Sugar cream pie
A slice of sugar cream pie
Alternative namesSugar pie, Hoosier pie
TypeCustard pie
Place of originUnited States
Main ingredientsFlour, butter, vanilla, cream, sugar

Sugar cream pie (also known as sugar pie or Hoosier pie) is a custard pie made with a simple filling of butter, flour, cream and sugar sprinkled with cinnamon sugar.[1] It is considered one of the desperation pies because the custard filling is made without eggs. The dessert may also be called finger pie in reference to the filling being stirred by the cook's finger before baking, as doing so avoids breaking the crust.[2] It is similar to chess pie.

History

A pre-packaged slice of sugar cream pie in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Sugar cream pie is the unofficial state pie of Indiana,[3] where it is believed to have originated with Quaker settlers who came from North Carolina in the early 19th century, and thereafter settled in east-central Indiana, particularly around the cities of New Castle, Portland, Richmond, and Winchester.

The Amish also popularized sugar cream pie, making the pie easy to find where they populated. In particular, the pie is a favorite in the Pennsylvania Dutch areas, much as is shoofly pie, a similar dessert. Shakers also have a variant of the pie.[2] However, as the Shakers had to abandon their community of West Union (Busro) (near modern-day Vincennes, Indiana) in 1827, their only presence in Indiana ever (1810–1827), it is unlikely that they made the dessert popular in the state.[4]

The largest producer of these pies is Wick's Pies, whose plant is in Winchester, Indiana, and makes 750,000 sugar cream pies a year. They are recognizable for their nutmeg dusting and shallow depth in a disposable aluminum pan. The recipe Wick's uses came directly from a family recipe originating from the nineteenth century. The pies sell in 25 states.[5][6][7]

References

  • Stuttgen, Joanne Raetz (2007). Cafe Indiana: A Guide to Indiana's Down-Home Cafes. Terrace Books. ISBN 978-0-299-22494-3.
  • Slater, Shirley (2008). Frommer's Exploring America by RV. Frommer's. ISBN 978-0-470-18404-2.

Notes

  1. ↑ Davidson, Alan (2014). The Oxford Companion to Food. Oxford University Press. p. 213. ISBN 9780199677337.
  2. 1 2 Stradley, Linda. "History of Sugar Cream Pie". What's Cooking America. Retrieved 2009-01-11.
  3. ↑ "State Emblems and Symbols". visitindiana.com. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
  4. ↑ Stuttgen p. 277
  5. ↑ Evans, Tim (January 10, 2009). "Sweet dream of a pie may get state honor". The Courier Journal. Archived from the original on January 19, 2013. Retrieved 2009-01-10.
  6. ↑ Richmond, Bill (January 6, 2009). "Legislature to consider designating sugar cream - Hoosier Pie". Winchester News-Gazette. Retrieved 2009-01-11.
  7. ↑ Stuttgen p. 254

See also

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