Make Me Some Pie: A pie blog in Portland, Oregon.

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

Joel — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 17:13:33 +0000

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!

Pie Judgin’ Ain’t Easy

Joel — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 21:40:03 +0000

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!

2012 National Pie Day Rundown for Portland

Joel — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:31:48 +0000

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.

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

Joel — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 22:10:13 +0000

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.

Political Pot Pie: Occu-PIE Portland Event

Joel — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 17:25:22 +0000

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.

Pecan & Chicken Pot Pies at Pine State Biscuits

Joel — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 15:45:43 +0000

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.

Salt & Straw – Bourbon Pecan Pie Ice Cream

Joel — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 15:45:43 +0000

Bourbon Pecan Pie Ice Cream @ Salt & Straw made w/ Pieku Pie

Yum.

I’d heard a lot of good things about Salt & Straw, a new handmade ice cream shop in Portland. But I was sold on it when I heard that they had a seasonal Bourbon Pecan Pie flavor, which is made with real pie from Portland’s Pieku Pie & Oregon Whiskey from Portland’s Stone Barn Brandyworks.

The ice cream is really creamy and rich, but they keep the sweetness level low so the flavors standout more. The pecan pie was very sweet and decadent, but that’s what pecan pie is all about. The whiskey was not overwhelming at all and perfectly complemented everything.

In addition to ice cream, Salt & Straw’s Alberta scoop shop offers Pieku’s bite-sized pies, a daily offering of pie a-la-mode, and ice cream pies made with Pieku crust.

Verdict: Get your paws on the Bourbon Pecan Pie ice cream while it’s still around.

Salt & Straw Scoop Shop
2035 NE Alberta
Portland OR 97211
503-208-3867

Mini Pie Makers Take the World By Storm

Joel — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 20:25:33 +0000

Sunbeam Mini Pie Maker spotted @ Target for $29.99

I’ve written about these before, but I thought I’d note that Mini Pie Makers are growing in popularity this holiday season. They were part of some door-buster sales for Black Friday, some running for $9.99.

It appears to me that it’s basically the same concept as the mini donut makers, cupcake makers, waffle makers, and heck, even a George Forman Grill, it’s just a heated, non-stick surface in the shape of pie.

A lot of people are arriving at my site looking for a review of the product. I’ve never used one and I’m not sure I ever would, because I’m kind of a pie snob and I’m not sure I support “fast” pie. I prefer the kind of pie that takes 45 minutes to an hour in the oven.

But, I suppose if you were a busy parent with a family to feed, mini pie makers could be a good option for you, as it cuts down on the time in the oven.

I’ve seen a variety of mini pie makers available this year, the most prominent is the Sunbeam one, but there was also one available on ThinkGeek.

Mini Pie Maker – For the Lazy Pie Lover

Guess Dave’s Mom’s Thanksgiving Pies

Joel — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 00:35:52 +0000

Dave and Dave's Mom (Dorothy Mengering)

Update 5: Here’s about as “official” word we’ll get from the Late Show’s “Wahoo Gazette“

Whoa! What happened to Dave’s mom’s pies? We didn’t do it this year. Why not? I’m not sure but I heard mom was in the mood for cake. If this helps at all, I ordered two pies from Supervising Editor Mark Spada’s daughter. The pies were Apple Crumb and Pecan.

So, there you have it, doesn’t tell us much, but it’s something.

Update 4: Dave did mention his mom briefly… something about her riding Greyhound buses, but indeed, no pie-guessing this year. But hopefully his mention of her is a good sign that she’s doing alright. Goodnight everybody & Happy Thanksgiving! Thanks for guessing Dave’s Mom’s pies anyways… maybe next year!

Update 3: Judging by the fact that people are arriving at this blog by searching for “Why didn’t Dave guess his mom’s pies”, it looks like there was no pie-guessing this year. It will not be done tomorrow, either, as the Late Show is a repeat then. This is sad, but not surprising, Dave’s mom is 90 years old now. I am a bit surprised, though, because she looked great last year. I’m guessing Dave didn’t mention it tonight, as he is a very private person, so it may be a while before we know what his mom’s situation is. Let’s hope for the best! It just doesn’t feel like Thanksgiving without you Dorothy!

Update 2: Our worst fears may be confirmed, the Late Show is currently airing on the east coast and the only tweet I’ve seen said “No Dave’s Mom?”… I will watch tonight and continue to monitor the situation, but it does not look good. I hope Dorothy is OK!

Update: I’m starting to get concerned that Dave’s mom will not be appearing on the show tonight, there has been no mention of it on any of the Late Show’s social media accounts, just lots of talk about Justin Bieber. I think they usually plug “Dave’s Mom” as a guest if she’s going to be on. If that’s the case, that’s a shame, mostly because that probably means his mom isn’t feeling up to it… let’s hope I’m wrong & that this great pie tradition continues!

Each Thanksgiving, David Letterman uses his psychic powers to guess which pies his mother, Dorothy has made. Take the poll below & let’s see if we can come up with the right pies. Last year, the top choices among Make Me Some Pie voters were Pumpkin and Pecan, but Dorothy went with Sugar Cream and Cherry. My guesses this year are: Pumpkin and… Lemon Meringue, Dorothy has never made Lemon Meringue, so this is a wild guess.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Dave’s Mom’s Pie Charts
Thank goodness for the Dave’s Mom Pie-o-Rama website, they keep track of what Dave’s mom makes each year. Use this research to make your choice.

Holiday Pie: Learn How to Make a Pie

Joel — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 21:28:46 +0000

Update: Pacific Pie Co. will be hosting two more classes on Dec. 11 & 14. Same details as below apply.

If you want to lovingly make pies for your friends and family this holiday season instead of purchasing pies, there are a couple of options in town.

Pacific Pie Co. is trying its hand at pie-making classes. Classes will be held at their bakery on SE 7th Ave and taught by Pastry Chef Kate Withiam and co-owner Sarah Curtis-Fawley.

Pacific Pie Co. Classes:

Wednesday November 16, 6pm-9pm

Sunday, November 20, 1-4pm

$50, includes wine + a pie

Register by emailing sarah@pacificpieco.com or calling 503-381-6157

SweetWares in Hillsdale, which is owned by the same folks that own Baker & Spice, also offers a variety of baking classes on a regular basis and they also offer classes for private parties.

SweetWares Details:

The next class is on Nov. 12 from 2-4:30 p.m. and is $75. Julie Richardson will teach the class.

Visit http://www.bakerandspicebakery.com/sweetwares/classes.php for more information.