What does the magpie have to do with the name of a yummy baked treat? And what does a fictional character relate to desserts made from Florida citrus? In Episode 32, Leigh and Kim return to the tasty topics of pies.

First, we return to the origins of pie specialties as Leigh surveys the ingenuity of pie bakers and cooks who built empires on fairly basic pie recipes originating in Western Europe. Using the literal fruits of the land, we have created flavorful classics like apple pie, lemon meringue, and huckleberry pie. Even in times of shortages of butter and sugar, ingenuity created make-do recipes resulting in “desperation pie” and even “water pie” to help maintain a sense of normalcy at times life was anything but normal.

Next, Kim speaks on how the thrifty utilization of excess egg white plus a fictional culinary character led to one of the most favorite pies in American history - lemon meringue - and how a massive hurricane shifted Florida’s production of pineapple to its globally-known key lime, inspiration for the key lime meringue pie. This tale isn’t fully told without a peek into the life and kitchen of William Curry, who brought condensed milk to the Florida Keys and whose cook *may* be the originator of the original Key Lime Pie recipe.

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Mentioned in this episode:

Sources:

Food Timeline

Books:

Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink, John F. Mariani

The Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson

 American Lady's Cook Book, Mrs. T. J. Crowen

Brave Tart, Iconic American Desserts, Stella Parks

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