There are a group of recipes known as "desperation pies" that came about out of necessity during America's Great Depression which took place from 1929–1941
Desperation pies, also known as "make-do" pies, are made with simple ingredients that home cooks usually had on hand and were not overly expensive. Common types of desperation pies included vinegar pie, chess pie, mock apple pie, shoofly pie, sugar cream pie, water pie.
When recipes are passed down from one generation to another, it's passing down a story. It's suddenly so much more than a pie, or a cake, its a retelling of our own ancestral past. Food is a key part of social history. When we include such recipes in our own kitchens and our menus, we are are living the stories of those times in which they come from. Desperation pies tell us the story of the ingenuity of the Depression era housewives that found ways to still bake for their families using what limited resources were available to them at the time.
Water Pie
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 cup flour
1 cup sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
5 Tbsp. butter, divided into 5 pats
A simple single pie crust
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F
Roll crust dough into a regular nine-inch pie plate. Crimp or trim the edges of excess dough. Place pie pan on a cookie sheet
Pour the water into the pie crust.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour and sugar. Whisk until well mixed. Sprinkle flour mixture into the water. Do not stir.
Drizzle the vanilla extract into the pie. Place the pats of butter at the top of the mixture so they float.
Bake at 400 degrees F for 30 minutes. Then reduce the heat to 375 degrees F for 25-30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
I used this technique to make what I call, chocolate milk pie. I simply replace the 1 ½ cups water with 1 ½ cups chocolate milk and you get a brownie like pie, drizzle it with chocolate syrup and top with whipped cream and you have a bit more modern flavor profile using a vintage baking technique.
There is nothing to say that you can’t take these vintage recipes and give them a more modern twist, they have great bones. Don’t be afraid to experiment and to add your touches. You're just adding your bit of the story to the history of these recipes.
#VintageRecipes #desperationpies #greatdepressionrecipes #ourstories