Back in August, I was able to send off the berry pie season with a serious hurrah by participating in my second ever pie baking contest. The contest was on a Saturday afternoon, and I only found out about it two days prior on Thursday. Get some.
I wanted to go with a raspberry pie and mix in some marionberries because Oregonians love them some marionberries. Two nearby berry stands yielded the same result: no raspberries or marionberries. Saturday morning rolled around, literally house before the pie contest, and I was still sans berries. My last chance was at the Beaverton Farmer's Market. I managed to scavenge up what likely was the last two pints of marionberries in the whole city, and then silently cheered when I found a stand with a whole table full of raspberries.
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I raced home to make the pie, and if I could have started rolling crust out in the car while driving, I would have. Since details were vague on this pie contest, I chose to go with a foil pie tin instead of my normal deep dish ceramic pan, plus I just didn't have the proper volume of berries to fill a deep dish apparatus.
The final product turned out real nice. At first I wasn't planning on doing a braided crust, but the pie just looked unfinished without it, and it definitely set the pie apart from the other fruit and berry pies on display. The "Get Some" brought out of few laughs too.
Arriving at the contest, I knew that I was going to be a little out of my element as I was greeted by teepees and people slinging hula-hoops in hot pants. Good ole East Portland, staying weird to the point of obnoxiousness. Not the place for accountants, or even people who wear normal pants in public. Fortunately, a friend (both an accountant and normal pant wearer himself) showed up to lend his support and eat some pie. It was also 100 degrees that day, the hottest day in August. I was sweating just standing still in the shade. Pies also sweat in the heat, more commonly known as just melting. Needless to say, everyone's pie was very, very room temperature.
I didn't win, both teams played hard though. I very much enjoyed the free pie once the judging was over as I missed that portion during the last contest back in January. My vote for People's Choice went to a spicy pear pie spiked with some habeneros, and it ended up winning Judge's Choice, so even if I can't bake a winning pie (yet), my taste buds can pick one out.
It's football season. Go Niners!
--Isaac
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