The+History+of+Pie

 The History of Pie I looked up the history of pie and copied different versions on here. It's actually pretty interesting.

It is said that the origins of the humble pie can be traced back as far as the ancient Egyptians. The bakers to the Eqyptian Pharaohs used nuts, honey, and fruits in bread dough, a primitive form of pastry.

It is believed that the traditional pie pastry originated in Greece. The pies were made using a flour-water paste wrapped around meat; this served two purposes, to cook the meat and seal in the juices of the finished dish. As with many good ideas, the pie was loved by the Romans.

The delights of the pie spread throughout Europe, via the Romans as they advanced and conquered their way around the globe, where every country adapted the pie recipes to their own unique customs and foods.

Londoners still enjoy pie and mash, served with eel liquor (a light gravy) and much loved by the local population.

Further north, the pork pie, steak and kidney pie and other variations are preferred, often served with gravy, pickles and the bright green of mushy peas. The first pies, called "coffins" or "coffyns" were savory meat pies with the crusts or pastry being tall, straight-sided with sealed-on floors and lids. Open-crust pastry (not tops or lids) were known as "traps." These pies held assorted meats and sauce components and were baked more like a modern casserole with no pan (the crust itself was the pan, its pastry tough and inedible). The purpose of a pastry shell was mainly to serve as a storage container and serving vessel, and these are often too hard to actually eat. A small pie was known as a tartlet and a tart was a large, shallow open pie (this is still the definition in England). Since pastry was a staple ingredient in medieval menus, pastry making was taken for granted by the majority of early cookbooks, and recipes are not usually included. It wasn't until the 16th century that cookbooks with pastry ingredients began appearing. Historian believe this was because cookbooks started appearing for the general household and not just for professional cooks.

Pie has been around since the ancient Egyptians. The first pies were made by early Romans who may have learned about it through the Greeks. These pies were sometimes made in 'reeds' which were used for the sole purpose of holding the filling and not for eating with the filling.

The Romans must have spread the word about pies around Europe as the Oxford English Dictionary notes that the word pie was a popular word in the 14th century. The first pie recipe was published by the Romans and was for a rye-crusted goat cheese and honey pie.

The early pies were predominately meat pies. //Pyes// (pies) originally appeared in England as early as the twelfth century. The crust of the pie was referred to as //'coffyn'//. There was actually more crust than filling. Often these pies were made using fowl and the legs were left to hang over the side of the dish and used as handles. Fruit pies or tarts (pasties) where probably first made in the 1500s. English tradition credits making the first cherry pie to Queen Elizabeth I.

Pie came to America with the first English settlers. The early colonists cooked their pies in long narrow pans calling them 'coffins' like the crust in England. As in the Roman times, the early American pie crusts often were not eaten, but simply designed to hold the filling during baking. It was during the American Revolution that the term //crust// was used instead of //coffyn//.

Over the years, pie has evolved to become what it is today //'the most traditional American dessert'.// Pie has become so much a part of American culture throughout the years, that we now commonly use the term //'as American as apple pie'.// // American Pie Council ([|www.piecouncil.org]) //