Fall and apples go together like mom and apple pie.

Yeesh, that's awful writing. But so true.

You can celebrate the apple quite nicely on Saturday at the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania's Applejamm Festival at Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve, 614 Dorseyville Road, Fox Chapel.

The Jamm has been held off and on for 20 years; this year will be the second apple-baking contest. At 2 p.m. results will be announced.

This year's entries had to use cinnamon and, voila, the creative gods put Jean Bost of Richland into the mix with her pie that uses 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 15 candy cinnamon hearts.

She tosses the hearts into a couple of apple recipes, she says, and started doing so about 10 years ago at the suggestion of her husband, Harry. The hearts add color as well as taste, she says.

We'll print some recipes next week.

Rachel Handel, director of public relations and marketing for the Audubon Society, says Mrs. Bost is one of 10 semifinalists whose baked goods (there's lots of apple bread this year) will be judged by Jeannine Burkhart, owner of B&Z Deli, Fox Chapel.

Besides the baking contest, Applejamm, which runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., features live music, crafts, food, and this year, a climbing wall.

"The thing that is most popular every year is scarecrow-making," says Ms. Handel. Make one for a $5 donation to the society, all supplies provided.

The festival is part of the Allegheny County Regional Asset District's RADical days (your tax dollars support RAD), so admission is free.

Besides celebrating the apple, you can explore the 134-acre Beechwood reserve, including its 5 miles of hiking trails and Audubon Center for Native Plants. More information, aswp.org, or call 412-963-6100.

Meanwhile, Slow Food Pittsburgh's Third Annual Pittsburgh Regional Pro-Am Apple Pie Baking Competition (whew!) will be held Nov. 8, as part of its apple festival on Nov. 7 and 8. Now's the time to brush off your favorite recipe and practice. Do not use Red Delicious apples or you'll get the rack.

Entries are due by noon Nov. 8 at the Union Project, 800 N. Negley Ave., Highland Park. If you bribe a judge, no one will mind. And do not eat lunch because you'll be full of pie later. So say the tongue-in-cheek rules.

More details on the apple festival to come; meanwhile, contact Virginia Phillips, vredpath@aol.com, or Don Gibbon, dongibbon@earthlink.net.

Old Economy Village, Ambridge, will hold the traditional German harvest festival, Erntefest, from 10 a.m to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday. See how the Harmonists prepared for winter in the 19th century; learn how to make cheese, sausage, butter, apple schnitz; hear the Old Economy Singers and the Old Economy 1830s Orchestra; watch kids do chores of the era. (Kids doing chores? Hahaha.)

And eat, Papa, eat! Bratwurst, red cabbage, sauerkraut, warm German potato salad, potato pancakes, and more, made by members of St. John Lutheran Church. And sample Concord grape pie made from Old Economy's crop.

Tickets are $8 for adults, $5 for children ages 4 to 17; younger people get in free.

Details: oldeconomyvillage.org or call 724-266-4500.

The Mt. Washington/Duquesne Heights second annual Ethnic Food Fair will be held from 5 to 10 p.m. Oct. 10 and 11 and from noon to 6 p.m. Oct. 12. Featured will be food from Italy, Germany, Greece, Mexico, the Philippines and even these ol' United States. Proceeds benefit St. Mary of the Mount Parish and Bishop Leonard-St. Mary of the Mount Academy. Contact Robert Frank, 412-431-4828 or robfrank@winning.com.

Pumpkinfest will be held in Confluence, Somerset County, Oct. 3 through 5, with vendors in the town square, tractor pulls (including for kids), the 8th annual Tough Man Fire Truck Pull, bands, antique and classic tractor show, even bingo. Details: confluencepa.org.

The Ohiopyle-Stewart Volunteer Fire Department will host its annual Buckwheat and Pancake Supper Oct. 10 and 11 at the fire hall and adjacent community center in Ohiopyle.

The meal, served from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. each day, includes all the buckwheat or regular pancakes you can eat, plus whole-hog sausage, potatoes, applesauce and pickles. Price: $8 for adults, $4 for children 3 to 12, free for younger children. Proceeds benefit the fire department. Doug Hoehn, department secretary and retired manager of Ohiopyle State Park, encourages visitors to work up an appetite by biking on the Great Allegheny Passage or hiking on the many trails in the park as the mountains take on the appearance of an artist's palette.

Barb Knezovich of McKeesport, who has taught at Crate and community college, will continue $45 classes at her home in October. Next Thursday it's "Italy on My Mind." Oct. 23 is "Fabulous Fall Tea" and Nov. 2 is "Sassy Sauces." Contact her at 412-896-4442 or bknezovich@comcast.net.

• Campbell's Chunky soup has launched its "Click for Cans" online campaign, part of its sponsorship with the National Football League of the Tackling Hunger program. Go to chunky.com and click on the helmet of your favorite team. Each click is a vote and the winning team will receive 18,000 cans of soup for a local food bank. The Steelers came in third last year. Third?! Come on, Steeler Nation -- click to benefit the Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank. Voters receive discounts to NFLshop.com and can enter the 2009 Pro Bowl Sweepstakes to win a trip for two to that game, in Hawaii. Contest ends after the last regular season game on Dec. 28.

• Also for the food bank, "Off the Record VIII: When Robots Rule," a spoof of Pittsburgh personalities and events, will be held next Thursday at the Byham Theater, Downtown. Sponsored and written by members of the Newspaper Guild (truly witty, these guys and gals) and Pittsburgh AFTRA, this year's show looks 50 years into the future, when the Pirates enter their 66th losing season. Reception at 6:30. Tickets, $20, $40 and $60, at pgharts.org, 412-456-6666. Or call Gary Rotstein at 412-263-1255, www.offtherecordpgh.com. Donate $500 to the bank and attend a reception catered by big Burrito Group. Some OTR proceeds benefit the unions' scholarship funds.

• Eagle Snacks and the American Eagle Foundation are holding a "Bald and Beautiful" contest. Go to enjoyeagle.com and vote until Nov. 6 for your favorite bald celebrity. Winning celeb will receive $1,500 to donate to the foundation or to a charity of choice. One noncelebrity will win prizes ranging from a year's supply of snacks to a trip to Dollywood and three-day stay at Eagles Ridge Resort, to a tour of the American Eagle Foundation's United States Eagle Center.

Five others will receive a year's worth of snacks.

PG TESTED

It's not apple pie, but hey, you can't eat like Paula Deen everyday. This offers a rich, sweet taste with 6 grams of fiber and only 5 grams of fat. The American Institute for Cancer Research sent this to us, saying that the quick-cooking in a microwave preserves water-soluble nutrients such as vitamin C and folate.

-- Margi Shrum

• 1 Gala or Braeburn apple
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar, divided
• 2 teaspoons firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 4 1/2-inch thick slices whole wheat Italian bread, cut diagonally (I used regular whole wheat)
• 4 teaspoons butter

Peel and core apple. Cut in half vertically. Place each half cut side down on a work surface and cut crosswise into even 1/8-inch thick slices. Keep slices together in the shape of an apple.

Set cut apple halves on small, microwaveable plate, still holding slices together.

Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar over each half and cover plate loosely with wax paper.

Place plate in microwave, keeping paper tucked under plate, and microwave, about 45 seconds.

Remove and let apple slices sit covered for 5 minutes. Uncover and cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, in small bowl, mix brown sugar and cinnamon.

Toast bread for crostini. Spread each slice of toast with 1 teaspoon butter and sprinkle one-fourth of cinnamon sugar evenly over each. Cover bread with apples, placed diagonally.

Serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings.

-- The American Institute for Cancer Research