National Pie Day is Saturday, Jan. 23.

We’re getting ready for our very first in–house National Pie Day Amazing Amateur Pie Contest and Fundraiser –– so the question on the table is “do you have everything you need to make your best pie ever?”

We’ll be rolling out contest guidelines, rules and regulations soon, but in the meantime start gathering your pie–making essentials.

Now, I know that pie-making is a truly personal experience and everyone has their favorite tools and techniques, but, here are my Top 10 pie–making tools:

uRose’s Perfect Pie Plate –– my dinner party pie plate! The red color is lovely, and the scalloped rim makes crimping the crust easy –– it’s a gorgeous pie just waiting to happen.

uRolling pin –– the traditional rolling pin for pie dough is the classic no-handle, tapered, French-style pin.

Having said this, I prefer the long, straight baker’s pin … also no handle. It gets my hands as close to the dough as possible.

uPastry mat –– great non-stick surface! A simple dusting of flour and you’re good to go!

uPie weights –– no bottom crust blistering.

uRolling pin rubber rings –– these help roll the dough to an even thickness. I usually wing it, but so many of you love these that I included them here.

uPie Crust Shields –– I hate it when my crust is done before the rest of my pie.

uPastry blender –– I have so many fears surrounding the whole pie crust scenario it’s hard to know where to start. One of them is my pastry dough getting too warm. I keep my pastry blender cool in the refrigerator.

uPie bird –– I’m a sucker for the pie bird. This ceramic little bird is placed in the center of the pie with its little head poking through the top crust. The steam vents through its little beak!

uPastry brush –– I like the natural fiber ones for egg wash. Le Creuset makes a sweet little silicon brush that works well for raw dough; the “bristles” are very soft.