Northforker staffers feasted on locally made pumpkin, pecan and apple pies to discover standouts for your holiday table. Everyone will find a forkful to love.
CROWD-PLEASING CRUMB
Looking for a farm stand pie so homey you could maybe claim it as your own? The apple crumb pie from Wickham’s Fruit Farm might be your pick. The crust is solid — no soggy bottom here — but we really love the crumb. (“The crumb! So crumbly! Loved it!”) The filling, featuring Wickham’s own famous apples, is soft and sweet. “Like an apple fritter,” one reviewer put it, “but better because it’s a pie!”
Wickham’s Fruit Farm, 28700 Route 25, Cutchogue
THE SHOWSTOPPER
With its checkerboard drizzle and golden crust, the apple caramel walnut pie from Country View Farm Stand is a stunner. The crust is buttery and golden, and the still-firm fruit and crunchy walnuts make for a very pleasing bite. “This is a beautiful pie that would make any dinner party host happy if it was brought as a gift,” one taster wrote. Just remember to save a slice for breakfast the next day.
Country View Farm Stand, 57995 Main Road, Southold
CLASSIC LOOK
The pretty orange color and airy texture of this pie from Junda’s Pastry Crust and Crumbs were a hit with our panel, although the “strong hints of nutmeg” were a smidge more divisive. Overall? This is a “sweet yet overall delicious pumpkin pie” for people who really like pumpkin pie. (Our staff has a lot of these people, it turns out.)
Junda’s Pastry Crust and Crumbs, 1612 Main Road, Jamesport
SWEET AND SPICED
The crunchy toasted oatmeal streusel topping on the pumpkin pie from Helen’s Flower Farm gives it a “beautiful,” “very fall,” “homemade in a good way” look (imagine if your grandma had an Instagram feed). It’s balanced by a creamy, sweet and heavily spiced filling. “Overall, this is the most appealing pie,” wrote one taster.
Helen’s Flower Farm, 987 Union Ave., Riverhead
A+ CRUST
Tasters swooned for the flaky, leaf-adorned crust on Orient Country Store’s pumpkin pie, with reviews calling it “puff pastry-like” and the cut out leaf decorations “so pretty and rustic!” Darker in color, it has a grown-up, “subtle and smooth,” “not too sweet” filling. More than one person said they would happily serve this to even pumpkin-skeptical guests.
Orient Country Store, 950 Village Lane, Orient
DARK AND HANDSOME
Like a brooding heartthrob, the Blue Duck Bakery Cafe’s pecan pie has layers. Start with the “dark, buttery and crisp on the bottom” crust, with its “nice caramelized flavor and texture.” Add a “dark, rich but very malty” and “not too sweet” middle. And finish with a toasty note on top, with crunchy nuts against the creamy filling.
Blue Duck Bakery Cafe, 56275 Main Road, Southold and 130 Front St., Greenport
FOR PECAN LOVERS
“I love pecan pie, and this hits the spot,” wrote one review of this classic from Schmitt’s Family Farm. Featuring a dense, uniform crust, the pie’s exterior was deemed “a work of art” and the inside won praise for a perfect filling-to-pecan ratio. “Sweet, nutty, and screams fall,” said one review. “It tastes exactly like it looks in the best way possible.”
Schmitt’s Family Farm, 3355 Sound Ave., Riverhead
