The Promise of Pie

Bucks County, Pa., bakeries and farm stands take inspiration from fresh produce to offer homemade varieties of the dessert that never goes out of season.

By: Amy Brummer
   Few foods are as tied to the history of America as the iconic apple pie. From the Pilgrims at Plymouth Rock to the homesteaders forging their way across the Rockies, the hardships were great, but at least at some point during the day there was the promise of pie.
   An ancient dish dating back to the roots of civilization, pie has its origins in Egypt, eventually catching on with the Greeks and Romans, before it spread throughout the European continent. A well-loved dish of the English, who brought it to the New World, apple pie was served at least once, if not multiple times a day in the kitchens of colonists and pioneers in America, where it achieved a popularity unrivaled by the rest of the world.
   Thus the phrase "as American as apple pie" referred to those things that originated abroad but came to be defined as distinctly American. And while that still holds true, the pie also reflects another important aspect of our society — industriousness and consumer choice.
   Not only have the choices widened to include blueberry, peach, cherry and pecan, to name a few, but there’s the open top, the lattice top and the crumb top, as well as pie filling, fresh and frozen fruit, not to mention the great shortening vs. butter debate.
   Just cruise around to area bakeries and farm stands to get a sense of the diversity.
   At Cramer Bakery in Yardley, Pa., pie is always in season. This old-fashioned bakery, which will celebrate its 60th anniversary in October, bakes pies from scratch with fresh ingredients. Owner Tom Cramer notes that summer is the biggest pie season because customers are looking for something a little lighter in a dessert. A hefty 8-inch fruit pie ($9.95) weighs in around three pounds, and while it may be heavy in the hand, it will do an excellent job of anchoring the picnic tablecloth until many forks lighten the load. Also worth noting is the bakery’s apple caramel pie, layered with fresh fruit and handmade caramel ($14.95).
   At the Market at Styer Orchards in Langhorne, Pa., apple caramel pie is made with walnuts ($8.99), giving the bubbly brown top crust an extra layer of texture where the nuts and filling ooze from the little vent hole in the middle. This summer, the bakery added an orchard fruit pie ($9.99), rich with apricots, peaches and cherries and wrapped in a vanilla crust, to its line-up of homemade pies that include blueberry, cherry and peach pecan praline ($5.99-$8.99). The bakery also carries a sugar-free apple pie ($5.99) for those who want the indulgence without the extra sweeteners.
   "The apples have a lot of natural sweetness," says Jane Rice, owner of Just Loaf’n in Newtown, Pa., who also carries a sugar-free version of her delicate apple pie. She just tosses it with some spices and lets the fruit do the rest. Using fresh, local ingredients when she can find them, like the blackberries from her friend’s garden that she recently tossed into a tart with peaches and plums, Ms. Rice takes her inspiration from the seasons.
   Delicate yet rustic, with a short, crumbly crust, Ms. Rice’s pies are always baked fresh and never frozen. And sidestepping the singular fruit pie, she often mixes fruits to create dynamic combinations like apple with cranberry or pear. On a recent visit, a lovely apple and walnut pie ($11) paid tribute to the waning summer with its addition of tangy red raspberries.
   At Manoff Market Gardens in Solebury, the trees dictate what pies are for sale. A producer of tree-ripened peaches and nectarines, the farm provides all of the fruit for the market’s pies, which make them especially sweet and vibrant. It’s a rare treat to get a fresh-baked white peach pie ($10) with crumb topping, and for a short time each summer, it’s worth it to make the trip to Solebury to find this fragrant treasure. Peaches are in season until the second week of September, and after that their pies will feature a variety of apples from the farm’s orchards.
   And for the most enterprising of pie eaters, there is always the do-it yourself option, and now is the time to take advantage of pick-your-own farms, like Styer’s Orchards, for the best fruit of the season.
   Then, of course, it doesn’t hurt to have a little ice cream on hand to take that slice of pie to the next level. By the end of Labor Day weekend, Goodnoe Family Restaurant will close its doors after 53 years, leaving countless Bucks County residents without a favorite ice cream with which to à la mode their pie. So stop by the restaurant’s ice cream counter or keep an eye out for those last pints and quarts in the freezer section of area stores and buy them now to enjoy the end of an era and say farewell to an establishment that was "as American as apple pie."
Cramer Bakery is located at 18 E. Afton Ave., Yardley, Pa. Hours: Tues.-Sat. 6:30 a.m.-8 p.m. Sun until 6 p.m. (On Mondays the bakery is technically closed, but staff is on site and leftover items from the weekend are on sale for 50 percent off.) For information, call (215) 493-2760.
The Market at Styer Orchards is located at 1121 Woodbourne Road, Langhorne, Pa. Hours: Mon.-Fri. 6 a.m.-7:30 p.m., Sat. 8 a.m.-7:30 p.m., Sun. 8 a.m.-6 p.m. For information, call (215) 757-7646. On the Web: www.styerorchardsmarket.com
Just Loaf’n is located at 2150 S. Eagle Road (Newtown Farmer’s Market), Newtown, Pa. Hours: Thurs. 9 a.m.-6 p.m., Fri. 9 a.m.-7 p.m., Sat. 9 a.m.-4 p.m. For information, call (215) 504-5623 (LOAF).
Manoff Market Gardens is located at 3157 Comfort Road, Solebury, Pa. Hours: Daily 9 a.m.-5 p.m. For information, call (215) 297-8220. On the Web: www.manoffmarketgardens.com
Styer’s Orchards is located at 97 Styer Lane, Langhorne, Pa. Hours: Daily 9 a.m.-6 p.m. For information, call (215) 702-9633.
Goodnoe Family Restaurant is located at 298 N. Sycamore St., Newtown. It will close permanently at the end of the day Sept. 4. For information, call (215) 968-3875.