Tell Me Where You're From

[Jaymes]

Grandparents on both side were from various parts of the south -- Texas and Tennessee, primarily.

When I was a kid, we had pecan pie and sweet potato pie exclusively. Never varied.

But when I became the mommy in the kitchen, in place of the sweet potato pie, I introduced pumpkin. I knew it was traditional with Thanksgiving elsewhere in the country, and wanted my kids to get in on it.

Because after all, I'm about nothing if not tradition.

[shiv]

Grandparents were from Ireland and settled in Boston in the 1940s.

We're a large family, so we always had a variety of desserts. As far as pie goes, it was usually just apple though occasionally mincemeat would make an appearance (in addition to apple, never as a replacement). There was invariably some chocolate creation, too, though rarely a pie.

I don't recall EVER seeing a pumpkin pie on our TG table, and have never heard of cranberry pie.

[ludja]

Again--never heard of anyone having cranberry pie in New England either---but I also just remembered to look at my New England Time Life Series Cookbook-- (published in the late 60's and aspiring in part at least, to capture traditional N.England fare) and they have a cranberry nut pie in there! (someone must of ate it, I guess...).

I wonder if there is any 'old yankee' stock out there that ever had this?

It doesn't personally sing to me--after a T-day dinner b/c it seems too similar a taste to the preceding cranberry sauce. Would feel better about a cranberry-apple pie or a cranberry cheesecake...

By the way, thanks for sharing the article and starting this thread bloviatix--fun discussion!

Edited November 29, 2004 by ludja (log)

[Mabelline]

I've got one of Miss Clementine Paddleford's books in my 50's collection. I've never heard of cranberry pie neither. I am a patchwork of native Americans (a good friend told me an inside joke the other day; he said aren't you just glad Columbus wasn't looking for Turkey?),

Onthanks and Fish from Massachusetts, Metis from Manitoba and Ontario, Sioux and Chippewa from anywhere they wanted,or were sent.

Raised on pecan, pumpkin and my mom loved Boston Cream Pie, so we had that, as well as sweet tater pie. But really sweet tater wasn't a special deal, I remember us eating a lot of it.

[bloviatrix]

Since I was curious about cranberry pies, I pulled out Richard Sax's Classic Home Desserts. According to him, cranberries were frequently combined with sweet apples in a pie to lend color and tartness. Also provided is a recipe for Cape Cod Cranberry "Linzer" Pie

Makes one 9 or 9 1/2 inch pie

Basic Pie Dough recipe for 2 crust pie

1 orange

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 cups (7-8 ounces) fresh or frozen cranberries

1 1/2-2 sweet apples (golden delicious) or pears (anjou or bosc), peeled and cored into 1/2-inch dice (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 tablespoon minced crystallized ginger

1/4 c golden raisins

Milk and cinnamon sugar, for glaze

Preheat oven to 375F

1) Divide dough in 2, line pie plate with one piece and prepare top with other. Chill doughs while working on filling.

2) Zest orange, squeeze juice from orange. In food processor combine zest and 1/2 cup sugar until zest is finely chopped. Add 1 cup of cranberries and pulse until finely chopped. Transfer zest-cranberry-sugar mixture to bowl and combine with remaining cranberries, sugar, orange juice, apples/pears, ginger and raisins.

3) Brush edges of bottom crust lightly with cold water. Pour filling into crust. Create strips from top crust to create lattice and top pie. Brush lattice with milk and sprinke with cinnamon sugar.

4) bake until pastry is golden and filling is bubbling - about 1 hour. Serve warm or room temp.

As a sidebar, Sax also mentions working in a kitchen in France where the PC made a tart with a frangipane base, then a layer of cooked cranberries which were then brushed with a red current glaze.

[ruthcooks]

Both grandmothers from the Midwest, and Clementine was right about the pumpkin and mince pies. Or, at least, that was true in the 50's. When the grandparents were gone, the mince pies went too, to be replaced by pecan. Now a cherry pie has been added if my brother is attending, or an apple for my son and/or grandson.

[LBNoble]

We had a large family Thanksgiving, from different areas (mainly the south) & the pies (made by my BIL, Mike) were pumpkin, apple, & pecan (which disappeared first). We also had 2 pound cakes, a cheesecake, a chocolate pudding pie, spiced pecans, & oatmeal-raisin cookies (there were also clementines & apples for the healthy ones among us)-I didn't even have to THINK about making a dessert this year...

[Cusina]

Ate at my Brother-In-Law's this year. His paternal grandparents are from Italy... one Milan, one Rome and his father was born in Western Mass. His Maternal grandparents are Scandanavian/German. Both from born in the Midwest.

We had pumpkin and apple (storebought varieties) on the table, with ice cream and whip cream in a can or lite cool whip ... but if it had been my choice I'd have made pumpkin cheesecake and dutch apple pie with maple whip cream.

[chow guy]

My mothers' side of the family is from Ireland.

My fathers's side of the family is from the Hudson Valley in NY (with Alsatian roots).

For Thanksgiving this year we had a pear pie, a pecan pie with hatch green chile and a walnut pie with Chymayo red chile.

[Smithy]

Father's mother from Oklahoma/Tennessee; mother's mother from Florida. Our clan is in California, thanks to the migration of my father's parents before they settled, so we're western with a pronounced southern influence. Pumpkin pie, mincemeat for my Tennessee grandfather, and also pecan, apple and chocolate pies. I never could understand why someone would take up valuable stomach room with pumpkin pie, but apparently that's just me.

[reesek]

I never could understand why someone would take up valuable stomach room with pumpkin pie, but apparently that's just me.

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definitely not just you. i've never met a pumpkin pie i've been able to look in the face.

[ludja]

My mothers' side of the family is from Ireland.

My fathers's side of the family is from the Hudson Valley in NY (with Alsatian roots).

For Thanksgiving this year we had a pear pie, a pecan pie with hatch green chile and a walnut pie with Chymayo red chile.

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sounds like some more recent New Mexico influences there rather than Hudson Valley/Ireland ones! Did your grandmothers make something different?

They sound interesting. Easier to picture the red chile rather than the green chile combo tho... (I've had red chile with chocolate before...) Was this the first time making them or are they family favorites by now? (if you don't mind me asking--they sound like something I would be interested in trying...)

Thanks!

Edited November 29, 2004 by ludja (log)

[Mabelline]

Me as well, chow guy! Illuminate us ! They sound flavalicious....Sorry about that. I've been watchin' far too much video reality?? shows lately.

[chromedome]

North of New England, in Atlantic Canada, a "mock cherry" pie was popular in the 19th century. It consisted of equal parts cranberries and raisins, cooked together with sugar and a bit of water. I've made it in recent years, and it's rather good.

[KatieM]

Umm. Do I win something if my family had the most pies? Because I'm pretty sure I can beat all of you. First, a disclaimer: there are a lot of farmers in my family. I'm from East Central Illinois. My grandmother was from Southern Illinois, and Germany before that. On my dad's side, anyway. My mom's side is Danish, but they never come to Thanksgiving.

So. We had 13 pies. Plus brownies, Thanksgiving "sugar" cookies (turkeys and squirrels for some reason), caramel corn, apple brown betty, pumpkin roll, ice cream (my own very custardy vanilla), and various other things I can't remember, since I'm still in a bit of a diabetic coma.

No mincemeat pie, but just about every other midwestern stereotypical pie:

pumpkin

pecan

lemon meringue

cherry

apple

apple crumble pie (as opposed to regular crust top)

pear (my grandmother's invention from having too many pears on her tree one year)

blackberry

duplicates of several, and then, the most feared Thanksgiving pie that only my dad and his brother eat . . . .

RAISIN PIE

That one is truly gross. And I really love pie. It's millions of raisins in some custard between two crusts. Bleh! But my dad loves it. It's his favorite.

Incidentally, one of my uncles has a tradition of eating one piece of each pie on the buffet. I think he only made it to 7 or 8 pieces this year. He's slipping in his old age. And slivers don't count. It has to be a full-size piece. There's usually a competition to see how many pieces the menfolk can eat. Uncle Glen wins every time. And he's the skinny one!

Oh, just for point of reference, we had 27 people this year. That equates to about 1/2 a pie per person.

And we ate 40 lbs of mashed potatoes ( I should know, since I peeled the darn things). And that's on TOP of the three kinds of sweet potatoes, and the 40 lbs of turkey.

And we had no leftovers!

[bleudauvergne]

Both parents deep Southerners transplanted to New York State. We always had chess and pumpkin.

[kjente2]

Both parents from northern Minnesota. Grandparents from Norway, Minnesota and Wisconsin. We always had at least 4. Pecan, Pumpkin, Fruit (Cherry, Pineapple, Apple), Chocolate or Cream (Banana or Coconut). Most would have at least a little of two or more.

[hwilson41]

I’m a 4th generation Texan now transplanted in Virginia. Mom’s family was from Missouri, but originally from Virginia, so both sides heavy duty Southern. This year's pies were pecan and apple. Thanks to the suggestion from Mayhaw, the pecan pie was made differently this year: half Steen’s Cane Syrup (other half light brown sugar). It was superb, and disappeared faster than decorum at a fraternity party .

THW

Edited because "Cane" is a very difficult word to spell .

Edited November 30, 2004 by hwilson41 (log)

[JennotJenn]

Interesting...

I think we've been here long enough (Dutch family settled in New York in 1600's, moved to North Carolina shorty thereafter; German side came over late 1700's; Native American side, well, there's some recent debate as to when we came over, but suffice to say it's been awhile) to just say my grandma is from the mountains of North Carolina. And she serves pumpkin (from pumpkins she prepares herself, not from a can) and dried apple (the apple reconstitutes...sorta like apple butter in a pie). I like the apple, but I, ahem, prefer pumpkin from a can[/size=1]. The texture is more pleasing to me.

Edited November 30, 2004 by JennotJenn (log)

[hathor]

We always went to my Polish grandmother's when I was kid. She made a pumpkin chiffon pie that was incredible. I would always get one whole pie put aside just for me. The crust was thin, just a little sweet, and just a hint of burny part (crucial to the overall taste)...the filling was only about 1 1/2 inches thick and light and fluffy and pumpkiny and totally divine. I was stupid. I never got the recipe from her and now she's gone.

Now Aunt Stella brings the pumpkin pie, and its good, but you know...it's just not the same.

[Toliver]

Since I was curious about cranberry pies, I pulled out Richard Sax's Classic Home Desserts.  According to him, cranberries were frequently combined with sweet apples in a pie to lend color and tartness.  Also provided is a recipe for Cape Cod Cranberry "Linzer" Pie

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Wow, thanks for the recipe. It sounds great!

Paternal grandmother: Dutch/English - Midwestern America

Maternal grandmother: Bohemian - Midwestern America

This Thanksgiving, we had apple pie and pumpkin pie. If my aunt was still alive, we'd have had some kolaches, too.

[KMPickard]

The only place that I've ever encountered cranberry pie, actually raisin and cranberry pie, is in Fredricton, New Brunswick (the Canadian Maritime province). My friend's mom, who is in her eighties, traditionally makes it for Christmas. And, yes, it does taste amazingly like cherry pie.

Kathy

[kellycolorado]

Mom's mom is from the Detroit area of belgian immigrants and dad's mom is from Detroit (though born in Indiana) of german parents.

I made pumpkin and didn't get around to the apple which I think I'll make tonight. Those were pretty much the pies we had growing up too.

Edited December 1, 2004 by kellycolorado (log)

[takomabaker]

This is pretty interesting. I never realized that there was such pie diversity!

Mom's family family is pretty old American-- immigrated in the early and mid-17th century to New England and South Carolina -- but has been in Florida since the early 19th century. This side is pretty huge as well, so we usually have somewhere between 7 and 12 pies, depending on how many are brought by relatives to supplement my grandmother's.

2-3 pumpkin (right off the Libby's label)

one cherry (right out of the Comstock can! Grandma's been doing it that way for years!)

2-3 key limes (from my grandmother's tree)

1-2 pecan (right off the Karo label)

1 mincemeat (my mother makes it every year and it's pretty bad)

an occassional apple

and usually a hummingbird cake or a coconut cake that is an old family recipe

Dad is half Lithuanian and half Irish. His father passed on when he was very young so I only knew my Lithuanian relatives. My paternal grandmother was never very domestic and would get an occassional a rare burst of domesticity and would make me blintzes or potato pancakes (which she made extremely well but extremely rarely), but Thanksgiving was usually pretty simple and the pie was usually a Mrs. Smith's pumpkin. She didn't get a lot of domesticity bursts around the holidays.

Now that I do Thanksgiving on my own for my friends (I only fly home for Christmas), I make a pumpkin, pecan, apple, and usually try to do something creative with pears. This year I made the pear custard tart with cardamon from Four Star Desserts. It was great.