Pies and music
Every year we attend the chili/pie cook-off, and every year I am determined my pies will win. I thought this would definitely be my year, it was probably the last I would enter, and I was entering two pies, the stars would absolutely align on this one. This year, over twenty pies were entered. Chocolate pies, berry pies, and way too many to compete with, apple pies, including mine. Sadly, my pies did not win, although they should have. I mean, who are these pie judges anyway? They picked a peanut butter fluff pie, surely the judges from Top Chef with their finely tuned pallets would have picked my fudge pecan and caramel apple pies as the standouts in the competition. I was so sure I would win, I even had Tom snap this photo of me before we left, ready for the cook-off logo to be photoshopped in just so I could have a picture of me with my winning pie before it was gone.
One of them should at least have won for presentation, although that wasn't a category.
(mine are the first two).
How did the carmel apple pie win the 2003 pie bake off for the food network and not win the park slope ward pie bake off? Tart apples, yummy crust, with a layer of english toffee? Click here for the recipe. I suppose it was cheating kinda, but its not like any of us are chefs, the recipes had to come from somewhere. But the fudge pecan pie recipe comes from my mom, although she probably got it from somewhere or someone too.
Fudgy Pecan Pie
1 unbaked pastry shell (9 inches)
1 package of (4 oz) German sweet chocolate
1/4 cup butter
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup water
2 eggs beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Filling
1 cup cold milk
1 package instant chocolate pudding mix
1 cup whipped topping
Whipped topping
1 cup whipping cream
1 T. confectioners sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Line unpricked pastry shell with a double thickness of heavy duty foil. Bake at 450 for 5 minutes. Remove foil and set shell aside. Reduce heat to 375. In a heavy saucepan, melt chocolate and butter. Remove from heat;stir in milk and water. Add a small amount of hot chocolate mixture to eggs;return all to pan. Stir in vanilla and salt. Pour into shell;sprinkle with nuts. Cover edges with foil. Bake for 35 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Ina mixing bowl, beat milk and pudding mix until smooth. Fold in whipped topping. Spread over nut layer; cover and refrigerate. In a mixing bowl beat cream until soft peaks form. Add sugar and vanilla, beating until stiff peaks form. Spread over pudding layer. Refrigerate until set, about 4 hours.
In addition to not winning the pie contest, I also forgot to add the honey to my corn bread, and broke a string on my violin. I wait all year to make and eat this cornbread, its much to dangerous to make more often than once, and I just plain forgot. I was so sad as I sat down to eat it with my chili. As for the music and my string, a group of us get together once a month and "jam". We usually play our own variations on pieces from the Arcade Fire, Beirut, Wilco, etc. but for the event we decided to keep it real with Give Said the Little Stream, My Darlin' Clementine, and B.I.N.G.O., you know, for the kids. I had to cut my solos down with the absence of my string, but overall it was fun, and the crowd went crazy. This clip is a tiny snippet of what we played.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007 at 2:10AM
Reader Comments (15)
I think you should have won. What was everyone thinking? I am impressed with your pies, they look all professional. I loved the little musical clip. Your hair looks super cute!
Your pies are GORGEOUS! You definitely should have won!
I totally love the video. You guys sound so great together and it was so fun (and a little sad) to see all those familiar faces.
pies, yum. Wow I impressed with your pies LEEEESH. And I agree- I love your hair.
I'm sure your pies were delicious.
Yum! I am SO going to make one of these this weekend. You would have had my vote!
I think your pies should have won hands down. The carmel apple would have swayed my vote! As always...love love love the dress. Did you make it? How great to have a group of musicians to jam with...Are ward functions allowed to be this fun?
I want to come hang with your ward!! Everything sounds like so much fun! Our ward is pretty cool but your ward sounds even cooler!
I really, really, really want a bite -- NO a BIG slice -- of those pies!! I am at work and ALWAYS hungry as usual (lovely side effect of pregnancy) and I am drooling over those scrumptous and beautifully presented pies of yours!! Hmmmmmm!
It stinks to cook something completely amazing and not get the response you hope for!! Silly judges! I vote for you and I haven't even tasted them!!
-Hillary
P.S. I am headed home tomorrow!! Yeah!! I will tell your fam HI!! Oh and if you talk to them... Tell them to buy me lots and lots of baby presents!!! :)
is that the fabric you bought here, and you already whipped it up into that fabulous dress?// i am so impressed.
i wish i was in your ward for sure.
Everyone is right, you do wish you were in our ward!
Regarding the pies, I gotta tell ya Alysha, as one of the few people who followed the rule to only take one slice of pie (so that everyone could get some) I regret not trying that fudgy pecan pie. If there is a pie with chocolate and peanut butter that will always be my first choice (and I didn't get to try the one that won, I had a different one), but yours would have surely been next on the list. Next year I'm going to break the rule (like everyone else in the room) and take small slices of many pies.
ya, i'm with you. your pies should have one. peanut butter as a winner? i don't think so.
You should have won! Those pies looked and I'm sure tasted wonderful! You're ward looks too fun- and your dress is wonderful- don't tell me you made it. Where are you getting these patterns? I think I may have to make your pies this weekend but cheat with Pillsbury crust cause I'm too darn lazy.
You should have won! Those pies looked and I'm sure tasted wonderful! You're ward looks too fun- and your dress is wonderful- don't tell me you made it. Where are you getting these patterns? I think I may have to make your pies this weekend but cheat with Pillsbury crust cause I'm too darn lazy.
yes, I made the dress, from the fabric I bought in Utah, and from a vintage jumper pattern I have. It is super easy.
and Rusty, was your comment to make me feel better or to justify the judging. Because in my book it did neither.
My goodness who knew pies could stir up so much blog talk. In all fairness to the judges and to my sister, she is absolutely totally correct. Her pies rocked. They not only tasted wonderful they looked like a little piece of heaven (if heaven were to look like pie and we were alotted a tiny slice, it would look like Lysha's I'm sure of it). And dearest Rusty, good ole' Rusty, I also followed the rules, well sort of. I tasted my sister's pie which because I helped skin the apples I figured it was within my rights (though I actually 'tasted' the fudgy pecan one, but that's because my taste buds were begging me to), and then I only had one other one, so really I also followed Sara's one pie rule, and the pie I did try was a very tiny slice and well, sure it was tasty and yes I ate it all, but still Alysha with her cute homemade dress and her already winning photo taken, should've won, why? Because she's my sister and even if I didn't try the winning pie, I love peanut butter, but a whole pie devoted to it? No no no. A cheesecake is not a pie. It's a cheesecake (even though yes it's the one I had, and yes it was good, it was still nonetheless a cheesecake... and now I'm starting to see why this can cause such a debate). Alysha, in my eyes, you won. Your pies were delicious, even if I only tried the one. And you and your band were so so fun, even if you broke one of your strings. You looked so darling up there playing. I was like a proud mama bear, only a little sister. And this was soooo much longer than I meant it to be, I so apologize.
It never ceases to amaze me how small the world is. I found your blog through a friend's blog. I thought that was cool. AND then I found you talking trash about my pie. Aw, snap. I didn't know people actually cared. I thought it was fun because I had never made a pie before. Sorry if my exuberance was taken as competitiveness. Your fiddle playing was great by the way. Didn't even know you broke a string.
James Best