Spirit of Marie Callendar lives on at The Pie Hole

She looked much like any other grandmother, but she hardly was.

By the time she died at the age of 87, the company that bore her name was making hundreds of millions of dollars annually and had become a culinary icon in the western United States. She was Marie Callender and her specialty was pie. This time of year, when, with the holidays approaching and pie season is in full swing, her story is worth remembering if like me you're a pie lover.

It all started in 1948 when Mrs. Callender, who had been selling pies out of her home to a local deli near Long Beach, Calif., equipped herself with a used commercial oven and three rolling pins and opened a wholesale bakery in a rented World War II Quonset hut and began selling handmade pies. She financed the operation by selling the family car.

Her first order was for 10 pies, but in a couple of years she was making 200 a day. Given that success, Marie's son convinced her to open a pie and coffee shop. Putting an oven in the window of the place to display her fresh baked wares and offering a free slice of pie and a cup of coffee to first-time customers, he parlayed the operation into a full-fledged restaurant that at its height had branches at nearly 300 locations in some seven western states, including one on Maui that specialized in a macadamia nut version which, I can attest, was perfect for eating on the beach. Until her death, Marie ate at one of her eponymous establishments at least once a month to check on quality.

Though Marie Callender's restaurants offered a full menu and featured a fully stocked bar, it was still the pies, in some 30 varieties, that were the centerpiece of the business. I remember vividly the first time I sat down for a slice -- well, actually three -- many years ago on a trip out West. They gave homemade pies a run for their money.

No wonder, then, that I was saddened when the company filed for bankruptcy two years ago and shuttered many of its restaurants. I worried that the credible restaurant pie, an increasingly endangered species in this country, would finally vanish.

It turns out, however, that my fears were unfounded. On a recent trip to California I discovered not only that there are a few Marie Callender's restaurants left, but also that a new generation of bakers has picked up Marie's mantle and is making pies that surpass even hers.

You'll find them at a place called The Pie Hole on Traction Avenue in the Los Angeles art district. With flavors such as Turkish coffee, earl grey, Mexican chocolate and maple custard (quite likely the best pie I have ever tasted) this is a place that clearly does not deal in humble pie.

Everything here is made lovingly from scratch and there is no skimping on ingredients. The only corners they cut are on sheets of pie dough so they will fit into a round pan.

Run by people who take pie as seriously as I do, The Pie Hole started out as a mother-son operation, just like Marie Callender's.

Thanks to the Pie Hole, the sprit of Marie Callender lives on. No wonder Rachel Ray says pie is the new cupcake -- as though a cutesy cupcake could ever compare to a comforting slice of pie.

Razzleberry Cream Pie

Rivaling homemade, these pies from The Pie Hole in downtown Los Angeles keep the spirit of Marie Callender alive and well. (TOM HARTE)

Torn between fruit pie and cream pie? Try this combination, a recipe adapted from tablespoon.com, which pays homage to Marie Callender, who trademarked the term "razzleberry."

1 9-inch pie crust

3 cups mixed berries

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, divided

1/3 cup flour plus 10 tablespoons flour, divided

2 eggs

1/2 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 and 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 cup melted butter

* Line pie pan with pastry and place berries in the bottom. Mix 1 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, eggs, sour cream, and vanilla until smooth. Pour over berries.

* Combine brown sugar, remaining 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and remaining 10 tablespoons flour. Add butter and mix until crumbly. Sprinkle over top of pie. Bake at 350º 50-60 minutes until set.

Tom Harte's book, "Stirring Words," is available at local bookstores. A Harte Appetite airs at 8:49 a.m. Fridays on KRCU, 90.9 FM. Contact Tom at semissourian.com or at the Southeast Missourian, P.O. Box 699, Cape Girardeau, MO 63702-0699.