Pies? You mean pi 3.14 [π], my $$ piece of the PIE, pie charts, cutie pie?
Not exactly…after 13 lbs of flour, 5 lbs of shortening, 6 lbs of apples, pumpkins, ground meats, baking chocolate, and scores of oreo cookie crumbs, ten 4-H members triumphed to make their very own apple, pumpkin, tourtière and chocolate peanut butter pies, ~ 50 pies in total! In addition, to encourage a love for pies, Leader Ida Everest provided 2 different pies each meeting for snack (e.g., Caramel-apple, French Silk, Coconut Cream etc.). Leaders Katie Brandrick and Ida Everest wrote the pie meeting materials for the youth which included pie terminology, understanding the building blocks for different kinds of pastry, baking tools, helpful baking hacks, do(s) and don’ts, quizzes and essential Best Practices (handwashing, tempering, measuring etc.). Members prepared their pastry or crumb crusts from scratch and learned advanced techniques such as weaving a straight edge and crinkly cut lattice pastry top crust. Finally, members were taught Judging Guidelines and judged home-made and commercial chocolate chip cookies provided by the Leaders.
The club held its 4-H Achievement Day Saturday, November 23, 2024, at the Cassburn United Church Hall where the 4-H youth spoke about their experience in Pie Club and presented their 9-inch apple pies which they had made solo at home. The official judges, Pat Wilson and Faye Allen judged 10 pies and awarded first place to Meaghan Fraser and second place to Jaelyn Sadlier. A People’s Choice award based on the appearance of the apple pies was awarded to Jaelyn Sadlier (first place) and Annie-France Tweed (second place).
Overall, the youth shared that they ‘loved Pie Club’ even though rolling out the pastry can be challenging as a beginner! We’d like to thank the 4-H youth, parents, judges and leaders for their commitment to the engaging, fun and yummy Pie Club!\
Also, at the 4-H Achievement Day, Pat Wilson was also presented with an award for her 35 years of service as a 4-H leader and judge for many clubs in Prescott County and around Eastern Ontario.
4-H is a wholesome program for youth (aged 6-21) to learn about topics, enjoy hands-on experience and mentorship. New folks do ask what the 4 Hs represent: Head, Heart, Hands and Health! Local clubs include the Calf Club, Square Dancing, Finance and an upcoming Breads Club (Jan 2025). There are typically six evening meetings for each Club. 4-H’s motto is “Learn by Doing”. Please see The Prescott County 4-H Facebook Page or 4-H Ontario for more information.
Submitted photos
