A Georgia entrepreneur found the perfect recipe for starting a company, thanks to a passed-down crust technique and fresh fillings made with old-fashioned care.
By Elizabeth Bonner Czapski
Photography by Amanda Wilbanks and Kaylan Bradley
When Amanda Wilbanks left her comfortable job selling insurance for something more, she never thought the answer would be as easy as pie. While she searched for what was next, she found herself baking pies in her spare time, and this newfound hobby quickly became the future she had dreamed of: a business of her own.
“I love pies because they are nostalgic,” Amanda says. “They never go out of style, and they have been around for years. They are versatile. Anything can be put in a pie shell, from sweet dessert to savory casserole fillings. The possibilities are endless if you have a good crust recipe.”
Today, Southern Baked Pie Company touts three charming locations in Amanda’s native Georgia as well as a nationwide online shipping service—all offering a range of delectable sweet and savory varieties with the signature melt-in-your-mouth, all-butter pie dough she learned to make during a serendipitous visit with her mother-in-law in the midst of her career transition. Her pies come in an assortment of sizes and tempting flavors, from classics like Buttermilk and Traditional Apple to savory selections like Chicken Pot Pie and Tomato.
“It all started with the piecrust,” Amanda says. “Although I grew up cooking with my mother and making biscuits and cobblers with my grandmother, I had never made a piecrust. When my mother-in-law taught me how to make my first French pastry dough from scratch, I fell in love. I started making pies every day.”
The busy mother of two recently decided to share her family recipes in a cookbook, Southern Baked: Celebrating Life with Pie. In the pages, Amanda offers specialized menus for celebrations to mark each month of the year, including a New Year’s Day Dinner in January and a Romantic Valentine’s Repast in February.
Starting with her highly sought-after Southern Baked Pie Dough, recipes span full meals with her own memories and traditions woven throughout. “I didn’t want a book about just pies,” Amanda says. “My goal was to bring back the art of celebrating together around the table with foods prepared with love.”
For information, visit southernbakedpie.com.
Enter below for a chance to win a copy of Southern Baked: Celebrating Life with Pie and a pecan pie!
Enter to win by signing up below. Three winners will be selected by a random drawing on January 28, 2019. Good luck! Please note the giveaway is only open to U.S. residents.
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