Thanksgiving 2019
It seems astounding that we are ready to have this conversation again, but today we opened our online ordering for Thanksgiving pies. Gulp.
This will be our sixth Thanksgiving - our first being a small scale 300 pie experience out of the Elks Lodge commercial kitchen way back in 2013. And last year, we did just around 2,000 pies at PJP Buttonwood over the three days leading to Thanksgiving. Here’s a few most commonly asked questions about Thanksgiving at PJP:
How will Thanksgiving at PJP Nifong be different than previous Thanksgivings at PJP Buttonwood? Well, for the most part, the process won’t really change. But we are 100% looking forward to having the extra oven space, the extra refrigerator space, the extra room to make pie dough, the two Square registers, and the office space as a space to seek refuge. You get the idea.
How many pies are you going to make? Good question. We will take orders until the numbers make us break into a cold sweat and that’s when we know to close the orders…and I would guess that will be in the early November.
Can I walk into PJP on the day before Thanksgiving and buy a pie? GOALS. It sounds lovely, doesn’t it? In a perfect pie baking world, you would waltz in and find stacks of pumpkin, pecan, and apple pies for purchase. But since we live in a real world with real humans baking pies from scratch, I’m going to STRONGLY SUGGEST you pre-order your pies for pickup on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday of Thanksgiving week.
Wait, what about pies for the Friday after Thanksgiving? In long standing PJP tradition, we close on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of Thanksgiving week. I suppose we could not, especially since we are in a newer and more expensive location, but we are all really just over it by that weekend and you what isn’t charming? Salty bakers with whisking elbow.
Can I order 10 tarts, eight Jelly Jar pies, and a 12-inch gooseberry pie for that Wednesday? For Thanksgiving orders, we only offer pies in the nine-inch size (that’s six to eight slices, depending on how generously you slice it). This helps us be as efficient as possible and work as quickly as possible to make as many pies as possible.
Will pie pickup be in a separate location like in previous years? No, we are in double the space this year, so we are making it all happen in our new space. I am super excited to not transfer bags of pies to an empty shoe cobbler storefront in the middle of the night. Ahem.
So what can I order? Here’s the list: Blueberry Streusel, Brown Butter Chess, Cherry Crumb, Chocolate Bourbon Pecan, Dutch Apple, French Silk, German Chocolate, Peach Praline, Pumpkin, Gluten Free Pumpkin, Southern Pecan, Gluten Free Southern Pecan, and White Chocolate Strawberry.
White Chocolate Strawberry? That’s new on the list, right? Yes. It is by far our most popular pie, but we’ve never included it on the Thanksgiving list because it is a bit time intensive. But we decided last week that we should just be bold and go for it. Please copy this and use it against me as Exhibit A when I’m complaining about making homemade whipped topping for 600 pies.
Also, gluten free? That’s a first. We have heard your cries, and we have responded. TWO gluten free options for Thanksgiving this year.
Excellent. How do I order? Right HERE.
