Think we’ve all done a pretty good job on explaining what American pie is (besides the movie) , but there are a few that didn’t get recognized and I’m sure many more besides those. Someone mentioned pot pies up thread which are typically double crusted and have a savory filling, with different kinds of meat or vegetarian. Sometimes they only have a top crust of puff pastry. In the Pennsylvania Dutch areas of the US, a pot pie is totally different - a hearty chicken soup I think, with noodles or maybe even dumplings. I’ve never had it as prepared by a Penn-Dutch recipe. Then there’s the whole variety of meringue pies which have a sweet filling with a meringue topping, such as lemon. Chiffon pies usually have a light filling with egg whites, where gelatin is also added so it sets up. There are sweet cheesecake like pies as well. They have a bottom crust, cream cheese filling and are typically topped with a thickened fruit.
I need to unburden myself here too I’m also guilty of calling things Shepard’s pie, not made with lamb, but I know it’s different in Britain. I think most of the U.S. does the same.
Like any melting pot, I’m sure many of our pies are adapted versions of
recipes from other parts of the world.
Happy holiday pie making or pie eating during the upcoming festivities. Thanksgiving will be here soon, and even sooner in Canada!
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Harters
(John Hartley - a culinary patriot eating & cooking in Northwest England)
42
Lemon meringue pie was a dessert from my childhood (although they were then always called “sweets” or “puddings”, not desserts - words I usually still use in real life). Mum used to make it using a packet mix for the filling. Is it American in origin? If so, I wonder when/how it made its way across the Atlantic by the 1950/60s. There would be two likely possible periods. First was after the Great War when the UK developed a fascination with American culture during the 1920s - cocktails, food, jazz, etc. Second was during/after World War 2, when American troops where stationed here - I always remember Mum saying she had been “very friendly” with paratroopers training nearby.
Now, I’ve told this pie joke before but it obviosuly stands telling again. One of the towns in my metro area is Wigan , which has a reputation for not only making good pies but it’s population enjoy them. The World Pie Eating Championship is held here.
Too funny @Harters! I don’t know the history of lemon meringue pie at all, but I think it’s hey day was probably in the 50’s and 60’s. Today it would be considered a classic dessert. Maybe I’ll do a little research.
I had a friend who went to a small rural town in New Zealand to meet her pen pal. She said the couple called everything they ate after dinner, a pudding. It could have been cake or ice cream but it was still pudding.
Not really, although usage varies somewhat regionally. There are some Americans, mostly from the Northeast, that refer to pizza as pie, but aside from that anything else that gets called pie here gets qualified in some way unless it is a dessert baked in the dish I posted above. Hand pies, meat pies, etc. - you would never just call them “pie” here, because when you say “pie” you are talking about dessert, unless you are discussing pizza with someone from New Jersey - and even then you would probably call it pizza pie to be clear.
Anyway, what goes IN a pie in America is not really what makes it a pie - it’s the pan, and to a marginally lesser extent the crust, that make it pie. Here is a photo of the key lime “pie” made by the winner of that episode of GBBO - and given the crust shape, it is not a pie. In America this would be a key lime tart:
There are many types of pie that I associate with American cuisine - cherry, blueberry, key lime, peanut butter, sweet potato, etc. - but you can put literally anything in the filling, and as long as it is a dessert baked in and served from a pan with sloped sides, Americans will recognize it as pie.
I would like to add here, that most nicer restaurants’ dessert menus never list or show pie on their menu or dessert trays. I think it’s because it seems old fashioned and pedestrian. The pie like offerings are called tarts with the requisite straight sides.
However, at some chain restaurants, old fashioned coffee shops, and diners, you will probably see pies in a glass showcase and some places offer a wide variety.
My pie joke is: to DH - what is your favorite kind of pie?
Answer: the piece in front of me.
And I need to add the category of Bisquick Impossible Pies to this thread. I think we can safely say that it’s a type of American pie as well.
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Harters
(John Hartley - a culinary patriot eating & cooking in Northwest England)
46
I’ve always assumed that, for most British folk in the 19th century, if they had something sweet at the end of the meal it would most often be a steamed pudding. The name stuck and it’s certainly the word Mrs H & I would normally use when we are discussing what to make at home. My speculation about desserts being a “sweet” to many Britons also goes back to the 19th century when formal dinner parties would end with a savoury (after the dessert). As meals started to include fewer courses I suspect there might have been a choice at the end of the meal of a “savoury” or “sweet”.
That reminds me that my husband is ONLY interested in the crust. The menu has to imply lots of crust and not much fruit (maybe a tart?), and if not we ask; is there lots of crust? Can he scrape away the fruit?
Does he prefer flaky pastry crust or something else (pâte sucrée, graham cracker, etc.)? Personally I love flaky pastry crust (if it is good, which is rarely the case in restaurants, imo), but I’m not very interested in any other kind. My DH is the opposite - he loves all crusts and they are typically his favorite part of a pie or tart.
IMO this is because pie is really a homey, casual dessert - best served family-style, straight from the pie plate. It doesn’t always show or hold up well after it is cut, and it’s too “humble” for high-end places, which concentrate heavily on creativity and presentation.
Interesting theory @Harters. Steamed pudding with glacé fruit and what they called hard sauce but it really wasn’t is my dad’s favorite dessert. G-ma made an amazing one. I tried it once using butter, and dad said it was close but not the same. Then I bought some suet with good intentions to try again, but it languished in the fridge until it started to rot. I also didn’t have g-mas recipe, so this will remind me to get in touch with my aunt to ensure I have a copy of the family recipe. I also remember having mincemeat pie with actual meat in it. Disliked both desserts as a child and fruitcake too.
@biondanonima and @shrinkrap - agree with both of you as per my post up thread. Tarts sound fancier and plate well also. Higher proportion of crust to filling too.
@shrinkrap, your DH would probably love an Oreo cookie crust. I love a shortbread crust with toasted pecans or macadamias, which I use for key lime pies. I could eat it all by itself. @shrinkrap, good point about the deconstructed pie concept at fine dining restaurants. I feel this trend is starting to wane a little. Your thoughts?
There is one theory that there is only one fruitcake in the universe and that it is constantly being regifte, therefore the impression that there are more.
I know @pilgrim, it’s really funny though. I can actually eat a slice or two with cheese sometimes. The ones soaked with brandy or liqueur are best.
Oddly, we have a family recipe for fruitcake cookies that are addictive. I have to hide them. Will even make a batch this year. They have different ingredients than standard fruitcake additions.
99 percent of our “fine dining” is in SF Bay area, including Napa, so I don’t know if it’s waning in other places, but we have certainly learned to ask!
, but there are a few that didn’t get recognized and I’m sure many more besides those. Someone mentioned pot pies up thread which are typically double crusted and have a savory filling, with different kinds of meat or vegetarian. Sometimes they only have a top crust of puff pastry. In the Pennsylvania Dutch areas of the US, a pot pie is totally different - a hearty chicken soup I think, with noodles or maybe even dumplings. I’ve never had it as prepared by a Penn-Dutch recipe. Then there’s the whole variety of meringue pies which have a sweet filling with a meringue topping, such as lemon. Chiffon pies usually have a light filling with egg whites, where gelatin is also added so it sets up. There are sweet cheesecake like pies as well. They have a bottom crust, cream cheese filling and are typically topped with a thickened fruit.
I’m also guilty of calling things Shepard’s pie, not made with lamb, but I know it’s different in Britain. I think most of the U.S. does the same.
