On the Merits of Pie

“When you die, if you get a choice between going to regular heaven or pie heaven, choose pie heaven. It might be a trick, but if not…mmmmm, boy!”
- Jack Handy

I made a pie this weekend. A strawberry-rhubarb pie, to be exact, which is a fruit combination that I wish I had discovered much earlier in life. My dad is visiting this weekend so I thought it would be nice to have a little special something on hand.

Which brings me to the merits of pie.



A pie is not the glamourous member of the dessert family. In a world of chocolate lavender baked goods and pomegranate green tea concoctions, the fruit pie is the trusty old station wagon of the dessert world and the shy girlfriend of the girl next door. And I must say, I love that girlfriend of mine. While swanky desserts may have their place, the fruit pie beckons in a unpretentious and calming voice, Come over and pull up a chair. Sit down and stay awhile.
Will do.



I had almost given up pie making last year. Everytime I made a crust it crumbled and was impossible to work with (cookbooks always caution against overworking the dough but they rarely discuss the frustration in underworking). However, Dave’s grandmother saved me from signing off from the pie making world. She taught me to work the dough and I still remember her saying, “you gotta work it. Really work it.” I remember that mantra now everytime I make a piecrust and there is truly something special about remembering the instructions from someone wiser and more skilled, who probably learned the same thing from her mother or grandmother. Pies used to be a necessary answer to the question,“What are we going to do with all this fruit to keep it from going bad?” Today, the pie might be unnecessary, but that’s what I love about it - the simplicity of pie making makes me think about my rural Nebraskan roots and the frugal art of turning overripe fruit into something useful.



Lastly, the comforting nature of the pie gives way to conversation and the words spoken between bites often lead to friendship, at least in my experience. I bonded with one of my closest friends ten years ago when she decided to teach an aspiring but terrible cook the art of making pie crust. Four of our dearest friends are former neighbors who joined us for an apple pie shortly after moving next door and down the hall. And while I realize that pie is not the most health conscious food item to serve your loved ones, I suspect these friendships might not have been as lasting had we conversed around bowls of fat-free frozen yogurt (they may beg to differ but I know differently).



So the next time you are choosing between some trendy dessert and a humble slice of pie, choose the pie and rediscover an old friend. Or better yet, make a pie and invite over a loved one for a long chat. You’ll be glad you did.

Bon Appetit.