrets13 at checkout for a 15% discount, now through Sunday 10/13/13.  In addition, one lucky winner will receive a custom May Designs book!  Here's how to enter:

Step 1: "Like" May Designs on Facebook (click here to "like")

Step 2: "Like" The Sorority Secrets on Facebook (click here to "like)

Step 3: Comment below, telling us how a May Designs book will help to keep you organized!  Be sure to leave your email, so we can contact you if you win!

Good luck, and be sure to use our Promo Code sororitysecrets13 on your May Designs 

purchase now through Sunday for a 15% discount!

 *Contest ends 10/16/13.  Winner will be notified via email*

Photo Bulletin Boards {DIY}

As it is that time of year, our favorite time of year to be exact…recruitment time, I myself am neck deep in ribbon, rhinestones, and glitter!! “Extreme crafting” as our chapter likes to refer to it, is in full swing.  One of the biggest and most important projects that we partake in during the week of recruitment, and one of our biggest recruiting tools we utilize, are bulletin boards scattered throughout our house. These boards are a fun and charming way to give all of the beautiful Potential New Members a quick peek into the life they could soon be living. Although these boards seem like an easy task to accomplish, they are actually far from it.  This is why I wanted to share with our readers how to create the cutest and easiest boards for your chapter, dorm room, apartment, or house.

My biggest inspiration for my creations this year was Pinterest of course! Making a Pinterest board with inspiration is a necessary component to this process. I had many fun quotes and sayings on a pin board, as well as interesting visual designs compiled so I could draw inspiration at the click of a mouse…. because let's be honest, Pinterest makes us all have creative bones in our bodies. 

Each of the bulletin boards at our chapter have a theme; something that our entire chapter is involved in.  This could be anything from philanthropies to bid day, or tons of different sisterhood events from the past year. You name it, we have a board for it. In previous years, we have created boards with different backgrounds and colors. This year, we chose a color scheme to make them cohesive & more appealing to the eye. Adding a flirty flower border on every board flawlessly tied the themes together. In the end, I learned these boards are a lot of work... but they can easily display the greatest events your chapter and sisters partake in over the year! 

What crafts does your house like to make during recruitment season?  Share with us below!

It Girl Trend Report: Summer Vacation

As summer starts to come to a close, we wanted to highlight some of our It Girls favorite summer vacations they took this season. All of our It Girls are college girls excited for the fall semester ahead, but they made sure to take full advantage of their break away from the books. Avery, like our Co Founder, Ali, has a deep love and appreciation for Coronado Island in California. Avery explained that, "It is just NOT summer to me unless I go to Coronado Island in California. I have gone every single summer without fail for the 4th of July since I was a kid. There is just NOTHING better than kicking back at The Del pool, ordering a club sandwhich and people watching until your eyeballs fall out. Coronado is like taking a peak into decades past and I love the simplicity and hospitality of the quaint little town. It's hands down the best".   Victoria decided to keep it local this summer break and had fun exploring her own city, specifically the famous Public Market in downtown Seattle. Victoria shared that,"I love Pike Place (not Pike's; that's how we pick out tourists!!), and whether it is throughout the school year or over break, you can find me there relaxing enjoying the slowed pace of the city, and enjoying fresh vibrant colored flowers, the pier, Great Wheel, and from certain angles, the Space Needle. It's a great escape and an activity I always love to take part in. I can grab coffee at the first Starbucks Coffee, watch flying fish, and wander the shops. No matter what the occasion, if any, I will always grab myself a beautiful bouquet of flowers! Summer trips to Pike Place Market are hands down THE BEST". Cristina wasted no time getting to the beach and enjoyed some time with her family in Cabo, one of Co Founder Karen's favorite vacation spots as well! Cristina said, "I love laying out on the beach and just relaxing!"--sometimes that is all you need, right?!, Allie's favorite vacation spot was all the way on the East Coast. She made additions to her closet by shopping at the original Vineyard Vines on Martha's Vineyard--we love it! Serena is a California girl, but she passed up the California beaches to catch some waves in beautiful Hawaii. Serena swam in the ocean many of the days which was great because she had some pretty beach hair waves to show off while there!

Have you gone anywhere exciting so far this summer? We would love to hear so leave us a comment below!

DIY: Glitter Starbucks Cup

During the hot summer months, we need to remember to stay hydrated!  To make drinking your H20 more fun, what better idea than to drink it out of a pretty water bottle?!  Thank you to our TSS It Girl, Avery, for telling us how to make our very own glitter Starbucks cup!  "I have not been drinking enough water in the dry Arizona heat, so I figured I would drink more if I was obsessed with my cup," Avery says.  We love this fun, easy (and so pretty!) DIY project... and can't wait to make our very own!  Here's to a healthy & hydrated summer!

How To Make A Glitter Starbucks Cup:

You will need a venti reusable plastic Starbucks cup, glitter of your choice, and spray adhesive.

Step One:  Remove the inside layer of the Starbucks cup.  We don't need it at all in this process until the very end.
Step Two:  Spray the inside of the outer layer with the spray adhesive.
Step Three:  Add loose glitter.
Step Four:  Find a lid (a piece of cardboard or a firm paper plate will do) and cover the cup opening.  Shake until the glitter is dispersed throughout.
Step Five:  Repeat steps 2-4 until you are happy with the coating of glitter inside your cup.
Step Six:  Let it dry, put the cup back together, and enjoy your sparkly new cup!

Want to show off your glitter Starbucks cup?  Share your pictures with us on Instagram, mentioning @thesororitysecrets!

Meet Our {newest} It Girl: Avery!

Hailing from The University of Arizona comes another brand-new It Girl... Avery!  Avery is a spunky and sassy Sigma Kappa, about to start her Junior year in the fall.  Born in the great state of Texas (and raised in Tucson, Arizona) this preppy girl at heart can't live without her J. Crew outfits and good old Vaseline as her staple beauty item.  We love her colorful sense of style and go-getter attitude!  Welcome to the It Girl team, Avery!