10/31/2020
BAKING PIES FOR THE HOMELESS
Let’s Bake Pies for St. Anthony’s Dining Room!
Girl Scout Troops # 31224, 30199, 32818, 31223, 31018 & 32574
Invite you to participate in the
2020 Pie Baking Community Service Project,
Friday -Sunday, November 20-22!
This year, like everything else, it will be different. But the need is even greater than before, and we are the Girl Scouts, we will make it happen while keeping it safe according to the latest rules. This is your opportunity to make the Thanksgiving holiday happier for those less fortunate in San Francisco.
Due to health and safety concerns, our council has cancelled all campsite reservations, including our reservation for Pie Baking at Camp Bothin. But our friends at St. Anthony’s Foundation are counting on us to provide pie for the 3000+ hungry people they will feed at Thanksgiving. No worries, we have a “Plan B”.
Brian Schlesinger and Bruce Benhia, owners of Innovative Products Unlimited, have agreed to allow us to use their commercial kitchen at their factory located at 23000 Connecticut Street in Hayward California. We will be making individual serving size “tarts” instead of whole pies this year so that St. Anthony’s can use them for box dinners since they cannot accommodate as many guests in the dining room this year.
How the event will work this year:
Girl Scouts, Families and Friends are encouraged to “be prepared” by chosing “pie friendly” pumpkins for Halloween this year. We ask that you consider a “Fairy Tale” or “Cinderella” pumpkin, these are the pumpkins that are wider than they are tall and have thick ribs. Viewed from above, they resemble daisies, and we believe they make the best pies, even better than the more expensive per pound “pie pumpkins”. If you really want to make your pumpkin into a Jack-o-lantern, we can also make pies from your donated winter squash, sweet potatoes or yams, or other fruits.
Please decorate your pumpkins in a way that does not involve carving or piercing the skin. After you have enjoyed your pumpkins for Halloween, we ask that you cook your pumpkin (squash, sweet potatoes etc.) at home (directions follow), and make an appointment to bring (or send) your pumpkin, along with any other donations you are able to make (see wish list below) to the factory on Friday November 20, or Saturday November 21. We will be setting up a drive-through minimal contact Drop off/Pick up Station in the parking lot.
If you are not able personally to drop off your donations, please ask one of your troop members’ parents to step up as the delivery/pick up “Pumpkin Manager” for your troop. The Manager’s duties include collecting the donations from Troop members, delivering them to the factory in Hayward, picking up the patches and finished tarts at the factory and delivering the patches to troop members and tarts to St. Anthony’s “no contact” drive through donation station in San Francisco.
If you will not be available the weekend before Thanksgiving, you could cook your pumpkin any time before hand and freeze it, or can it. See instructions for cooking the pumpkin.
If no one in your troop is able to fulfill this role, please contact me and we will figure something out.
If you are making any donations, pumpkins or otherwise, we ask that you come to the factory on Friday 6p.m. to 9 p.m. or Saturday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. If you are not able to donate ingredients but can transport tarts to St. Anthony’s we ask you to come on Sunday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
When the pumpkin and/or other ingredients are turned in, troop representatives will receive the pie baking patches if they have ordered them, along with as many finished tarts as they can carry to take to St. Anthony’s “minimal contact drive-through drop-off” located at 121 Golden Gate Avenue in San Francisco.
Who can participate: Girl Scouts of all ages, families and friends. Girls can participate individually or in troops. To minimize contact, we recommend that troops or groups choose one representative to bring the pumpkin and/or other donations to us, and drop off the tarts at St. Anthony’s.
When: Friday-Saturday-Sunday November 20-22. We are asking that all participants make an appointment using the attached form so we can “be prepared” and keep everyone safe and healthy.
Where: Innovative Products Unlimited, 23000 Connecticut Street in Hayward California.
How much? There is no charge for participating but we are counting on you to provide pumpkin and other pie ingredients as donations in kind. Custom Patches will be available for purchase for $2 each.
Wish list for donations:
Cooked pumpkin, winter squash (acorn, butternut or cambocha) or sweet potatoes/yams (could be fresh or canned) must be peeled, cooked until soft and seeds removed
Brown sugar Granulated sugar
Pumpkin pie seasoning blend (or individual spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, allspice)
EggsMilk, or light cream (“1/2 & ½”) fresh or canned
Vanilla extractButter
Trefoil Girl Scout Cookies or graham crackers
All-purpose flourCorn Starch
Other fruit for pies such as apples, pears, plums, cherries, cranberries, etc. Apples must be peeled, and all fruit cored or seeds/pits removed (except berries).
Lemon juice
Corn bread mix
Help Wanted:
Naturally, there is no sleepover this year.
To comply with social distancing guidelines, we will only have a handful of volunteers on site, and everyone in the commercial kitchen must be over 18 years of age and have a current California Food Handler’s Certificate. We also need adults outside to help with the donation reception, drivers and possibly “emergency shoppers” with current costo-co membership card. Please be advised that we will have very strict health and safety/social distancing rules at this event, and will follow all local, state and Girl Scout regulations that may be in effect. Please fill out the bottom part of the form below if you would like to volunteer. Volunteers will be confirmed via email. If we get more than we need we will have a wait-list.
Questions?
Nancy Schlesinger [email protected] 650/444-9997
Gaycia Parks 415/608-9522
Response Form for Piebaking 2020
Please return to Nancy Schlesinger namu [email protected]
1670 Wedgewood Drive Hillsborough CA 94010 no later than November 1, 2020.
Our Troop will participate! Troop
Name of Troop Representative(s) who will be dropping off ingredients and picking up tarts:
_____________________________________________________________________________
Please give an estimate of what kind of ingredients and how much you plan to donate so we can plan and shop accordingly:
Telephone: _____________________________ Email: _________________________________
Appointment time preferred (times will be assigned and will be confirmed via email)
____Friday evening___Saturday a.m. ____Saturday mid-day ___Saturday afternoon
___Saturday evening___Sunday a.m. ____Sunday mid-day
Would you like to order custom event patches at $2.00 each?
How many? _____ please enclose a check for # x $2 per patch
How many ½ sheet cake size boxes of tarts can you carry to St. Anthony’s? _____________
******************************************************************************
___I will help at the event. Volunteer’s Name ________________________________________
Email: ________________________ Phone Number: _________________________________
Are you an adult over 18? ___Yes ___No
Do you have a current Food Handler Certificate (please attach a copy) ___Yes ___No
Please check all dates/times you are available: ____Friday 11/20/20, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
___Saturday 11/21/20, 8 a.m. to 12 noon___Saturday 11/21/20, 12 noon to 4 p.m.
___Saturday 4 to 8p.m.___Saturday 8 p.m. to 12 midnight___Sunday 11/ 22/20 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
How to cook a pumpkin (or other hard winter squash) for pie:
You can also cook sweet potatoes or yams in the skin this way.
We are asking all the Girl Scouts to cook the pumpkins before bringing/sending them to the factory. This is your chance to participate in the baking process of the pies!
For Safety’s sake, Daisies, Brownies, Juniors and inexperienced cooks should always have an adult helper when working with heat and sharp things.
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. You could also boil it on a stove top, cook it in an “instapot” or even a microwave but Ms. Gaycia and I find baking it in the oven the easiest and best results.
Place a pan of water on the lower rack of the oven.
Remove any decorations from the pumpkin and wash it well with water.
With a sharp knife, cut the pumpkin open and remove the seeds and filaments (stringy stuff). You can save the seeds to roast for a yummy seasonal snack.
Cut the pumpkin into slices six to 8 inches long and 2 to 3 inches wide.
Cover a baking sheet pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
Place the pumpkin slices on the baking sheet skin side up.
Place the baking sheet with the pumpkin in the oven on the middle rack.
Bake the pumpkin until soft when prodded with a fork. Start checking at about 20 minutes.
Using pot holders, remove the pan from the oven and let the pumpkin cool.
When it has cooled, scrape the cooked pumpkin from the skin.
Pack the cooled pumpkin into doubled ziplock bags (one bag inside the other) for transport. Store in the refrigerator. If you cook the pumpkin more than a day or so before our event, you can freeze it, or can it (if you have a canning set or pressure cooker, follow manufacturers instructions).
