Oregon Pie History: Crater Lake Ice Cream Pies, Klamath Falls

I spotted this old Crater Lake Ice Cream Pie box at an antique shop in Cannon Beach recently. It was sold by Klamath Falls Creamery in Klamath Falls… looks fairly old, maybe 60s or 70s-era.  The Klamath Falls Creamery building still stands today, it is now home to Klamath Basin Brewing Company’s “The Creamery Brewpub & Grill“. A large neon blue cow from the original creamery building, built in 1935, still stands today.

Did anyone out there ever have Crater Lake Ice Cream pies? Were they good? Tell me about it – comment below!

 

 

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by on January 25, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Oregon Pie, Pie History
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Posted by Joel on January 25, 2012

http://www.makemesomepie.com/pie-history/oregon-pie-history-crater-lake-ice-cream-pie/

Pie Judgin’ Ain’t Easy

Comment Below on Your National Pie Day Activities for a Chance to Win a Copy of “Pie Contest in a Box”

Thanks to Pacific Pie Company for hosting a great National Pie Day Pie Contest yesterday and for inviting me to be a judge!

The contest was a lot of fun and there were some great submissions! Here are a few photos from the event:

Look for the 1st Place winners on Pacific Pie Co’s menu in February! The winners were:

1st Place Sweet: Judith for Cherry Pie
1st Place Savory: Eric for Pork + Sweet Potato Pie
People’s Choice Award: Autumn for Meyer Lemon Hibiscus Pie -
2nd Choice Sweet: Richard for Pecan Pie
2nd Choice Savory: Veronica for Butternut Bliss

This was my second experience judging pies. It’s always fun, because it gives me a chance to see how my pie-tasting stacks up with other experts, so I was pleased to see that my favorites were mostly in-line with the results.

Pacific Pie Co.’s owner, Sarah Curtis-Fawley, used the “Pie Contest in a Box” kit to run the contest, and I have to say, I was very impressed by the organization of the contest. The scorecards really helped me focus my thoughts on what I was judging and I think it helped the organizers tally the results easily.

With that said, I’ve been sitting on a copy I received of “Pie Contest in a Box” for far too long – so in the spirit of National Pie Day, I’m giving away my copy!

Pie Contest in a Box, written by Gina Hyams, includes a book that “orients judges to the history of pie, discusses why pie matters, outlines different categories of pie and official judging criteria, and includes prize-winning recipes.” Plus, it includes everything you need to run a pie contest, including Pie Contest Judge Badges, Numbered Pie Toppers, Scorecards and Prize Ribbons!

So, here’s the deal, to enter yourself for a chance to win Pie Contest in a Box – tell us what you’re planning, or what you did, for National Pie Day by commenting below! Make sure to use an email address I can reach you at to get your shipping address if you win! I’ll leave it open until Jan. 27 – good luck!

15 Comments
by on January 23, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Pie Events, Pie in Portland Oregon, portland
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Posted by Joel on January 23, 2012

http://www.makemesomepie.com/pie-events/pie-judgin-aint-easy/

2012 National Pie Day Rundown for Portland

January 23 is National Pie Day, as deemed by the American Pie Council (not to be confused with Pi Day, March 14, as deemed by nerds everywhere).

Here is a rundown of events and specials planned by Portland area pie purveyors! Keep checking back throughout the week, the list is bound to grow!

Events

  • Baker & Spice Birthday Bash - National Pie Day, coincidentally, falls around the same time as the birthday of Hillsdale’s Baker & Spice. And, Baker & Spice, coincidentally, makes amazing pie. They celebrate all weekend long, January 21-22 and will be serving up meringue pie-lets, savory pot pies, drawings & giveaways, balloons and coloring for the kids! They also have pies by the slice for $4, which you can’t always find there, so it’s a grand occasion indeed! Plus, 25% of sales off their Pie Day menu will be gifted to Neighborhood House - so eat pie for a good cause!
  • Pacific Pie Co. Pie Contest - Pacific Pie Company will host its 1st Annual Pie Contest in celebration of National Pie Day. The pie contest will be held on Sunday, January 22 at 1pm at Pacific Pie Company’s bakery and restaurant in SE Portland.  Judges include Jen Stevenson (author of 100 Best Places to Stuff Your Faces), Chris Hertel (farmer at SunGold Farm in Forest Grove), Kate Withiam (Pacific Pie Co. Pastry Chef) and yours truly.  Prizes will be awarded for the top pies, and the 1st place sweet and savory pies will be featured on Pacific Pie Co’s menu in February.
  • Random Order Coffeehouse + Caffe Vita - Random Order & Caffe Vita are partnering on pie and coffee pairings on January 19  at 6:30 p.m. at Random Order and on January 21 at 4 p.m. at Caffe Vita Alberta. They will pair Kentucky Pecan with Fair Trade Organic Theo Blend, Flirty Berry with Single Origin Columbian and Herbed Cream Cheese & Sundried Tomatoes with Single Origin Kenyan. The pairing events are FREE.  See below for pie day specials.

Specials

  • Baker & Spice - See above.
  • Divine Pie – Divine Pie, producer of raw & whole food pies (gluten & dairy free), will offer a buy 6 get 1 free card at the Winter Farmer’s Market at Shemanski Park in Portland on Saturday, Jan. 22 from 10 to 2 p.m.
  • Helen Bernhard Bakery - $1 off their normally low-priced whole pies on Monday, Jan. 23.
  • The Original Dinerant - If you “like” their Facebook page and make a comment on it…..they’ll give you a mini pie on the January 23. Pastry chef, Sally Bowers, is making all kinds of mini pies, including moon pies, whoopie pies and fried pies.
  • Pacific Pie Co. - $3 slices all day on National Pie Day (Jan. 23)
  • Random Order Coffeehouse + Caffe Vita - $6 for a cup of French Press and a slice of pie on January 23 at Random Order & Caffe Vita on Alberta.
  • Salt & Straw Scoop Shop: Mention code word “PIE HOLE” to get a free scoop of ice cream with purchase of a slice of Pieku Pie Apple Pie on Pie Day.
  • Shari’s – Shari’s has a coupon up on their Facebook page for a free slice, with the purchase of a lunch or dinner entree.
  • Village Inn: Get $2 off a whole pie all week long (Jan. 22-27)

If you just want to find a good slice of pie near you to celebrate Pie Day, make sure to check out our Ultimate Portland Pie Guide.

3 Comments
by on January 17, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Pie Deals, Pie Events, Pie in Portland Oregon, portland
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Posted by Joel on January 17, 2012

http://www.makemesomepie.com/pie-deals/2012-national-pie-day-rundown-for-portland/

Pacific Pie Co. Hosts First Annual Pie Contest for National Pie Day

Pacific Pie Co., Portland’s premier Australian pie-purveyor, is hosting its first annual pie contest on Sunday, January 22, in observance of National Pie Day, which is January 23.

This should be a fun day, as the winners for sweet and savory will get to have their pies on the Pacific Pie Co. menu for the month of February.

Oh, and I’m honored to be a pie judge for the contest, so that’s awesome too! Jen Stevenson (author of 100 Best Places to Stuff Your Faces and blogger at underthetablewithjen.com), Chris Hertel (farmer at SunGold Farm in Forest Grove), and Kate Withiam (Pacific Pie Co. Pastry Chef) will join me on the panel.

Bring your pies in by 1 p.m. that day, and the judging commences at 2 p.m.

Keep an eye out for more National Pie Day news in the next couple of weeks, as usual, I’ll have a full rundown of events and specials planned in Portland and surrounding areas.

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by on January 6, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Pie Events, Pie in Portland Oregon, portland
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Posted by Joel on January 6, 2012

http://www.makemesomepie.com/pie-events/pacific-pie-co-hosts-first-annual-pie-contest-for-national-pie-day/

Political Pot Pie: Occu-PIE Portland Event

Whatever your position on the Occupy movement is, you can’t deny its close ties with pie. It rhymes with it, and if you cleverly change the spelling, it becomes OCCU-PIE. This is something that Gregg Abbott, owner of Whiffies Fried Pies realized early on in the movement – he brought free pies down to the masses when the Portland protests began.

It’s no surprise then that Whiffies and Random Order will be offering free pie at this upcoming event.

Here are the details:

Your Slice of Occu-PIE
When: Sun., Dec. 11, 4-6 p.m.

Occupy’s made headlines—now what? The Portland Mercury and Bus Project hosts FREE PIE and conversation about how individuals can promote equality in ways other than camping out. Join the discussion with representatives from We Are Oregon, Sen. Jeff Merkley’s office, media outlets, and Occupy Portland. With pie generously donated by Whiffies and Random Order. Also featuring beer from Ninkasi.

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by on December 7, 2011  •  Permalink
Posted in Pie and Politics, Pie Events, Pie in Portland Oregon
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Posted by Joel on December 7, 2011

http://www.makemesomepie.com/pie-events/political-pot-pie-occu-pie-portland-event/

Pecan & Chicken Pot Pies at Pine State Biscuits

Pecan Pie @ Pine State Biscuits

Pine State Biscuits is one of my favorite breakfast spots in Portland and I’ve gone a lot more since they opened a second location on Alberta with more seating in addition to the original Belmont location. Along with their amazing breakfast sandwiches, they also offer pecan pie and chicken pot pie (at the Alberta location).

Let’s start with the good, and that was the pecan pie. This is just a good solid take on traditional pecan pie. It was balanced, with a good amount of pecans and the right amount of sugary goo. The crust didn’t sway me one way or the other, it just did it’s job with little fanfare. It was served with just about the right size whip cream mountain as well.

However, I’ll be honest, if you’re going to go with a dessert there – go with their seasonal strawberry shortcake when they have it. They specialize in biscuits, so it’s naturally going to be amazing.

Now on to the bad. We also tried the chicken pot pie, which I believe is only on the menu at the Alberta location. First off, it’s not really pie, it’s a mixture of chicken, veggies and gravy with a biscuit topping. I knew that going in, so I’m not complaining about it – just letting you know.

The chicken pot pie just did not have a lot of flavor… I think they used their mushroom gravy instead of the sausage gravy, which seemed really bland in comparison and I didn’t think there was enough of their delicious fried chicken either. It also took a long time for them to prepare – which added to the disappointment after you’d been anticipating some serious chicken pot pie goodness.

Verdict: The pecan pie is fine if you’re in the mood for it. I don’t recommend the chicken pot pie; stick with the Reggie and the other excellent sandwiches.

1 Comment
by on December 5, 2011  •  Permalink
Posted in Oregon Pie, Pie in Portland Oregon, Pie Reviews, portland, Savory, Sweet
Tagged , , ,
Posted by Joel on December 5, 2011

http://www.makemesomepie.com/pie-reviews/pecan-chicken-pot-pies-at-pine-state-biscuits/

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