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National Pie Day – January 23

National Pie DayThere are actually two annual pie days in our calendar – how lucky are we!!! Pi Day, the celebration of the mathematical constant π, takes place on March 14 as 3, 1 and 4 are the first three digits of π. OK all you Math Lovers – mark this day on the calendar for some wacky Pi fun!!!

The other national pie day is celebrated tomorrow, January 23 and was created simply to celebrate the edible pie. As near as we can tell, this day became a ‘holiday’ in the mid-1970s when Charlie Papazian, from Boulder CO declared it so. The American Pie Company took up sponsorship of this national day in 1986.

For more pie history, check out these two sites for starters – Time’s history of Pies and the Pie Council. You may find yourself wandering all through the annuls of pie history if you are part-time foodies like we are.

January is a perfect time to enjoy the comfort of either a savory or a sweet pie. The weather outside (at least here in Michigan) is frightful! A warm, delicious smelling and tasting dinner, or dessert, is welcome relief.

022I recently made my first homemade, from scratch, pie crust and all, chicken pot pie. I was going to be out-of-town for the weekend and this was something that could be re-heated for those left at home. I was surprised at how wonderfully delicious it was. The kitchen was an absolute disaster, but I learned a few things that will make it easier next time – because this pie was fabulous and there will definitely be a next time!!

I used Ina Garten’s recipe with a few adaptations. She also has a version that uses lobster – yes please!!! You can personalize your pie as well and include veggies you know your family will enjoy if they turn up their noses at peas and carrots (although Forest Gump believes they are a natural and perfect combination – just like him and Jenny).

Here are a few other ideas for celebrating whether savory or sweet suits your fancy! Click on the pictures to get recipes from the sites in which we found these delicious items.

  • Fried Green Tomato Pie: Made the summer before last when I was left with way too many unripe tomatoes in my garden. This was WONDERFUL!!!Fried Green Tomatoe Pie
  • Classic Sour Cherry Pie : I usually have some cherries left over from summer time picking to allow for out of season enjoyment.

Classic Sour Cherry Pie

  • Empanadas: Some would argue that these are not true pies as they are fried and not baked. However, they do involve dough and filling and could even be baked if one desired so….pie it is – say we!

EmpinadaPicture by Stu Spivak

  • Greek Chicken Phylo Dough Pie: I believe this would also be good with beef or pork – yummy!

Greek Chicken Phyllo Pie

  • St. Patty’s Apple Pie: This one could be saved for use in March for a Pi Day Celebration in combination with St. Patty’s Day!

St. Patty's Day Apple Pie

With the variety of pies listed above, it would seem that pies really do allow for creativity and ownership. As we start the new year, we certainly encourage celebrations of each of those traits.

Enjoy your weekend and may you find time for pie eating at its finest!

0 Comments

  1. So with all that said, you mean I CAN eat pie tomorrow? Great! I may start my celebration a day early… Will try your Ina Garten recipe soon. Love her! Have a wonderful weekend eating pie! ~Elle

    1. Of course you can have your pie and eat it too! A little bit a pie goes a long way towards satisfying so many of our needs. Enjoy and celebrate responsibly 🙂

  2. Reblogged this on Finding Myself Through Writing and commented:
    Of course I’ll eat pie for National Pie Day on the 23rd of January…I wouldn’t want to be called unpatriotic! As for as PI Day on March 14th – I may just eat some more pie. Thanks for this great info girls… @Elle

  3. Since I was never good at math, I’ll celebrate the other pie day! My grandmother used to make the best pies. Her apple and cinnamon pie was wonderful.

    1. I hear ya Jill! It might be interesting to know all the ways in which Pi day is celebrated though! Grandma’s seem to hold most of our votes for best pies…and best cookies, and best hugs, and best most everything else!

  4. I always say that Diet is a four letter word, F O O D but tomorrow I’ll substitute it for P I E S.
    Steak and kidney pie, followed by apple pie, with mince pies for supper perhaps? Plenty of walks in between to show willing in the calorie burning count. However, if it’s raining again, maybe we’ll just play the anagram game of I (s) pie? 🙂

  5. One year—a very long time ago—our youth group at church fixed a “Pie For Everyone” dinner. We made chicken pot pies and sausage with cabbage pies, and for dessert we made apple and cherry pies and served them with ice cream. Our mothers were a big help, and the even was a huge success. One of the girls is our group is now a leader of a weight loss group, and on Jan. 23 they celebrate Natl. Pie Day with “pie in the face”–whipped cream in pie tins–and they have a sling fest throwing pies at each other. 😉

    1. That sounds like a ton of fun! And what a great event for the youth group to take part in!
      I gave my soon to be 4 yr old Grandson a ‘Pie in the Face’ game for Christmas. We all had a blast playing in this past December. The laughs coming and smiles coming from him made getting that whipped cream in the face totally worth the mess!

  6. Nice assortment of pie recipes, M! Makes me almost want to make some. No wait! I’ll take the recipes over to Mom and SHE can make them! 😉

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