PIE
In the 19th century, apple and other fruit pies were a fairly common breakfast item. Fruit pie was considered part of a good hearty meal before a hard day’s work.
The first mention of a fruit pie in print, is from Robert Green’s Arcadia (1590): “Thy breath is like the steame of apple-pyes.”
Pie has been around since the ancient Egyptians. The first pies were made by early Romans who may have learned about it through the Greeks. These pies were sometimes made in 'reeds' which were used for the sole purpose of holding the filling and not for eating with the filling.
The Romans must have spread the word about pies around Europe as the Oxford English Dictionary notes that the word pie was a popular word in the 14th century. The first pie recipe was published by the Romans and was for a rye-crusted goat cheese and honey pie.
The early pies were predominately meat pies. Pyes (pies) originally appeared in England as early as the twelfth century. The crust of the pie was referred to as 'coffyn'. There was actually more crust than filling. Often these pies were made using fowl and the legs were left to hang over the side of the dish and used as handles. Fruit pies or tarts (pasties) where probably first made in the 1500s. English tradition credits making the first cherry pie to Queen Elizabeth I.
Pie came to America with the first English settlers. The early colonists cooked their pies in long narrow pans calling them 'coffins' like the crust in England. As in the Roman times, the early American pie crusts often were not eaten, but simply designed to hold the filling during baking. It was during the American Revolution that the term crust was used instead of coffyn.
Over the years, pie has evolved to become what it is today 'the most traditional American dessert'. Pie has become so much a part of American culture throughout the years, that we now commonly use the term 'as American as apple pie'.
American Pie Council (www.piecouncil.org)
According to a 2004 survey* by Crisco® and American Pie Council, one out of four Americans prefer apple pie, followed by pumpkin or sweet potato (17 percent), anything chocolate (14 percent), lemon meringue (11 percent) and cherry (10 percent). Nearly twice as many people prefer their pie unadorned as those who like it 'a la mode,' with either ice cream or whipped cream topping. Three out of four Americans overwhelmingly prefer homemade pie, while 13 percent enjoy pie from a bakery or pastry shop, and only one percent said they head to the diner for their favorite slice.
* Survey of 800 people conducted by Kelton Research, January 2004
|
