PIES OFFER A SLICE OF AMERICANA

Pie seems the quintessential American dessert.

Perhaps it is because pie is such a comfort food.

"Pie can be homey on one hand and very sophisticated on the other," said Dr. Tom Harte, a professor of speech communications at Southeast Missouri State University. He also writes a biweekly food column for the Southeast Missourian, "A Harte Appetite."

This self-professed pie lover is a charter member of the American Pie Council based in Denver, Colo.

The Southeast Missourian is soliciting recipes for its Pie in the Sky Bake-off. Deadline for the competition is Monday. So far, more than 55 pie recipes have been received. All the recipes will be published in the Dec. 16 edition.

Bonnie West, executive director of the American Pie Council, agreed that pies are part of America's heritage.

"Pies make people feel good," she said. "If you ask people who is the best pie maker they know, 35 percent say their mom."

Pie is popular coast to coast, but each region has its favorite, said West.

"Apple and pumpkin are by far the most popular," she said. "But in the South, squash and Key lime pies are big. Lemon meringue pies are more popular on the West Coast."

Harte recently returned from a trip to New York City, and indeed homemade pies were aplenty even in the Big Apple.

"Pies really take us back to the days when mom was making a pie and leaving it on the windowsill to cool," he said. "There was nothing like the aroma drifting through the house. There's a homespun quality even to fancy pie."

Many people still make pies from scratch.

"The crust is still the hardest part of most pies. Once you master that, you can go to town. Most fillings take only a few minutes," he said. But Harte said that refrigerated pie crusts are becoming more respectable.

Manufactured pies -- both frozen and fresh -- also represent a billion-dollar-a-year industry, she said.

Cream pies are his favorite, followed closely by such nut pies as pecan and walnut.

"A lot of recipes are handed down," he said. "That's part of the unique attraction."

The pie council urges families to pass along recipes between the generations, along with the tried and true taste secrets.

Two cooks using the same recipe can turn out very different pies, said West.

"That's why our national pie championship is based on taste, not recipes," said West. "People carry them on their laps in the airplane."

PIE IN THE SKY BAKE-OFF

Deadline: Monday, Dec. 7

Categories:

*Meat-vegetable pies such as chicken pie, Shepherd's pie or spinach and onion pie.

*Baked fruit pies such as apple, pumpkin or berry pies.

*No-bake pies such as Key lime, lemonade or other refrigerated pies.

*Pudding Pies such as banana cream or chocolate cream.

*All-time favorites such as pecan pie, eg custard, peanut butter pie or brownie pie. These pies don't fit in the other categories.

Subission: Mail recipies to Pie in the Sky Bake-Off, Southeast missourian, Box 699, Cape girardeau, Mo., 63701, or drop by any of the Missourian's offices. Include your name and phone number.

Judging: Finalists in each category will be notified by Wednesday, Dec. 9. They will be asked tpo bake a pie and bring it in Saturday, Dec. 12 by 10 a.m. Winners in each category along with a blue-ribbon champion will be announced Dec. 16, along with publication of all entires.