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Sometimes it seems that we are a country divided and it feels like there are more things on which we disagree than there is where we are united.  But no matter what color state we live in, there is one issue that Americans always seem to agree on.  When it comes to dessert, pie is our favorite.  Studies show on average, we eat six slices of pie each every year and the majority of us prefer the 231 varieties made with apples.   On January 23^rd, the nation will celebrate National Pie Day and we can’t think of a better way to warm up a winter day than to bake some delicious pie!

We think the best possible way to celebrate this delicious day is by partaking in a few perfect slices of pie.  Whether you bake your family’s favorite at home or stop by the store to pick out a pie made by someone else, eating a piece or two of pie is the best way to pay homage to America’s favorite dessert.

If you love to bake, make a variety of pies and then distribute them to hometown heroes at the local police station, fire station, post office, teacher’s lounge, or veteran’s facility.

Have an unofficial coworker appreciation day and bring a few pies to work to share with everyone as a sweet afternoon treat.

Have a pie baking contest in the office or to raise money for a local charity.  You could also organize an entire community event around pies by having a “Pie Walk”, a pie eating contest, a pie baking contest, and selling cookbooks with community member’s favorite pie recipes.

Hand down some family tradition by spending some family time baking pies from recipes handed down from previous generations.

Things You May Not Know About Pie

• Pie has been around almost as long as recorded history dating back to the ancient Egyptians over 4000 years ago.
• The first pies were called “coffins” and were filled with meat.  The term, which means basket or box, referred to the crust which was generally inedible and made as a vessel to hold the ingredients during cooking and consumption.
• The first pie recipe was found in a Roman cookbook which was for a pie filled with goat cheese and honey.
• The relationship between pies and birds comes from England in the 1400’s when most pies featured savory ingredients like bird.  In order to identify what kind of pie was inside the crust, medieval bakers will place a cooked bird of the same type atop the finished pie.
• We can thank the first Queen Elizabeth for the fruit pies we are so fond of today as she is credited with creating the first fruit pie, which was filled with cherries.

Looking for a new recipe to celebrate National Pie Day?  Check out these fabulous recipes from the Fill Your Plate blog for some great pies that use local ingredients.

• Apple Raspberry Pie
• Arizona Sunshine Lemon Pie
• Farmer’s Mud Pie
• Grandma Gertie’s Pumpkin Pie
• Grandma Howard’s Apple Pie
• Grandma Hickman’s Christmas Pie
• Greek Cheese Pie
• Strawberry Cheese Pie

Related articles

• Great Ideas for Holiday Sweets and Treats (fillyourplate.org)
• Fabulous Feasts for Family Game Night (fillyourplate.org)
• An Apple a Day: Celebrating the Apple Harvest (fillyourplate.org)