From Career Bakers to Sunday Afternoon Hobbyists, Upper Crust of
Nation’s Pie Bakers Are Invited to Showcase Their Best Original Recipes in 19th
Annual APC/Crisco® National
Pie Championships
Pie Events Draw Both Bakers and Tasters: APC/Crisco®
National Pie Championships April 26-28 in Orlando and APC Great American Pie
Festival sponsored by Crisco®
April 27-28 in Celebration, Fla.
April 27-28 in Celebration, Fla.
ORLANDO (March 13 2013) – Some of them
bake pie for a living. Some of them simply live for pie. For 19 years, pie
bakers of all skill levels — from the Sunday afternoon family baker to the
neighborhood bakery owner, from budding pastry chefs putting a twist on their
grandma’s recipes to the nation’s most experienced commercial bakers — have
gathered once a year to determine who bakes America’s very best pies. From Friday,
April 26 through Sunday, April 28, hundreds of competitors hungry for prizes
and bragging rights will gather at the American Pie Council® (APC) /Crisco® National
Pie Championships held at the Caribe Royale All-Suite Hotel and Convention
Center in Orlando. In conjunction with the pie championships, the APC is proud
to present its 12th Annual APC Great American Pie Festival sponsored by Crisco® on Saturday and Sunday, April 27-28, in nearby Celebration, Fla.
The APC — America’s only organization dedicated to preserving America’s
love affair with pie— is now accepting entries for the National Pie Championships
from amateur, professional and commercial bakers. Amateur bakers may compete in
a flavorful new category this year: Comstock Wilderness pie fillings in the
baker’s choice of apple, cherry, blueberry, peach or strawberry. New this
year is a Bake Learning Center which will offer championship attendees pie
baking tips and instruction by leading industry professionals and pastry chefs.
Last year, the prestigious pastry bake-off drew more than 441 commercial, 115 professional, 237
amateur and 8 junior entries for an astounding total of
801 pies in the quest to find America’s top bakers. Commercial winners took
home bragging rights and the promise of greater sales, while winners in all
other categories received plenty of dough,
as is cash and prizes. This year’s competition is expected to be even more
heated. Entry forms and pie categories for each division are available on the
APC website, www.piecouncil.org. Entry is $15 per pie for amateur APC
members, $35/non members and each entrant receives an Emile Henry pie dish; see
website for professional and commercial entry costs. APC members receive discounted entry costs; membership
information is also available online.
Pie lovers are also invited to apply to be a judge at the
prestigious competition. Last year, 195 esteemed pie aficionados from all over
the world lent their time and taste buds to nibble on more than 800 pies. No
previous judging or baking experience is required; applicants need only explain
why they would like to be a judge. Potential pie judges may fill out an entry
form online at www.piecouncil.org
through March 30, 2013.
Hundreds of volunteers are also needed to make the championships
and the APC Great
American Pie Festival sponsored by Crisco® run as easy as, well, pie. Volunteers may indicate the shifts or
duties
they prefer to work
by filling out an application online at www.piecouncil.org
by Tuesday, April 23, 2013.
The Caribe Royale is offering a special rate of $129 per night for
those competing in or attending the APC/Crisco® National Pie Championships or the APC Great American
Pie Festival sponsored by
Crisco®. To receive this special rate, guests must mention the event
by name. Reservations may be made by
calling 800-823-8300. For more information about the Caribe Royale, visit www.thecaribeorlando.com.
“It’s amazing to think that
right now, bakers across the country are baking their hearts out, testing out
new recipes and breaking the barriers to create even better tasting, more
creative and more tantalizing pies than the year before,” said Linda Hoskins,
Executive Director, American Pie Council. “Every year brings new surprises and
new recipes from the best bakers in all categories, from our amateurs to our
professional and commercial bakers.”
More than 39,000 pie lovers from across the globe are expected to
transcend upon Celebration, Fla. on Saturday, April 27 and Sunday, April 28 for
the APC Great American Pie Festival sponsored by Crisco®. The increasingly popular, free
admission festival returns to Celebration with all the activities that have
made it a family favorite, including the Pie Creation Station, the pie
tin art activity for art lovers of all ages, and the Demonstration Stage
sponsored by Village Inn and Bakers Square Restaurants, featuring entertainment
and baking demonstrations with chefs from across the country. Always a crowd
favorite, the kids’ and adults’ pie eating contests return this year, once
again sponsored by Private Selection.
The highlight of the festival is the
Never Ending Pie Buffet, which last year featured an astounding 90,000 slices
of pie as well as ice cream, toppings and beverages from America’s best known
commercial bakers. The Never Ending Pie Buffet has grown each
year, from 83,000 slices in 2010 and 70,000 in 2009. The buffet and
the children’s activities are the only paid events at the festival. All stage entertainment and demonstrations
are free. Tickets to the Pie Buffet are $10
for adults and $5 for seniors over 65 and children under 5 to enjoy all they
care of eat and drink.
Those
interested in keeping up to date on the latest news concerning the pie
championships, pie festival or pie news can follow the American Pie Council on
Facebook and Pinterest and on Twitter at FYPie.
The festival will be held at Lakeside
Park at 631 Sycamore St. in downtown
Celebration, Florida 34747. Hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday, April 27;
noon to 5 p.m., Sunday, April 28. Admission to the festival is free.
For more information, visit the Front
Porch Celebration Community at www.celebration.fl.us
or the American Pie Council® www.piecouncil.org.
Crisco® is a registered
trademark of The J. M. Smucker Company.
For more information, visit www.crisco.com.
The American Pie Council®
is the only organization committed to maintaining America’s pie heritage,
passing on the tradition of pie-making and promoting America’s love affair with
pie. The APC offers personal, professional and commercial memberships. For more
information, please visit www.piecouncil.org.
---
Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.
