Small bites: Baked Pie Co. hosts grand opening

LIFE OF PIE: Kirsten Fuchs launched Baked Pie Co. as a departure from her previous career in the corporate world. “I was looking for something to do with the rest of my adult life,” she says. The shop’s grand opening is Saturday, June 24. Photo courtesy of Baked Pie Co.

Sometimes pie — or in this particular instance, no pie — can change a person’s life. Last summer Kirsten Fuchs and her daughter, local artist Haley Nocik, spent part of their day driving around South Asheville in search of coffee and pie. Unable to find a place to satisfy their craving, the mother and daughter gave up on their afternoon quest.

The experience would spark a new business idea for Fuchs, who at the time had just turned 50 and was interested in moving away from her previous life in the corporate world. “I was looking for something to do with the rest of my adult life,” she says. In this way, Baked Pie Co. was formed. On Saturday, June 24, the Arden shop will celebrate its grand opening.

The eatery’s head pastry chef is Emily McCarthy, formerly of Geraldine’s Bakery. Each week, says Fuchs, she and McCarthy collaborate on two to three new recipes for possible inclusion in the ever-expanding menu. Prices range from $5.49 for a single slice to $32 for a whole pie. An assortment of drinks, cookies and pie shakes (which, as the name suggests, blends pie with ice cream to create a frosty beverage) are also available.

Among its rotating pie options, the shop offers such flavors as honey pecan, blueberry crumb, sugar crack, lemon meringue, chocolate cream and apple crumb. There are seasonal selections, such as the summer-themed raspberry-lemonade and the Atlantic Beach, which is a reinterpretation of the key lime pie using lemon juice and a buttered saltine cracker crust.

And then there are some concoctions that defy categorization, like the unicorn pie, which sports a crust made from Fruity Pebbles and Rice Crispy Treats filled with homemade vanilla custard and finished with whipped topping and sprinkles. Because of the large variety, the shop offers pie flights for the indecisive. For $12.49, guests can choose three smaller slices along with a scoop of vanilla bean or salted caramel Blue Bunny ice cream.

Fuchs says her aim is to create a feeling of home at Baked Pie Co. The pie paired with an interior filled with antiques, used books and couches helps foster the vibe. “It feels like you’re either in your grandparents’ house or your mom’s home,” she says. “It’s very inviting and warm.”

Baked Pie Co.’s grand opening is on Saturday, June 24. The shop is at 4 Long Shoals Road, Arden. Hours are Tuesday-Thursday 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Friday-Saturday 10 a.m.-9 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m.-4 p.m. For details, visit bakedpiecompany.com.

Live fire dinner at Urban Orchard Cider Co.

On Sunday, June 25, Urban Orchard Cider Co. will host a five-course dinner cooked over an open fire by Charles Lee of The American Pig and Charleston, S.C.-based chef Craig Deihl. Deihl is a four-time nominee and two-time semifinalist for the James Beard Foundation Award and received the American Culinary Foundation’s Chef of the Year award in 2010. Menu highlights include collard-wrapped Hickory Nut Gap Farm pork, coals-roasted lambcetta and pork fried doughnuts. Each course will be paired — and often prepared — with Urban Orchard Craft Ciders. Lusty Monk Mustard and The Hop ice cream will also be featured on the menu.

The Backyard Five Course Live Fire Dinner begins at 7 p.m. Sunday, June 25, at Urban Orchard Cider Co., 210 Haywood Road. Tickets are $65. For details and tickets, visit avl.mx/3ug.

Shrimp at the Farm

Asheville Breakfast Rotary Club will host an evening Shrimp at the Farm dinner at the Hickory Nut Gap Farm on Saturday, June 24. According to the event’s Facebook page, the menu will feature cauldron-boiled shrimp, Hickory Nut Gap Farm grilled sausage, smoked potato salad, coleslaw, seasonal fruit crisp and dessert from Ultimate Ice Cream. Beer, wine and soft drinks will also be available, and live music will be provided by soul band Westsound. Proceeds from the event’s live auction will support Haitian scholarships, wheelchairs for a Mexican village and the Rotarians Against Hunger program, which will package over 300,000 meals to be distributed throughout Western North Carolina by MANNA FoodBank.

Shrimp at the Farm runs 6-10 p.m. Saturday, June 24, at Hickory Nut Gap Farm, 57 Sugar Hollow Road, Fairview. Tickets are $75 per person or $140 for a pair. For tickets, visit avl.mx/3uh.

Fundraising events for Asheville Poverty Initiative

Asheville Poverty Initiative offers opportunities for community building as a way to address and challenge stereotypes about poverty. Among its programs, Asheville Poverty Initiative sponsors 12 Baskets Cafe, which offers free, communal meals donated by local hot bars, buffets and grocery stores. Throughout June, The BLOCK Off Biltmore is donating 10 percent of its Tuesday bar sales after 9 p.m. to the organization. On Tuesday, June 27, The BLOCK Off Biltmore will also host a discussion with members of Asheville Poverty Initiative. Avenue M is also contributing by donating 15 percent of its Sunday brunch sales through Sunday, July 17. For those funds to benefit the API, diners must present a card to Avenue M staff, which is available for free at either 12 Baskets during cafe hours or at Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church after services.

For more information, visit ashevillepovertyinitiative.org

Free summer meals for kids

As of June 14, all kids ages 18 and younger are eligible for free summer meals available through the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The program partners with local organizations, including Buncombe County Schools. Meals are served at multiple locations Monday through Friday. There are no income or registration requirements.

To learn more about the Summer Food Service Program, visit avl.mx/3ul. To find the nearest site, text “foodnc” to 887-887. 

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About Thomas Calder
Thomas Calder received his MFA in Fiction from the University of Houston's Creative Writing Program. His writing has appeared in Gulf Coast, the Miracle Monocle, Juked and elsewhere. His debut novel, The Wind Under the Door, is now available.

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2 thoughts on “Small bites: Baked Pie Co. hosts grand opening

  1. sadie12

    Visited today. Love the ambience. I think I want to work there.
    Oh, bought a delicious 1/2 peach pie.
    It was honestly delicious.

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