The Semantics of Cobbler
Apple and Smoked Gouda Pie - Side View
Pie, in all its forms, is comfort. Pie is home. Pie is a sense of longing, and perhaps a sense of belonging. It doesn’t matter what kind of pie it is, as long as it’s good. And although it’s a type of pie, I’m not counting pizza in this equation. I’m talking of small-p “pie,” as in the entire pie family. Grunts. Crisps. Cobblers. Gallettes. Tarts. Crostata.
No matter whether or not you’ve ever made one yourself, nor whether or not you like to make them; I’m sure you’ve got a fond sense-memory of pie somewhere in your mind, and hopefully it’s not brought on by one brought home from Baker’s Square for the holidays.
Some will tell you it’s very difficult to make, and give you all sorts of reasons why you shouldn’t make it. Or why they couldn’t, why it was way too hard. But they, too, have a particular pie ideal in mind, and maybe what they’re trying (and failing) to tell you is that they can’t live up to their pie ideals, no matter how hard they’ve tried. Which is sad, because if you don’t keep trying, you’re never going to master your pie. And it’s really not that hard…or at least, it shouldn’t be. I know I say that a lot, but this time, I mean it. All those members of the pie family as listed above exist for one reason and one reason alone: pies are deeply personal. Don’t like the way you’re being told to make that pie? If you have your wits about you, it’s not hard to change to suit your needs and tastes.
Perhaps the reason pie is so comforting to so many people lies in the heart and soul that goes into making a pie. It’s something that can’t be mass-produced, and even if you’re someone who only bakes at holidays, it doesn’t matter—you’re still putting a part of yourself out there on the line for everyone to take part in. My mother was someone who only baked at holidays, but even so, she had a very firm MO for her pies. Pumpkin and chess, almost every time—and a half-shortening, half-butter crust too. Piemaking is all about taking a stand, whether you do it once a year or all year round—it’s quite possibly the most broad-ranging form of culinary expression there is.
Why do I say this? Because while people may have their differences in eating patterns, whether they be vegans, vegetarians, carnivores, or omnivores, I’m almost willing to bet that more people around the world have attempted making some form of pie at some point in their lives than any other food-family. The pie family is a universal concept, and everyone’s a member.
This may sound like an overstatement, but a good pie is thought-provoking like nothing else. And at this time of year, we’re all likely to be lost deep in thought. I myself hope to be lost in a sweet potato pie sometime soon.
No matter what kind of pie most moves you, just keep one thing in mind: it’s far more than just pie.
With that in mind, I’ll let you in one one of my favorite things to watch on TV. While it’s food-related, it’s not, strictly speaking, a food show. It does, however, revolve around pie—in the grand sense I talked about above, as well as in the more literal, edible sense. If you haven’t been watching Pushing Daisies, which airs Wednesday nights on ABC, I hope you’ll give it a chance. Unfortunately, the future doesn’t bode well for this lovely (and pie-filled) show; viewership is unfortunately down from last season, and SavePushingDaisies.net has been coordinated by fans to bring a few different “save our show” campaigns together for ease of use.
Curious, but worried you’ll be lost if you tune in? Worry no more; ABC’s got you covered. 
Full episodes can also be viewed online at the official Pushing Daisies website.
Janaki
on November 21st, 2008 at 11:11 am
[...] look like a crumble…it’s too composed. Still, keeping in mind for a moment some recent observations I had about the nature of pie as a concept, it’s well within bounds. A recipe will follow in the next post…though of course I [...]