Glenbernie Orchard is bringing back the sweetest festival under the blossoms of their Darkes Forest establishment.
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The fruit farmers and makers of Darkes Cider will revive their Apple Pie Festival on August 21 with live music, children's entertainment and a traditional bake-off.
The last festival was held in 2019 with the winning pie auctioned off for $150, something orchard owner Jo-Anne Fahey said could easily happen again.
"My secret tip is the apple needs to be the hero," Ms Fahey said.
"You can add other embellishments - some people put lemon juice, spices - but it needs to compliment the apple as the apple needs to be the hero."
Her other big tip was to ensure the pastry was cooked all the way through - no raw pies.
Ms Fahey would love to see more males enter the baking competition this year as in the past there has been the perception females are more attuned to perfecting the pastry dish.
Categories will be open for adults and children as well as a category for apple crumble: "for people too frightened to do a pie".
"A crumble should be easier than a pie as it doesn't have to have a pastry base, it just needs a topping on top of cooked apple," Ms Fahey said.
"A pie has to have a lid ... some people make lattice work and sometimes other interesting configurations. There are interesting ways to present a pie, but to be a pie it has to have a crust."
If having your cooking scrutinised by the Stanwell Park Country Women's Association is not in your agenda for 2022, you can taste how the master does it.
The Fahey family recipe, passed down through generation, is being used to make the hundreds and hundreds of pies needed for feed the masses on the day.
Other food will be on site for the festival including gozleme, pizza, paella and donuts.
Bakers will need to drop-off their pies to Glenbernie one day prior and fill in an entry form online.
The Stanwell Park CWA will recieve 5 per cent of all ticket sales, and proceeds from the auction of champion pies/crumbles.
Tickets can also be purchased online, via: www.darkes.com.au.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
SPECIFICS:
- Date: August 21, 2022
- Time: 10am-3pm
INCLUDED IN YOUR TICKET:
- Entry to the festival
- Live music
- Laser Tag
- Petting Zoo
- Jumping Castle
- Entry to the orchard to see the pink peach blossoms
- With each adult ticket, get $10 off every carton of cider/beer that you purchase upon leaving the festival (max purchase 20 cartons).
AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE ON THE DAY:
- Apple pies
- Cider and beer
- Food - with vegan, gluten free & dairy free options available. Vendors include Wandering Woodfire Oven (Woodfire Pizza), Bun Me Bar (Vietnamese Banh Mi), Sevs Turkish Gozleme, OMG Donuts & more!
- Auction of the winning Apple Pies/Crumbles from our Bake-Off. Proceeds from the auction go to the Stanwell Park Country Women's Association (CWA).
WHAT YOU NEED TO BRING:
- Picnic blanket
- Chairs
- Weather appropriate clothes (hat/jumper/sunscreen/etc)
- Closed in shoes for walking in the blossoms
IMPORTANT NOTES:
- Entry to the Apple Pie Fest is by ticket only. If tickets are sold out prior, there will be no tickets at the gate.
- This ticket is for those wishing to come and enjoy the day. If you would like to show off or test your baking skills, there is an Apple Pie/Apple Crumble Bake-Off on Saturday 20/8 (the day before Apple Pie Fest). Winning pies will be auctioned at the Apple Pie Festival, and all proceeds from the auction are donated to the Stanwell Park Country Women's Association (CWA). Registration for the Bake-Off is free - anyone wishing to enter their baked pies/crumbles can do so via the link below:https://glenbernieorchard.rezdy.com/117307/bake-off-contestant-entry-apple-pie-festival
- BYO food & alcohol will NOT be permitted.
- No pets allowed at this event.
- Parent NSW vouchers CAN be used to purchase your tickets - please see below for details on how to redeem.
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