Things Mother Used to Make: A Nostalgic Collection of Traditional Pie Recipes

Pies hold a special place in the realm of comfort foods. They bring back memories of family gatherings, holidays, and the warmth of a home-cooked meal. This collection of traditional pie recipes is a testament to the time-honored skills and culinary creativity passed down through generations. Whether you are looking to revisit childhood memories or create new ones, these nostalgic recipes will surely bring a touch of history to your kitchen.

Rich Pie Crust

Ingredients:

• 3 cupfuls of flour
• 1 cupful of lard
• 1 dessertspoonful of salt

Instructions:

1. Mix salt and lard into the flour using your hands until thoroughly combined.
2. Add just enough ice-cold water to barely wet the mixture.
3. This recipe makes enough crust for two pies.

Pork Apple Pie

Ingredients:

• 4 apples
• 4 tablespoonfuls of sugar
• 1 teaspoonful of ground cinnamon
• 12 pieces of fat salt pork, each the size of a pea

Instructions:

1. Line a pie plate with rich crust.
2. Pare, core, and slice apples thinly to fill the plate.
3. Sprinkle with sugar, cinnamon, and pieces of pork.
4. Cover with crust and bake in a moderate oven.
5. Serve warm.

Chocolate Custard Pie

Ingredients:

• 1 pint of milk
• 4 tablespoonfuls of sugar
• 2 tablespoonfuls of cocoa or 1 square of chocolate
• 3 eggs
• Pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoonful of vanilla

Instructions:

1. Beat yolks of eggs and add sugar and salt.
2. Wet the cocoa with half a cup of warm milk and stir into the yolks. Add vanilla.
3. Line a deep pie plate with rich pie crust.
4. Pour in the mixture and bake until it rises.
5. Beat the whites to a stiff froth, add two tablespoonfuls of sugar, spread over the pie, and brown in a hot oven.

Cocoanut Pie

Ingredients:

• 1 pint of milk
• 3 eggs
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 cupful of grated coconut
• Piece of butter the size of a marble

Instructions:

1. Beat yolks of eggs, add sugar and salt, and beat again.
2. Add melted butter, milk, and coconut.
3. Line a deep pie plate with pie crust and pour in the mixture.
4. Bake until it rises but do not overbake.
5. Beat the whites of the eggs stiff, spread on top of the pie when it is cool, and set in the oven to brown.

Cranberry Pie

Ingredients:

• 1 quart of cranberries
• 1 1/2 cupfuls of water
• 2 scant cupfuls of sugar

Instructions:

1. Line a deep pie plate with crust.
2. Cook cranberries with water until tender, then rub through a colander.
3. Add sugar and boil for 15 minutes.
4. When cool, pour into the plate, lay narrow strips of pie crust from the center to the edge, and bake in a hot oven.

Cream Pie

Ingredients:

• 1 cupful of sweet cream
• 1/2 cupful of sugar
• White of one egg
• 1 teaspoonful of vanilla

Instructions:

1. Bake with two crusts.
2. Beat the white of the egg till stiff, add sugar, beat again, then stir in the cream and flavor.
3. Pour into the crust and bake.

Old-Time Custard Pie

Ingredients:

• 1 pint of milk
• 4 tablespoonfuls of sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoonful of salt

Instructions:

1. Line a deep plate with pie crust, pinching up a little edge around the plate.
2. Beat the eggs thoroughly, add sugar and salt, and beat again.
3. Add milk and stir well.
4. Pour into the plate and bake until it rises, removing before it wheys.
5. Grate a little nutmeg over the top.

Frosted Lemon Pie

Ingredients:

• 1 lemon
• 1 cupful of sugar
• 1 1/2 cupfuls of milk
• 3 eggs
• 2 tablespoonfuls of flour

Instructions:

1. Beat the yolks of the eggs, add flour, lemon juice, and rind.
2. Add a little milk and sugar, beat, then add the rest of the milk.
3. Line a plate with crust and pour in the mixture.
4. Bake carefully to avoid whey.
5. Beat the whites of the eggs to a stiff froth, add two tablespoonfuls of sugar, spread over the top, and brown in the oven.

Mock Mince Pie

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 crackers
• 1 cupful of raisins
• 1/2 cupful of molasses
• 1/2 cupful of sugar
• 1/3 cupful of vinegar
• 1 cupful of steeped tea
• 1 egg
• Spices of all kinds (1/2 teaspoonful of each)

Instructions:

1. Mix all ingredients together.
2. Line a pie plate with crust and pour in the mixture.
3. Cover with top crust and bake.

Pumpkin Pie, No. 1

Ingredients:

• 3 cupfuls of pumpkin (bright yellow kind preferred)
• 3 eggs
• 1 1/2 cupfuls of sugar
• 1 heaping tablespoonful of flour
• 1 teaspoonful of cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoonful of nutmeg
• 1 quart of milk
• A little salt

Instructions:

1. Boil pumpkin until very tender and press through a colander.
2. Mix all ingredients together.
3. Line two deep pie plates with crust and pour in the mixture.
4. Bake until they rise.

Pumpkin Pie, No. 2

Ingredients:

• 2 cupfuls of stewed and sifted pumpkin
• 2 crackers rolled fine (Boston crackers or 3 Uneedas)
• 1 cupful of sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 teaspoonful of cinnamon
• 1 pint of milk

Instructions:

1. Mix all ingredients together.
2. Pour into a deep pie plate lined with crust.
3. Bake in a slow oven for one hour.

Rhubarb Pie

Ingredients:

• 1 pint of rhubarb
• 1 cupful of sugar
• 1 tablespoonful of flour
• 1/2 teaspoonful of soda

Instructions:

1. Remove the skin and cut rhubarb into small pieces to fill a pint bowl.
2. Add soda and pour boiling water over to cover. Let stand for 15 minutes, then drain.
3. Line a deep plate with crust, add rhubarb, sugar, and flour.
4. Cover with crust and bake for 20-30 minutes.

Rolley Polys

Ingredients:

• Pie crust
• Jelly

Instructions:

1. Roll pie crust very thin and cut into strips four inches long and three inches wide.
2. Spread jelly over the strips and lap the crust over, pressing edges together.
3. Brush with milk and sprinkle with sugar.
4. Bake for 15 minutes.

Squash Pie

Ingredients:

• 2 cupfuls of squash
• 5 tablespoonfuls of sugar
• 1 tablespoonful of flour
• 2 cupfuls of milk
• 1 teaspoonful of ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoonful of salt
• 1 egg

Instructions:

1. Pare, boil, and sift squash through a colander.
2. Beat egg, add sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt.
3. Stir into the squash and add milk slowly.
4. Bake in a deep plate like a custard pie.

Cream Washington Pies

Ingredients:

• 1 egg
• 1/2 cupful of sugar
• 1 cupful of flour
• 1/2 cupful of milk
• 2 tablespoonfuls of melted butter
• 1 rounding teaspoonful of cream of tartar (scant)
• 1/2 teaspoonful of soda

Instructions:

1. Cream butter and sugar together, add well-beaten egg.
2. Stir soda and cream of tartar into milk, then add to the mixture.
3. Add flour and bake in three round shallow dishes.

Cream for Filling

Ingredients:

• 1 cupful of milk
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoonfuls of sugar
• 1 heaping tablespoonful of flour
• A little salt
• 1/2 teaspoonful of vanilla

Instructions:

1. Heat milk on the stove.
2. Mix sugar, flour, and salt into well-beaten egg and stir into boiling milk.
3. When cool, add vanilla and spread between layers of cake.