OTISFIELD — The Otisfield Volunteer Firemen’s Association strayed from pie to cookies for its annual Fourth of July bake sale and contest and the results were a hit.

It has been a longstanding tradition for the association to sponsor a pie-baking contest ahead of Otisfield’s Independence Day parade. Each year seemed to attract fewer competitors to the point only a few pies have been entered. Seeking to shake things up, this year the group decided to start a new contest, inviting bakers to instead submit cookies made from their family and favorite recipes and competitors answered the call.

“Pies have always been the biggest seller in our bake sale,” said Bethany Tielinen of the firemen’s association. “But interest has waned in the contest. This year we decided to mix things up and switched to a cookie contest. We weren’t sure what to expect – we thought maybe we would end up with all of the same kind. But we got a lot of different recipes.”

The 14 entries varied from a peanut butter flavored to strawberry chocolate chip and ginger whoopie pies. The top three, however, all were chocolate chip recipes with a twist.

First place went to Melanie Marshall’s two-faced cookie, a regular blonde chocolate chip on one side and a chocolate chocolate chip on the other.

Second place was a lemon coconut white chocolate chip cookie, submitted by Maryanne Hill.

The third place winner was Tielinen’s granddaughter Emerson, who baked a chocolate peanut butter chocolate chip cookie.

Per tradition, the winners’ entries were auctioned off and between the three, the fireman’s association raked in $90. Tielinen did not have the final tallies of the accompanying bake sale as of Tuesday, but she said it always raises more than $1,000.

Prizes were handed out to parade participants also. The Dyer Family Float won first prize in the float division and the Otisfield Mighty Moose T-ball team was awarded the top prize in the marchers’ division.

The parade featured a number of antique cars and trucks as well. The Norway and Harrison fire departments also drove fire trucks in the procession.

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