Whether sweet or savory, today is the day to celebrate the ever delicious pie.
The first pies were created by the ancient Greeks and Romans, who filled pastry shells with either meat, chicken or fish combined with spices. During the 1600s the Pilgrims arrived in the New World with their English version of pies, filled with a variety of meats from lamb and beef to ducks and even pigeons. Sweet pies as we know them today, did not begin to emerge until the late 1800s. By the 1940s pie became a classic American dessert.
National Pie Day was created by s the National Pie Council, whose purpose was “to create and to preserve America’s heritage and promote their love for this food.” The beloved pie.
Of course you can make your own pie for National Pie Day, but if you are really looking to celebrate with a truly unique pie, venture out to Kerber’s Farm on West Pulaski Road in Huntington.
My favorite is their s’mores pie. A delicate graham cracker crust is filled with at least two inches of a delectably rich chocolate ganache made with high quality dark Belgian chocolate, butter and cream. The pie is topped with a thick layer of real marshmallows that have been caramelized with a cooking torch. Pure decadence!
Their other popular pie is the Kerberry, Kerber’s own creation using strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, orange rind and fresh vanilla beans.
Kerber’s sells at least 10 varieties of pies, depending on what’s in season. Right now their apple, blueberry, coconut cream, Kerberry and s’mores pie are their most popular. During the summer they sell peach, key lime and strawberry rhubarb, and during the holidays, pumpkin, pecan and peppermint. Most pies come in both the traditional 9-inch size as well as a mini 3 ½-inch pie.
“What makes our pies stand out from other pies out there, is that all our pies are homemade in-house,” says Kerber’s owner Nick Voulgaris III. “We make an all butter crust. We never use shortening. People are concerned today about what they put in their bodies, so we only use 100 percent natural ingredients.”
Along with their dessert pies, Kerber’s offers a variety of savory pies including macaroni and cheese, spinach, chicken pot pie and shepherd’s pie. In 2014 their chicken pot pie was named “tastiest dish” at an Taste of Long Island event.
“I think what makes pies so appealing to people is that it is a nostalgic, Americana-type food, which embodies a wholesome, genuine dessert. It’s not a fad,” states Voulgaris. “As the saying goes, it’s as American as apple pie. The pie carries out through all seasons. I saved Kerber’s from destruction and the building of condos, and now I can continue to serve Huntington and all of Long Island with high quality food items.”
