Fourth of July and Pie

This year's theme for the 4th of July: Pie.

We spent the weekend of the 4th with my parents in Torrey UT. Its a small town in every sense of the word, and as part of the celebration, they had both a pie eating contest and a pie making contest. This year, my family decided to jump in with both feet. Or maybe that should be we decided to face plant into the pies. Check that. Tom and my brother, Kevin, decided to face plant into the pies. The rest of us watched, cheered, and tried not to hurl.

It all started out so innocently. A local chef bakes apple pies that weigh roughly 5 lbs. Then you add a few scoops of ice cream. Then the innocence ends. Because each pie gets measured to the ounce, then the object is to shove your face into the pie and down as much pie and ice cream as you can in five minutes. No puking allowed.

Tom and Kevin show off the pies. Kevin's looking not so sure that he really wants to do this.

Max the unwilling spectator, cuddling with Grandpa.

Getting psyched. The prize was $100.

Get ready, get set, eat!

Pie in the face, the eyebrows, down the shirt...



Are we done yet?



But really, to grasp the essence of the event, you have to watch at least some of the video. Tom and Kevin both ended up eating just about two pounds of pie and ice cream. In five minutes. The winner ate almost four pounds of pie!

And seriously, what better way to follow up a pie eating contest than with a pie baking contest? I baked up a banana cream and a chocolate silk pie. Neither won anything, but we had fun sampling everything. (Except Kevin, who may never eat pie again.)

What are you looking at me for?

OK, maybe I did try some blueberry pie. And it was goooooood!