Apple Pie Takes Home Blue Ribbon at Farm Show; Winner Shares Recipe Here

MUNCY CREEK TOWNSHIP -- Can we interest you in some apple cranberry cheesecake pie? What if we told you that "that" pie just won first place at the farm show?

The pie's creator is from in Lycoming County.

Most people stop by the Muncy Creek Township Building on business. Stacie Hart stops by to find taste testers.

"Sometimes I'll take a pie over to the guys over there and tell them to just give me their honest opinion,” said Hart.

Lunch time for the township workers is always sweeter when Stacie drops by. On this trip, she brought along half a homemade apple cranberry cheesecake pie. It's a recipe she made from scratch at her home in Anthony Township near Muncy.

"Oh yeah, we are all happy when we see her coming. She makes really good pies and cakes," said Lloyd Smith.

Her cakes aren't just good, they're award winning.

"I have all my ribbons on an old barn board,” said Hart.

Last year, Stacie won a blue ribbon at the farm show in Harrisburg for her chocolate cake. This year, Stacie and over 70 other bakers from across the state entered the apple pie contest.

"They called fifth and fourth and third and second. I thought, 'Oh boy, you know. I don't know,'" said Hart.

Three kinds of apples, cranberries, and a layer of cheesecake on top was enough to win her the blue ribbon and $500.

"I was just in shock, of course. My husband started hooting and hollering," said Hart.

Now that Stacie has won the blue ribbon for both her chocolate cake and her apple pie, she plans to focus on her newest cookbook. Her friends at the Muncy Creek Township building have plans for her, too.

"Next year, she's going to have to go for the angel food cake award,” said Cindy Newcomer.

Here's Hart's Recipe:

Apple Cranberry Cheese Cake Pie

(Makes one 12 inch pie – refrigerate pie)

Pie Crust

• 2 cups of flour
• 1 cup of butter flavored Crisco
• 1/3 cup of whole milk
• 1 TBS. of white vinegar
• ½ tsp. of salt

1. In a mixer cream the butter Crisco and combine rest of ingredients.
2. Roll out on a floured surface and put in a 12 inch pie plate.
3. With the extra crust cut out leaf shapes for the topping decorations.
4. Paint leaf shapes with colored dye.

Apple Pie Filling

• 12 cups sliced apples (5 Honeycrisp, 3 Fuji, and 3 Yellow delicious)
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1½ stick butter
• ¼ cup flour
• 1 cup Cranberries
• 1 TBS. Homemade Apple Pie Spice  (1 Tsp cardamom, 4 TBS cinnamon, 1 TBS. allspice, ½ tsp ginger, ¼ tsp clove, 1 tsp. nutmeg)

1. Cook apples with butter, brown sugar and apple pie spice on medium heat for 50 minutes.
2. Add Cranberries the last 5 minutes and cook together.
3. Turn heat off and add flour to thicken.

Cheese Cake Filling

• (3) 8oz bars of cream cheese
• ¾ cup of sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 3 eggs

1. Beat cream cheese until smooth
2. Add rest of ingredients and blend together

Crumb Topping

• 1cup flour
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• ½ cup cold butter

1. In a food processor blend flour, sugars, and cinnamon.
2. Pulse in cold butter until crumbles are formed.

Assembly

1. Spoon apple filling into pie crust.
2. Pour cheesecake filling over apple filling.
3. Sprinkle crumb topping on top of cheesecake filling and top crumbs with the leaf cutouts.
4. Put foil around edges of crust to protect from burning.
5. Bake at 425°F for 15 minutes then reduce heat to 350°F for an additional 60 minutes.

ENJOY!