Welcome back to our series sharing Food Holidays: April 27th, 2022. Did you know today is National Blueberry Pie Day? This is David’s dad’s favorite dessert and before you ask me if Charlie and I made him a Pie no, we didn’t. Nor did we purchase one for him as his Blood Sugar has been high which isn’t good for his Diabetes. So we will sit this Holiday out. Unless you want a slice of Blueberry Pie and I can pick you up a slice at the Grocery Store.
Five Finds about Blueberries
- Blueberries are one of the only natural foods that are truly blue in color.
- The pale, powder-like protective coating on the skin of Blueberries is called “bloom.”
- A Blueberry extract diet improves balance, coordination, and short-term memory in aging rats.
- Blueberries are the official berries of Nova Scotia, Canada.
- The Anthocyanin present in Blueberries is good for eyesight.
On National Blueberry Pie Day, April 28th, we gather to celebrate the wonder of nature’s only true-blue Fruit baked into a Doughy, Buttery Pastry. It just so happens that, at the time of this holiday, the first Blueberries in North America will be coming into Season. The Blueberries are ripe for the plucking, ready to be Sugar-powdered and baked. This underappreciated dessert has deep roots in American Colonial History.
HISTORY OF NATIONAL BLUEBERRY PIE DAY
The Blueberry Pie, which usually consists of a Classic Pie Dough filled with a Berry mixture as well as Sugars, Flour, and Lemon Juice, is sort of a victory dessert. Before the U.S. became an independent Country, Native Americans lived off the land and used Blueberries, which they called Star Berries, as a source of survival.
In modern times, we look to Blueberries as a cutesy addition to Ice Cream or a nutritional addition to Smoothies. Back in the Colonial days, Native Americans crushed and dehydrated Blueberries and used the resulting powder as a supplementary boost in their foods all year long. Now recognized as a Superfood, Blueberries are packed with Antioxidants, Phytoflavinoids, Potassium, and Vitamin C. Historians speculate that without the Blueberry, the earliest Settlers in North America may not have survived their first Winter in the new Country.
As civilization continued to expand and farmers began growing produce at a much higher rate, American settlers were no longer so hard-pressed for nutrients and could begin to use the friendly fruits for their flavor rather than their sustainable nutrition. It was in these times, the late 18th and early 19th Centuries, that tBlueberry became the sweet dessert we celebrate today.
The original Blueberry Pie was baked with Wild Maine Blueberries from Maine, where the Fruit grows liberally without much assistance from farmers. To this day, the Blueberry Pie is Maine’s National Dessert. Though Apple Pie seems to have cemented itself as the most stereotypically American dessert, we believe Blueberry Pie is as vital to our Nation’s history as the blue rectangle on our flag.
HOW TO CELEBRATE NATIONAL BLUEBERRY PIE DAY
- Lots of family farms in States all across the Country are open during harvest season for guests to arrive and collect their own Berries. Rather than purchasing a carton of Berries in the produce department, you’ll be supporting a local business.
- There’s one very straightforward task that you simply must accomplish on this holiday. Have a slice of Blueberry Pie. Why not go through the whole process of creating your own Blueberry Pie? To avoid a runny Pie, incorporate a bit of Cornstarch in with your Blueberries before baking.
- Surely you know someone that could use a little Spring pick-me-up. Baking two pies won’t take any additional time, and you’ll be able to help another person celebrate the holiday and you may make a new friend!
5 FACTS ABOUT PIE
- One of the number one Pie issues is keeping the Crust connected to the filling. Some bakers swear by baking the Crust on its own first before filling, while other bakers insist on putting the Crust in raw with the Pie intact.
- Back before refrigerators, the Crust on top of a Pie was meant to help preserve the filling. By covering the Fruits inside with a hard covering, families could keep the Fruits fresh for longer.
- The reason Pie was such a dinner staple in Colonial times is that it took far less time, and money to make than Bread.
- The first Pies, baked in Britannia Centuries ago, were originally filled with savories including Meat and Vegetables.
- Due to the nature of Pie Dough, bakers can make beautiful designs out of the top Crusts.
WHY PEOPLE LOVE NATIONAL BLUEBERRY PIE DAY
- Blueberry Pie used to be an incredibly common dessert; but the Blueberry Pie loss of popularity has left it in obscurity. We love this holiday because it offers us a chance to bake a Blueberry Pie that we probably haven’t eaten in a while, if ever.
- The environmental impact of consuming Fruits and Vegetables that are out of Season is huge, but we don’t have to worry about any of that on this day. The sweet festivities conveniently take place at the perfect time of year for picking ripe Wild Berries, which means we could actually be helping by luxuriating in these Indigo Juices.
- In the 21st Century, the desserts of the day are Cookies, Cakes, and of course, Ice Cream. Pie, as delicious as it is, seems to have fallen by the wayside. This late April, we’ll have the chance to pull out the Flour, Butter, and Berries and try our hand at baking.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
