"Pie" news and stories

Happy National Pie Day!

You may have had your fill of pie after Thanksgiving's waistline-expanding offerings, but there's truly a pie for every craving -- in fact, there are only two mandates: Pies have crusts, and pies have fillings. They may have just a crust base, only a crust top, or even sandwich the filling in two layers. The crusts themselves can be fluffy puff pastry, buttery short crust, crunchy meringue, or even dense blankets of mashed potatoes. Overall, there are lighter, fruity pies (Raspberry Creme Fraiche Pie with Lavendar Honey); hearty salty-sweet ones (Caramel-Nut Tart); even comforting savory ones, hearty enough to satisfy appetites on long winter nights (Canadian Pork Pie, Mushroom and Barley Pie, Chicken Pot Pies with Bacon and Marjoram).

What's your favorite go-to pie recipe? Link it to us, in the comments!

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Each Thursday, we round up a selection of scrumptious links from our friends over at YumSugar. Here's what they've got cooking this week:

• From hops to tap: catch a glimpse of how one brewery brings out the beer.
• Is your scotch schooling up to snuff?
• Baby back ribs heart blueberries.
• You could use flour tortillas, but then this flank steak might go all viva la revolución on you.
• San Francisco declared war over pie.
• Cat Cora can make you a better home cook in eight easy steps.

Happy National Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie Day!

Few things are more suited to a hot summer day than the fusion of strawberry and rhubarb in a freshly baked pie, tempering the sweetness of heaps of juicy strawberries with the tartness of chopped rhubarb (appropriately addressed by the slang term "pie plant"). And if the thought of a hot oven heating up an already stuffy home makes you hesitant, this pie's equally good devoured cold or at room temperature, topped with a healthy dollop of chilly vanilla ice cream.

Grandma's Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie on the Food Network lightens the pie with lemon zest and juice; Epicurious tops the pie with a cheerful lattice crust; even Cindy Crawford has a favorite rendition, seasoned with nutmeg. But the winning claim to fame that we favor? SimplyRecipes dishes up a Strawberry-Rhubarb Crumb Pie that took first prize at the local fair -- simple summer desserts don't get any more spirited than that.

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President Barack Obama is known for his cool, collected demeanor, but according to his senior advisor, David Axelrod, he's got a weakness like the rest of us. What can't Obama resist? Pie.

During an appearance on Jay Leno's "Tonight Show" on Friday night, Axelrod spilled the beans about the president's affection for the classic dessert, gleefully telling Leno that the White House pastry chef's pies "became a big problem," for the president.

Axelrod and Obama are close friends in addition to being colleagues, and it's likely that Axelrod was having fun at Obama's expense: He mentioned at the end of the interview that the president lectures him about diet, exercise and his "beer gut."

Happy National Banana Cream Pie Day!

The classic diner dessert may vary in terms of additives -- chocolate shavings, graham cracker crust versus pastry dough, cinnamon, coffee or other updated nuances -- but in its traditional form, involves three primary simplistic ingredients that combine into an elegant trifecta: crust, banana filling and a light meringue topping. Wrote one L.A. Times reporter, "Pie lovers here debate the merits of the Apple Pan in West Los Angeles versus the Pie 'n Burger in Pasadena with the same vigor and pertinacity brought to bear on the subject of Obama versus Clinton on the Sunday-morning talk shows."

How do you enjoy your pie -- classic or creatively updated? Link to your favorite tried-and-true banana cream pie recipes in the comments!

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