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ORLANDO (June 4, 2013) - The American Pie Council (APC) is as pleased as, well, pie, to announce the winners of the 19th Annual APC/Crisco® National Pie Championships ® held April 26-28 in Orlando. The pie competition is held each year in conjunction with the Great American Pie Festival and the Never Ending Pie Buffet, an event which draws an annual following of more than 39,000 pie lovers and features more than 90,000 slices of pie!
This year's pie championships drew an astounding 747 entries in three divisions: amateur, professional and commercial, and featured five exciting new categories courtesy of new sponsor Comstock� Wilderness� Fruit Pie Filling. The new sponsor introduced five new flavor categories in which amateur bakers competed: Apple, Blueberry, Cherry, Peach and Strawberry. Although participants in the five categories used Wilderness Comstock brand canned fruit pie fillings, they also made the pies their own by adding at least four other ingredients in their filling.
Comstock joins a distinguished list of competition sponsors, including Crisco� and the California Raisin Marketing Board.
The pies were judged by150 pre-qualified volunteer chefs, bakers and assorted pie aficionados. The addition of five Duncan Hines� Comstock� Wilderness� Fruit Pie Filling categories brings the total number of Amateur categories to 18, including Apple, Cherry, Crisco� Classic Chocolate Cream, Citrus, Cream, Fruit & Berry, Crisco� Innovation, Nut, Open, Peanut Butter, Cream Cheese, Pumpkin and Raisin (sponsored by the California Raisin Marketing Board). First place winners were chosen in each category with Amateur Best of Show and Comstock Best of Show selected from among the first place winners.
This year's professional competition consisted of 128 pies entered in twelve categories: Apple, Crisco� Classic Cherry, Crisco� Classic Chocolate Cream, Crisco� Innovation, Citrus, Cream, Fruit & Berry, Nut, Open, Peanut Butter, Perfect Pie and Raisin. First place winners were chosen in each category with Professional Best of Show selected from among the first place winners.
"We want to thank all those who traveled to Orlando to participate in the 19th Annual APC/Crisco National Pie Championships�. The creativity and skill demonstrated in all of the categories, but especially our new categories were truly inspiring, not to mention, mouthwatering!" said Linda Hoskins, APC's executive director. "Congratulations to all who entered. It's not uncommon for our bakers to pull all-nighters during the competition to ensure that they're entering the 'perfect pie' and we truly appreciate their dedication to their craft."
Amy Freeze, Amateur Best in Show Winner for her Sandbar Key Lime Pie
The Amateur division garnered 289 entries spread among 17 pie flavors. Amy Freeze, a 15-year high school teacher of Avon Park, Fla. took the Amateur Best in Show with her Sittin' on the Sandbar Key Lime Pie which was the first place winner in the Citrus category. Her vanilla wafer-based crust held a cream cheese, lime juice and cream of coconut filling, which was topped with whipped cream rosettes, lime slices and white chocolate sea shells. After having competing for six years, this is Amy's first Best in Show win. She won two first places in 2008, a second place in 2009, second and third places in 2011 and a third place in 2012. Freeze took home $5,000 in prize money, as well as a Crisco gift basket.
"My first year I entered the pie championships was in 2007 and I was just awful," said a smiling Freeze. "I had no idea how to bake a crust. It took awhile to get that right. For years, I've admired so many other people's talents and abilities. To hear my name announced, I was completely taken aback. But it's been fun. Everyday, someone on campus makes a comment about the win or seeing the video."
The Comstock Best in Show amateur winner was Carol Socier, Bay City, Mich., with her Comstock Apple Raisin Streusel Custard Pie. Her butter-flavor Crisco shortening based crust was filled with Comstock Apple Pie Filling, golden raisins, cinnamon and sweetened condensed milk and topped with a brown sugar and pecan topped streusel. Socier won $200, a Crisco gift basket and a trip to the Comstock headquarters in Parsippany, NJ to spend a day with the company's corporate chef.
In 2011 in celebration of Crisco's 100th birthday that year, the competition featured a Crisco Innovation category, challenging professional and amateur bakers to come up with a creative new pie concept while incorporating at least � cup of Crisco All-Vegetable Shortening. The category was so popular that it was deemed a staple category at the annual event. This year, taking first place in the amateur division Crisco Innovation category was Tammi Carlock, Chickamauga, Ga., with her Raspberry Jalapeno Cream Cheese Pie. Carlock received a gift basket filled with Crisco baking products and a special trophy.
In the professional division, Andrea Spring, owner of Mermaid restaurant in Bradenton, Fla., achieved a pie-fecta, winning her third Best in Show since competing in the championships. Spring's Peanut Butter and Cracker Pie won the professional Best in Show honors for 2013. In 2010, Spring has won Best in Show in the professional division for her Chocolate Walnut Raisin Pie, the first time a raisin pie had won this distinction, and in 2007 for her Gold Coast Key Lime Pie. As Best in Show professional winner, Spring received $5,000 and a Crisco� gift basket. Spring also has won first place in 2010 for her Hula Hula Pineapple Cream Pie with Fried Crust and in 2007 for her Chocolate Espresso Explosion Pie.
This year, Spring also won first place in the Crisco Innovation category in the professional division for her Coconut Cashew Apricot Pie. Spring received a gift basket filled with Crisco baking products and a special trophy.
Spring's Peanut Butter and Cracker Pie features a Ritz cracker crust with honey roasted peanuts and semi-sweet chocolate chips with a cream cheese and peanut butter filling topped with swirled toppings featuring Reeses peanut butter chips, white chocolate chips, semi-sweet chocolate chips and heavy cream. Her Coconut Cashew Apricot Pie features a Crisco and powdered sugar crust with cashews and dried apricots featuring a creamy coconut and white chocolate chip filling with a pan-fried coconut, brown sugar, apricot and cashew toppings.
Emile Henry USA, makers of the finest quality ceramic bake ware and gourmet cooking products returned for 2013 as the "Official Pie Dish" of the National Pie Championships. Each amateur and professional competitor received an Emile Henry ceramic pie dish, valued at $45 each.
Additional winners in the amateur and professional divisions, as well as winning pie recipes, are posted online at www.piecouncil.org.
Crisco� is a registered trademark of The J. M. Smucker Company. For more information, visit www.Crisco.com.
Participants in the National Pie Championships are encouraged to join the American Pie Council prior to registration in order to receive discounted entry fees. The American Pie Council offers individual membership for amateurs as well as professionals and commercial bakers. Pie lovers receive multiple benefits including the "Pie Times" e-newsletter, membership directory and member-only online "pie talk" access for idea exchange, pie recipes, coupons and discounted entry into the annual APC/Crisco� National Pie Championships�.
Crisco � is a registered trademark of The J. M. Smucker Company. For more information, visit www.crisco.com.
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