Americans have viewed the Apple Pie as American for more than a century.
In 1902, a newspaper article wrote that “no pie-eating people can be permanently vanquished.”
A 1924 advertisement appearing in the Gettysburg Times promotes “New Lestz Suits that are as American as apple pie.”
And by World War II the association between America and apple pie was cast in stone. American soldiers told journalists that they were fighting for “mom and apple pie.”.
And that resulted in the expression “As American as mom and apple pie.”
But Apple Pies were being cooked long before America existed.
Interestingly, the tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancestor, Malus sieversii, is still found today. Apples have been grown for thousands of years in Asia and Europe and were brought to North America by European colonists.
Today, China produces half the total number of apples grown in the world. And today there are over 7,500 varieties of apples!
While the apple is busy keeping the doctor away, Americans made apple pie famous.
Practically every kid in the USA grew up eating apple pie and they were mostly made from tart apples, with Granny Smith variety being the favorite.
At Baker’s Table in Barretto, Olongapo, we make our apple pies using Granny Smith and an old American recipe dating back decades.
Why not make it a day of pies? We have Beef and Chicken pot pies, apple, pumpkin and our very own Biasong Lime Pie (think Key Lime Pie if you want a comparison).