We're having a simple dinner in after church tonight. I took the minestrone from three days ago, dumped it back into the crockpot, sliced the last serving of lasagna from two nights ago into bite sized pieces, and dumped it in. I generally call this soup "Once in a Lifetime" since it consists of whatever's in the fridge, and the combination is not likely to be repeated.

We also cleaned out our camper, winterizing it. That involved taking out all the food, canned or dry, that was in there. I heard yesterday, from a girlfriend, that our local food bank is in dire need of contributions. I have a brother who depends on the local food bank to stretch his monthly food supply, so that really struck home. What struck home more was that I just simply forget to drop off donations. I'm taking whatever was stored in the camper that is a non-perishable, adding a few jars of peanut butter, tuna, macaroni and cheese, etc. But if I forget to contribute, I thought probably many others do also. I decided the remedy was to make it a monthly scheduled thing. I can remember to give our dogs their monthly pills on the 15th, so why not just add donating to the food bank to that. It would also be easy to pick your anniversary, or birthday or some other memorable date, and go through your cupboards to see what's been sitting there awhile, not being used. As an American, it's easy to forget that we have children right here in our country who go to bed hungry every single day. That just should not be, and I should be doing more about it.

So after you go through your cupboards, set out a grocery sack of items to drop off, then you can make this pie for your family. And maybe a pot of "Once in a Lifetime Soup" to go with it.

1 frozen deep dish pie crust

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

2 Tbsp butter or margarine

1 large egg white

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 Tbsp cornstarch

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

3 lbs apples*, peeled, cored, and sliced

1 Tbsp lemon juice

* use granny smith, golden delicious, and/or gala apples.

Preheat oven to 375. While crust is thawing at room temperature for 15 minutes, mix pecans, flour and brown sugar in bowl. Work in butter with fingertips (I used the pastry blender) til the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside.

Pierce bottom and sides of crust with fork. Bake 12 to 15 minutes or til lightly golden. Immediately brush bottom and sides of hot crust with light coating of egg whites. Reset oven to 425 degrees.

Meanwhile, in large bowl, combine granulated sugar, cornstarch, and cinnamon. Toss in apples and lemon juice. Cover with waxed paper and microwave on high for 12 minutes, stirring halfway through. Spoon filling into crust. Sprinkle pecan topping over filling.

Bake pie 10 to 12 minutes or til topping is golden. Cool on wire rack. Serve with vanilla nice cream if desired.

My pie crust doesn't look that great - not to worry. Serve it with the lights dimmed, they'll never know the difference! Hope you all have a happy weekend, spent with those you love.