Crack Pie and the 2021 Speakeasy Bakery Pi Day Auction

03 Saturday Apr 2021

Posted by jessica@peace-of-pie in Pie Destinations

This recently past Pi Day, I did not bake a pie.

Yes, you heard me. I had very little motivation to bake a Pi Day pie for 2021, due to generally being overcommitted; you gotta know when to pull the brakes a little bit, friends. I did, however, know that Pi Day was coming up, and something in my soul felt a strong need to do *something* to celebrate. I even thought about driving all the way to one of my favorite pie meccas in LA to pick up a special pie treat, but knew I wouldn’t have the time.

Then, a few days prior to Pi Day, my friend and former coworker Erin, who lives in the Santa Clarita Valley, sent me a link to a Pi Day Auction to be held on Facebook over the course of the big day. Erin thought I’d like to peruse the photos of baked goodies being offered (mainly pies), and of course she was right. I drooled over pies like Ube, Earl Grey, and Summer Beach, and set my heart on a Fromage Blanc pie topped with Passionfruit syrup made by an artisanal local ranch… I mean, COME ON! I quickly decided I wasn’t here just to look. I was here to win.

Fast forward to Pi Day. A Sunday, first and foremost, filled with lots of church activities (mainly virtual). I took some glimpses at the auction page activity in the morning and afternoon and placed several bids, knowing that crunch time would really be 7:50-8:00 pm, right before the auction was scheduled to end.

And let me tell you, that was a stressful ten minutes. My heart was pounding. Competition was fierce. I honed in on what had become my top two choices; Crack Pie and the aforementioned Fromage Blanc. I was using my computer to bid on one and my phone to bid on another. The computer/Fromage Blanc lost (after multiple bids upwards of $100!!) The phone/Crack Pie won! What a rush.

Soooo Jessica, what is Crack Pie, anyway?

Crack Pie: (n) A gooey, sugary, buttery, toffee-y filled oat cookie crust, with a cringe-y name (yes, it’s addictive. And no, drug jokes aren’t funny). Originally created by Christina Tosi of Milk Bar fame, the pie’s official name is now Milk Bar Pie: I just learned that now when I was researching how y’all could possibly buy this pie if you wanted one badly after reading this post: Here’s how.

And here’s the the verbatim description of the pie as posted to the auction page, if you weren’t drooling enough already. A faithful re-creation of the world-famous Crack Pie from Momofuku Milk Bar, described as “toasted oat crust, gooey butter cake meets chess pie.” Incredibly dense with flavor, this pie is potent enough to serve a crowd, yet addictive enough to destroy the willpower of one.

This pie was baked for me by Danika, one of the bakers who comprise the Speakeasy Bakery. With a name like that, you’d infer there was more to the story, and you’d be right. In fact, this bakery is not a stone-and-mortar location at all, but rather a network of bakers in the Santa Clarita Valley which started out as a means to share sourdough bread starters among friends and neighbors. Sounds awesome, right? It gets better; in chatting with Scott Ervin, the auction-master, I heard the story of how he and his friends began the group and how it has snowballed to included hundreds of home bakers. The Speakeasy Bakery has held an annual Pi Day auction for the past 6 or 7 years, with the proceeds going to the nonprofit feedSCV, which Scott co-founded with Todd Wilson. Look them up on social media (@feedscv) to learn more if you’re interested, particularly if you’re in the LA area. They’re serving their community in really creative ways; besides holding food drives, there are community cooking classes, and their stated goal is to “make eating fresh, local and sustainable every day within everyone’s reach”. That is a mission that speaks straight to my soul.

Danika and her extraordinary Crack Pie met me at a park in the Santa Clarita Valley. Pippa and I made an occasion out of the 45-minute-drive and met up with some of her Sunday School buddies. Here are some obligatory cute kid pics to brighten your day. We’re starting to be able to get together with a wider circle of friends outdoors and it feels really, really good.

P.S. Now I’m just being mean but the actual taste of Danika’s Crack Pie (sprinkled with powdered sugar by moi prior to serving, with my brand new shaker!) was nothing short of any of the mouthwatering epithets I’ve already shared.

To Scott, Danika, and the rest of the Speakeasy members; thank you for letting me have a fun and educational glimpse into your secret society, though I neither live in your valley or have ever baked a loaf of sourdough bread. (But, never say never!) And to Erin, thanks for sending me into this delightful little pie story. Adios everyone!

When Worlds Collide

08 Tuesday Aug 2017

Posted by jessica@peace-of-pie in Custard Pie, Pie Destinations

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Four and Twenty Blackbirds, green tea, Jeni's, Los Angeles, matcha, Venice

It’s a happy day when your favorite pie and ice cream shops collaborate.

I fell in love with Four & Twenty Blackbirds of Brooklyn when I finally had the chance to visit on a trip back home to the East Coast two summers ago. I even own a painting by my friend and artist Natalie Smith of five pieces of Four & Twenty pie. I discovered Jeni’s a bit more recently (I’m wondering if some of your California locations were opened in the last year or two?) and have most recently visited the Avalon location in Alpharetta, Georgia with my parents. The ice creams truly are, as advertised, SPLENDID.

Four pies were offered a la mode during the collaboration this weekend. The one not shown on the menu below, Matcha Custard, is my selection, shown in the first photo, paired with Goat Cheese with Red Cherries ice cream. I honestly felt like I’d seen fifty @birdsblack Instagram photos of this pie and was so excited to finally have a slice in hand. It did not disappoint. Creamy custard, bold flavor, flaky crust. The best.

It worked out that each of these flavors appealed in particular to one of us. Salty Honey with Salty Caramel for my mom-in-law, Stone Fruit Granola with Brambleberry Crisp for my cousin Mitch (closest he could approximate to our Grandmother’s pies) and Shaker Citrus with Intelligentsia Black Coffee for my husband.

Our Australian friend Shelly couldn’t quite get behind the look of a pie that was both a. a dessert (Aussies really have savory pies only) and b. green. She was also full from a delightful meal at Cafe Gratitude. We shared bites with her though. I told her it was a necessary cultural experience.

Here’s hoping for many more serendipitous collaborations in the future! Be sure to check out/follow Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams (@jenisicecreams) and Four & Twenty Blackbirds (@birdsblack) on the sosh meeds. I was honored to have several of my photos reposted by Jeni’s on Instagram yesterday–thanks much! 🙂

And just a few more foodie adventures from Saturday August 5th:

Levi, stoked about his Activated Charcoal Latte at Cafe Gratitude, Venice.

Garden Cocktail tasting as part of the Summer Garden Series at Manuela, LA

More events to come each Saturday this month, calendar linked above. We attended an event in the garden with Niki, beverage director, in which she demonstrated ways to use garden herbs in cocktails. We tried the flowering oregano below after Niki muddled it and added lemon juice, reposado, and peach bitters, then shook with ice and strained. Absolutely lovely.

Happy summer to East and West Coast readers alike. ❤

Natalie’s 21st/Four and Twenty Blackbirds

12 Tuesday Jul 2016

Posted by jessica@peace-of-pie in Pie Destinations

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blueberry, honey, lavender, nyc, travel

Happy birthday to my beautiful little Natalie!

Your last birthday was one of my favorite days in recent memory. We had a delicious brunch at Le Salbuen, and then after I stopped to visit my Nana at the rehabilitation center (she had fallen the week before) and sneak her some blueberry peach pie, we were off to NYC! I remember how hot and sweaty of a day it was…quintessential July East Coast weather. We made it to one of my ultimate pie destinations in Brooklyn, Four and Twenty Blackbirds, and ordered six pieces for five of us. One of each flavor, naturally. The lavender honey pie changed my life forever. You would later paint me a beautiful painting inspired by the picture below of all the pie slices on the table. We sat outside at Sycamore Bar and Flower Shop and you were given a birthday flower as we left. These activities were all my ideas, places I had been wanting to visit, and you were just so happy to do them on your birthday. This is one of the things I love about you; your sweet excitement over just being with friends and your enthusiasm for most things, whether it’s painting a porch, teaching children about the Bible, wandering and laughing. You are so good at showing up with no other agenda but joy.

We ate dinner-Italian-I don’t recall the name of the restaurant, where some more friends joined us. At Rockwood City Music Hall we heard versions of “Valerie” by two bands, then found ourselves sitting in a pedestrian street eating ice cream sandwiches from The Meatball Shop. A perfect end to a perfect day.

Enjoy the memories and I hope this year is full of even more beauty and wonder for you. xx

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Recently

09 Sunday Nov 2014

Posted by jessica@peace-of-pie in Apple Pie, Berry Pie, Mini Pie, Pie Destinations

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apple, blackberry, Richmond, The Proper Pie Co.

Hi everyone! I hope you’re all having a fabulous fall. I’d like to share a little milestone of late. As you know (unless you’re brandy new to reading this blog) I figured out a while back that pies can be baked in glass jars and shipped rather easily. Sometimes the post office does a better job with the speed of delivery than other times, but I have definitely mailed and/or carried onto planes a decent number of pies in jars now. Maybe fifty? Anyway. Here’s the milestone. Last month I filled an actual order for a pie shipment. I.e. a lovely lady I know asked me to mail her son pie for his October birthday, and so I made two little apple blackberry pies and mailed them to Wisconsin and she paid me. So if I ever get around to starting a legit pie-in-a-jar business, Jaci and Croix can have the honor of being my first ever customers. Thanks so much! I hope they were delicious!

In other recent happenings, Levi and I visited Richmond, VA last weekend, primarily for my girl Liz’s wedding. It’s one of the special places in my heart and it was so good to be there and to spend the weekend with a bunch of my favorite people.

On Sunday afternoon, we went to a delight of a place called The Proper Pie Co. My word. We bought savory hand pies and sweet slices, headed to a park with a load of blankets, and ate and traded bites with each other (Butter Chicken, Broccoli and Cheese, Lamb and Vegetable, Curried Lentil and Spinach, Key Lime, Sweet Potato and Pecan, Peach and Blackberry…I mean, really.) Afterwards I laid down with my head on my best friend’s lap and declared (to no one’s surprise) that I was in my happy place.

(New Zealand friends, please appreciate the verbiage under the coffee column…:))

I was told that this pie is made with vanilla poached slices of sweet potato. Because, why not.

We are blessed. Check back for another (not-so-recent) pie story later this week!

Urth, Mint, and Pie

31 Wednesday Jul 2013

Posted by jessica@peace-of-pie in Berry Pie, Custard Pie, Pie Destinations

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blueberry, coconut, Urth Caffe

Just throwing out a plug for LA’s Urth Caffe, best known for its amazingly delicious coffee (not being a big coffee-drinker myself, I’m taking the word of others on that. All their coffee also happens to be organic and fair-trade…you can read about their standards here. I did a bit of investigation at Urth, as I sometimes feel it is my duty to do, and discovered that their coconut custard pie is nothing short of pure bliss. Honestly. Best coconut pie I have ever had, hands down. And I’ve had a few.

Ooh and then there’s this little guy. A mini blueberry pie that my Kiwi friend Josh ordered. Helloooooo.

Josh, show us what it looks like inside.

Yes, yes. There are definitely blueberries in there.

Urth also has amazing tea lattes, a commodity hard to come by. This is a Moroccan Mint latte made with almond milk. Levi said, “That looks like grass.” Yeah, yeah. It tasted better than grass. Looked prettier too.

In conclusion: Check. It. Out.

*Locations: West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, and downtown.

The Republic Strikes Back

14 Thursday Mar 2013

Posted by jessica@peace-of-pie in Berry Pie, Pie Destinations, Summer Fruit Pie

≈ 1 Comment

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Republic of Pie

It’s still good. I went back to confirm, and it has been confirmed. Check it out if you ever get a chance (The Republic of Pie in North Hollywood.)

A few items for your perusal.

Item 1: Pecan bar. Not pie, but very good nonetheless.

Item 2: Very pleased mother-in-law with quiche and strawberry-rhubarb pie. Made the mistake of saying out loud, “This is the best strawberry-rhubarb pie I’ve ever had,” forgetting that she has had mine.

Item 3: A Charming Chair.

Item 4: Chai latte with almond milk and a tiny strawberry rose with an even tinier dabble of whipped cream (a complimentary plate of which were brought over to our table whilst we dined.) Thanks again, Republic, for another lovely evening! Also, apparently you hosted a pie-eating contest tonight in honor of Pi day….fantastic. I just baked a pie. And ate at least six kinds, and taught my 2nd and 3rd grade students about pies and fractions. And screamed and cheered at 1:59 pm. (….3.14159. I know there is someone reading who doesn’t get it.) Pi day post to come.

Republic of Pie

25 Tuesday Dec 2012

Posted by jessica@peace-of-pie in Pie Destinations

≈ 1 Comment

If you live in the general vicinity of North Hollywood, I’ve found you a destination. Republic of Pie is just about one of the most pleasant places to pass an evening that I’ve ever encountered.

Before I inundate you with pictures, let me sum up our experience in a few sentences.

‘Twas the night before Thanksgiving. (I know, wrong holiday.) Live music on Wednesday: a blast. Bottles were played. Jigs were danced. Furnished like an eclectic and cozy living room. Felt right at home. Savories were delightful, but piping hot. Don’t burn your mouth! Why have I never thought to put macaroni and cheese inside a pie? Friendly staff, including doppelganger of one Ellese Forbes. Earl Grey Lattes recommended. Hard to be critical when I mostly bake pies one or two at a time, but the pastry left something to be desired-not enough flake for me. Cute pictures in the bathroom. Pros outweighed cons. Hire me?