Applejack considered herself to be a pretty good cook. There was no helping it- Sweet Apple Acres had always prided itself on its baked goods, boasting a killer combo of its mouth-watering crop with dough and lots of love that Ponyville would sing praises of for generations. On top of that, the family (excluding Apple Bloom) took turns preparing food, so she got lots of practice.
However, as she stood up behind the counter on her hind legs, muzzle scrunched in concentration as she mixed the contents of a bowl- she wondered when this had gotten so hard.
It all started at one of Pinkie’s many, many parties. It was a potluck and everypony had to bring some food along to contribute. Applejack was more than happy to tow along a wagon of her family’s treats, as did many other ponies who had probably spent all weekend whipping up delights. When she had gotten to the town square, the place was positively alive, a crowd already beginning to form in the early morning. Pinkie herself was at the podium, readying her megaphone with hyperactive hooves.
“HEY, EVERYPONY!” The loudspeakers on either side of her boomed. “WHO’S READY TO EAT SOME GOOD FOOD??!”
“Me!” The crowd cheered.
“I CAN’T HEAR YOU!”
“ME!” Even more resounding this time.
“GREAT! CUZ I CAN’T WAIT TO TASTE ALLLL YOUR SUGARY GOODS!” Pinkie screeched into the megaphone, and Applejack really wasn’t sure she should be taking more sugar.
F-FWUMP! A cyan pegasus flashed down from the sky and Applejack’s breath caught. Slowly, she looked behind her as Rainbow Dash made a hard landing, a dust cloud coming up beneath her hooves.
Applejack noticed the linen satchel clenched between her teeth and eyed it curiously. “Howdy there, Rainbow. You actually cooked something?”
It was no big secret in Ponyville that Rainbow was terrible at cooking, or baking, or anything of the sort. It was as if letting her within a 5-mile radius of any kitchen would cause everything in it to spontaneously explode. While she couldn’t cook, what Rainbow had was an impressive appetite, and that was why she was allowed to turn up at these potluck events empty-hooved- in return serving as a trash can for the leftovers.
“I, uh, thought I should at least bring something this time.” Rainbow dropped the satchel and it opened to reveal a colourful assortment of Froot Loops and candies. “I didn’t cook them, though. I grabbed these from a store.”
“Nothin’ to worry about there,” Applejack chuckled. “Like my Granny always says- it’s the thought that counts.”
“Mmmm.” Rainbow said, leaning down to pick up the satchel again. “Besides...”
Applejack shook her head and reached for it first, tossing it onto her wagon. “There, now we can talk better. Besides what?”
Rainbow hesitated for a moment. Then she pointed a fuzzy hoof at the wagon. “Your stuff more than makes up for it!”
The mare watched in disbelief as she dove straight into the pile. The wagon teetered, and Rainbow emerged with a face full of diced apples and cream, smacking her lips.
“Holy buck, AJ.” She grinned. “Didja change your recipe? This apple pie tastes even better than usual! I didn’t even know that was possible!”
“Uhhhhhhhhhh.” While the rest of Applejack’s brain was screaming ohmygodshelikesmypies, the rational side of her scrambled to think what she could have done different with her pies this time. “Really?”
“Yeah!” Rainbow devoured another pie and hoofed one to her. “You try it!”
Applejack shakily accepted the offer and took a tentative bite. She rolled the pastry over with her tongue and the familiar flavours of the signature Apple Family pie burst within her mouth. Carefully examining the texture and flavour, she scoured every inch of her brain to find if she had added an extra ingredient or kneaded the dough another way.
Trouble was, Applejack normally paid no extra attention to what exactly she did with her pies- the Apple way of making pies was more by feel than a hard-down recipe. You filled your heart with happy thoughts, and let the baking do the magic.
That was not very helpful for Applejack’s current predicament, because she tasted nothing different in the pie. It tasted good, but not different. Her tastebuds were long used to Sweet Apple Acres’ pies, and she reckoned that she had eaten too many of them to tell differences anymore.
Rainbow was already on her fourth- fifth?- pie when Applejack finished ruminating over her pie. She sighed, lept onto the wagon, and clamped her teeth around her colourful tail. The other ponies were starting to gather over and taking their share of pastries, and they stared as Applejack dragged a whining pegasus away from the food.
“Rainbow Dash!” she hissed. “At the rate you were going, there ain’t gonna be enough left for the others!”
She burped and said nothing else. Applejack rolled her eyes and uttered casually, “If you want more pies, I can just make ‘em for ya.”
Although Applejack felt like she had just signed her own death warrant- the way Rainbow’s eyes lit up made any thoughts of backing out vanish instantly. The pegasus did a happy flip and shot off into the distance, presumably to enjoy more gastronomical delights elsewhere. Her last yell drifted in the wind:
“Then I’m holding you to that, AJ!”
“......”
“What are you doing, big sis?”
Applejack turned around to see the kitchen door creaked open. Apple Bloom was poking her head in, looking at the mixing bowl questioningly.
She let out a breath and smiled. “I’m making the best apple pie in existence.”
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