DiscussionsLove The Pie

American Pie: Slices of life (and pie) from America’s back roads.

When I think of pie, I think of an American icon. There’s nothing more American than apple pie, right? It has such a special place in our cultural and culinary life – and most Americans have a very specific memory about their favorite slice of pie. 

In American Pie the author, Pascale La Draoulec goes on two lengthy road trips in search of the quintessential American dessert. She seeks out the best of the best in America’s regional pies, but what she finds more often than not are stories about pie—not slices. The author starts to discover that despite its ubiquitous presence in American culture, pie might now be more or less be a thing of the past. The perfect pie requires an unhurried attitude, she finds, and most people just don’t have the time. 

That’s got me wondering if her findings on her road to pie are really true or if she just traveled down the wrong roads. I’ve got to know, do you still make time for pie? How do you keep the time-honored tradition of pie alive?

Later this month, I do a review of this book and share one of the yummy pie recipes. Let me know if you end up reading this book also! 

Cate -- that book sounded 'familiar' .  I am 99% sure that I read the hard cover version back when it first came out ('02?).   To be truthful, I can't really remember too much about it any  more .. but I think I liked some of her stories better than others.  I'm pretty sure I enjoyed it -- but I don't think it was at the top of the heap.  Granted pies are not at the top of the things I bake.  I much prefer baking breads, rolls, coffee cakes, cookies, etc.   If I make 4 or 6 pies in a year that's a LOT for me!

Hope you'll enjoy the book .. and look forward to your review.

Hi Cate,

Beautiful picture on the front cover, looks like a delicious pie. The author had a great idea, reminds me of our "pile in the car" trips our family went on in the 50s.

My Dad would love to find the local bakery when we drove through a town and ask the worker inside what item was the favorite and without fail we were always in for a special treat !

When I was 4 years old I can remember helping my Mom make a chocolate cream pie one afternoon for a special dinner dessert. When she was busy I decided it needed a special decoration so I sprinkle some brown decorations on top. Looked very attractive, only draw back was the decorations were from the coffee can..ground coffee . She was very patient, never one to be upset so we enjoyed the pie that night along with a good laugh. Another favorite pie memory was the blueberry pie a lady sold from her back door on Cape Cod. We would always visit her when we were on summer vacation,I can still taste it to this day ! Then there was my Aunt Mary's apple pie in Maine, made on a wood stove that she would serve us for breakfast ! She didn't have any children and she made sure she spoiled us. It was the first time I ever had pie with sharp cheese let alone for breakfast !

I love to bake pies. Our favorite is Mom's recipe from Gravenstein apples. I think less is more when baking fruit pies because the fruit just sings all on its own. Of course we love our holiday favorite, pumpkin, pecan and mince meat.

Great story, our son was in Florida traveling for business. He had some pecan pie in a restaurant and thought it was delicious. He said to the cook that his Mom loves to cook and could he get the recipe to send to me. The cook told him it was a winner in the Pillsbusy contest  and I could find it on line. I did and I cooked it for Thanksgiving. Now it is one of our favorites .  

Thank you JDS and Marie:

I loved reading your posts. Thank you for sharing! Just finished the book! Here is my review.

After taking some time to reflect on the book American Pie: Slices of life (and pie) from America’s back roads, I’ve realized that my original judgment on the book might have been a little off. I thought at first that the book came to the conclusion that pie is a dying art, and “American as apple pie” might no longer hold true in the national culture.

It is true that getting a slice of homemade fresh pie isn’t as easy as it used to be in the time before freeways and when diner culture was synonymous with American culture. However, that’s not to say Americans have completely lost touch with pie. Instead, it has become a deeply personalized and storied tradition.

When Pascale Le Draoulec, the author, was on the road, she wanted to find the best pie in every state. But the problem she soon discovered was, when it comes to pie, nothing is objective. Pie is after all a food, so it’s no surprise that everyone’s taste for it is unique. But she did manage to discover one constant in all her travels—people have deeply emotional attachments to pie. 

Everyone she found on the road had his or her own hands-down, absolute favorite slice of pie—and usually a good story to boot. She was constantly surprised at how pie could break barriers and even break the ice with the surliest of people she met on the road. Pie, she found, starts romances, saves lives, gives hope, preserves histories and most importantly brings people together. 

American Pie gave me a better appreciation for the significance and importance of pie in American culture. Now that I understand just how personal pie can be, I would like to share a recipe from the book that struck a cord with me. In the book the recipe is called “Best Cherry Pie in Michigan.” I grew up in Michigan and I grew up on sour cherry pie. Just the thought of it brings back all kinds of warm fuzzies. And heck, it’s summer, which is the perfect time to try a fresh cherry pie made with fresh, plump red cherries. I hope you enjoy!

“Best Cherry Pie in Michigan”

Crust

1 full cup (heaping) shortening

¾ cup of cold water

2 cups flour

pinch of salt

Filling

1 quart pitted sour cherries

3 tablespoons tapioca (or flour or cornstarch)

1 1/3 cups of sugar

Instructions: Take the juice from the pitted cherries and mix it with the tapioca and sugar, then mix together with cherries in a bowl. Place the cherry mixture in an unbaked pie shell and bake for 30 minutes at 400 degrees and another 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Serve with vanilla ice cream and eat in good company by a window that looks out on a bright red barn…

P.S. Cooking the cherries before baking the pie makes them lose their redness