Finding Your Silver Bullet in an Apple Pie

Once home, the man enthusiastically planned his first apple pie. To his surprise, the new recipe contained most of the same ingredients as his own pie crust, and the procedure was quite similar. Nevertheless, he followed the recipe for the crust to the letter. Unfortunately, his first attempt yielded a crust that was inferior compared to that of his neighbor’s. He decided to pay his neighbor a visit to speak with him.

During their discussion, the neighbor revealed a number of techniques not in the printed recipe, such as the kind of pie plate used. With renewed excitement, the man made his second attempt. This crust was better, yet the result was still not as good as the neighbor’s. A return visit seemed in order.

“May I watch you prepare your crust?” the man asked his neighbor. “Of course,” the neighbor replied. As he watched the crust being prepared, the man noted several nuances that were neither in the recipe nor revealed on his previous visit. Curious, he inquired of his neighbor the reasoning behind these nuances. Convinced that he now knew all of the secrets, the man made his third pie.

The result of this third attempt was much closer, but still not satisfactory. The man decided to invite his neighbor over to watch him prepare the crust. When the neighbor arrived, he immediately noted the difference in temperature and humidity of the kitchen, as well as the difference in brands of ingredients, types of utensils, dishes, and oven being used.