Inaugural Harvest Faire Pie Baking Contest a delicious success

On Sunday, October 18, several talented bakers put some very tasty ingredients between pie crusts. There were fifteen entries in the First Annual Harvest Faire Pie Baking Contest; and the judges (who shall remain anonymous) had difficulty choosing the best. They were all delicious in their own right.

The contest was open to both amateurs and professionals and was coordinated by Fallbrook Chamber of Commerce ambassador Miriam Key. It was open to anyone age eighteen and older. The pies – including crusts – had to have been made from scratch. There were two categories: Savory and Sweet. Judges made their decisions based on flavor, including taste and smell, characteristics, including texture, overall appearance, and creativity.

SAVORY

First Place Savory

Anita Kimsey took top honors with her innovative and delicious "Cheese Spinach Sausage Pie." The attractive crust was light and flaky with pastry leaves adorning the top. The filling was about an inch and a half high and was made with spinach and eggs, which also lent a light texture. Small pieces of sausage gave it a bit of a kick. The flavor was perfectly balanced – not too much of any one ingredient. It was a quiche-like flavor, but this pie was lighter than a quiche.

If other bakers want to make this marvelous pie they can access the recipe on the Chamber of Commerce website: www.fallbrookchamberofcommerce.org.

Second Place Savory

Julie Hardesty showcased her delightful "Onion, Potato and Gruyere Galette." Thinly sliced potatoes were the anchor for this pie and lent a mild, but flavorful, touch. The crust was flaky and delicious. This was an excellent pie with a lot of flavor, which illustrated the fact that this cook is highly adept at wielding her ingredients.

Third Place Savory

Steve Swannie won with his "Caramelized Onion, Mushroom, and Goat Cheese Pie." Another excellent savory pie – the caramelized onion was a creative and flavorful touch and the goat cheese gave it a marvelous flavor and light texture.

Other "Savory" pie bakers were: Michelle Verdugo with "Savory n' Sassy Veggie Pot Pie" and Lisa Tipton Brickert with "Candy-Carmel-Pecan-Praline pie."

SWEET

First Place Sweet

Lisa Tipton Brickert took top honors with her luscious and inventive "Pecan Praline Pumpkin Cheesecake." It was a potpourri of ingredients, but it all blended marvelously. The top of the pie was layered with pecan praline and dotted with dollops of creamy, rich chocolate topped with pecan halves. The chocolate/pecan sweets were delicious and could have been served on their own. The layers of pie under the pecan/praline – pumpkin and cheesecake – were a delightful surprise.

Second Place Sweet

Annamieke Dotson won with her tasty "If it Ain’t Dutch, it Ain’t Much Apple Pie." This is an apple pie for those who don’t like apple pie. Just the right amount of spices; and the apples were soft and flavorful.

Third Place Sweet

Jeniene Domercq won with her colorful and tasty "Apple Cranberry Pie" with a flaky lattice crust. The cranberries gave the pie extra zip and definitely made it a winner.

Other "Sweet" pie bakers were, Toni Carpenter with "Apple Pie"; Steve Swannie with "Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie"; Elaine Lasater (Tea lane Parlor) with "Apple Pie"; Carol de Monde with "Apple Pie"; Michelle Verdugo with "Blissy Blueberry & Pomegranate Pie"; Julie Hardesty with "Kentucky Derby Pie" and Elizabeth Brandy Snyder with "Pumpkin-E' Pumpkin Pie".

Miriam Key, contest chair, commented when asked why they initiated the contest, "We wanted to bring the community into it – ten sweet and five savory is a great start!" She plans on hosting the pie baking contest again next year and hopes that even more bakers will participate.

Four years ago Jackie Heyneman and a group of hard-working women initiated the festival, which actually began life as Fallbrook Scarecrow Days. It quickly evolved into a full-blown festival, and is now called the Harvest Faire. The festival is now in its third year. Last year the reins were passed to the Fallbrook Chamber of Commerce, headed by Lila MacDonald, due to the fact that the event was growing and became too much to handle for a small group of women. MacDonald mentioned that she hopes the festival and the pie contest will continue to grow.