I have received an overwhelming response to the Applesauce Pie recipe I posted last week, which also appeared in the print edition of AnnArbor.com on Thursday the 17th. People have stopped me all week long, telling me how much they enjoyed being given a nice, simple recipe to try for the Fall; empathizing with having grandmothers who didn't write down recipes to pass down through generations; and -- best of all -- letting me know how much they enjoyed the pie when they baked it for their families over the weekend.

A warm slice of Oatmeal Pie

Mary Bilyeu, Contributor

So I'm posting a recipe for Oatmeal Pie today, which also comes from a Marcia Adams Amish cookbook (Cooking from Quilt Country); but I also have an ulterior motive to choosing this particular recipe. To raise awareness of ovarian cancer, two women -- Sara of Ms Adventures in Italy and Michelle of Bleeding Espresso -- are hosting the “O Foods Contest,” seeking recipes beginning or ending with the letter “O.” (see below) This pie is obviously a perfect choice!

Ovarian cancer is notoriously difficult to diagnose, and thus it is also difficult to treat because it’s often not discovered until it reaches later stages. So it is my sincere wish that everyone who reads this will also post the information below to their own blogs, share it on their Facebook pages, email it to their friends and loved ones (both women and the men who love them), and pass the word … along with a slice of pie.

Oatmeal Pie

This is a ridiculously easy recipe that is a bit reminiscent of Pecan Pie, only without the concerns about nut allergies. It's rich, it's gooey, it's sweet -- it's love! Forget that this has no nutritional value whatsoever; sometimes food is just good for your soul ....

1 pie crust 4 eggs 2/3 cup sugar 1/3 cup brown sugar 2 tablespoons flour 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1/4 cup honey 3/4 cup corn syrup 2 tablespoons butter, melted 1 teaspoon vanilla or rum extract 1 cup old-fashioned oats

Preheat oven to 350 F. Place the crust into a 9" pie pan; set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs until frothy. Beat in the sugar, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt. Combine the honey, corn syrup, butter and extract; add to the eggs and mix well. Stir in the oats, then pour the mixture into the pie crust.

Bake for 45 minutes until a knife inserted into the center comes out almost clean. Let cool.

CONTEST RULES

O Foods Contest for Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month

September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, and for the second year in a row, Sara of Ms Adventures in Italy and Michelle of Bleeding Espresso are hosting the O Foods Contest to raise awareness of this important health issue.

There are TWO WAYS to take part in the O Foods Contest:

ONE: Post a recipe to your blog using a food that starts or ends with the letter O (e.g., oatmeal, orange, okra, octopus, olive, onion, potato, tomato); include this entire text box in the post; and send your post url along with a photo (100 x 100) to ofoods@gmail.com by 11:59 pm (Italy time) on Monday, September 28, 2009.

PRIZES for recipe posts:

1st: Signed copy of Dolce Italiano: Desserts from the Babbo Kitchen by Gina DePalma, Executive Pastry Chef of Babbo Ristorante in NYC, who is currently battling ovarian cancer, inspired this event, and will be choosing her favorite recipe for this prize; 2nd: Signed copy of Molto Italiano: 327 Simple Italian Recipes to Cook at Home by Mario Batali (winner chosen by Sara); 3rd: Signed copy of Vino Italiano: The Regional Italian Wines of Italy by Joseph Bastianich (winner chosen by Michelle).

OR

TWO: If you’re not into the recipe thing, simply post this entire text box in a post on your blog to help spread the word and send your post url to ofoods@gmail.com by 11:59 pm (Italy time) on Monday, September 28, 2009.

Awareness posts PRIZE:

One winner chosen at random will receive a Teal Toes tote bag filled with ovarian cancer awareness goodies that you can spread around amongst your friends and family.

———

From the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund:

Ovarian cancer is the leading cause of death from gynecologic cancers in the United States and is the fifth leading cause of cancer death among U.S. women; a woman’s lifetime risk of ovarian cancer is 1 in 67.

The symptoms of ovarian cancer are often vague and subtle, making it difficult to diagnose, but include bloating, pelvic and/or abdominal pain, difficulty eating or feeling full quickly; and urinary symptoms (urgency or frequency).

There is no effective screening test for ovarian cancer but there are tests which can detect ovarian cancer when patients are at high risk or have early symptoms.

In spite of this, patients are usually diagnosed in advanced stages and only 45% survive longer than five years. Only 19% of cases are caught before the cancer has spread beyond the ovary to the pelvic region.

When ovarian cancer is detected and treated early on, the five-year survival rate is greater than 92%.

And remember, you can also always donate to the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund at our page through FirstGiving!

Please help spread the word about ovarian cancer.

Together we can make enough noise to kill this silent killer.

Mary Bilyeu has won or placed in more than 60 cooking contests and writes about her adventures as she tries to win prizes, feeds hungry teenagers and other loved ones, and generally just has fun in the kitchen. The phrase "You Should Only Be Happy" (written in Hebrew on the stone pictured next to the blog's title) comes from Deuteronomy 16:15, and is a wish for all her readers as they cook along with her ... may you always be happy here!

You can contact Mary at yentamary@gmail.com.