Pie Sign in Portland

A retro pie sign in Portland, Oregon, spotted by my friend Angela on her way to work!

Braceros' Cafeteria Pie

This photo, of women cooks/bakers preparing to serve pie to Mexican workers in Hood River County, Oregon, c. 1943, comes to us by way of the Oregon State University Archives. According to the Archive, almost the entire work force of international migrant workers at that time was composed of over 15,000 young Mexican nationals, who came to the U.S. via the Bracero Program, a WWII era labor initiative between the United States and Mexico. The Braceros, as they were called, were employed on farms and orchards where there were critical labor shortages due to the war. Many faced poor living conditions and suffered from labor disputes and lack of interpreters. When American men returned from the war after 1945, most of these workers lost their jobs and were deported to Mexico. Though Braceros essentially saved American agriculture during WWII, they are generally not recognized for their labor and contribution.

Just as I'm curious about the lives of the Braceros, in particular their songs, traditions, and other labor lore, I also wonder who the women in the above photo were--Wives and daughters of Bracero camp managers? Single mothers in need of work? What was there their own work culture, in juxtaposition to those of the Braceros, and what might have been the intersection between those two worlds of Mexican laborers and American women whose husbands or brothers were away at war? And also importantly, what kind of pie is that? Apple, peach, or pear with fruit from the orchard, perhaps?

You can see more photos of the series here (though none others contain pie) and read more about the Braceros via Oregon Public Broadcasting here. Also check out Woody Guthrie's song Deportee, which was written about the 1948 death of 28 Braceros who were being deported back to Mexico.

It's about that time of year...

To go berry picking for your summer pies, tarts, and jams! It's still strawberry season in the North, and on to blueberries in the South. Raspberries, black raspberries, and blackberries will be ready soon.

The pictures above are from the Oregon State University Archives, and feature berry pickers on Oregon "victory farms" in 1946.

*Top: "Kneeling is Stanley Boyer -- one of the best strawberry pickers in the Portland area. His record was 21 crates of strawberries in a 6 hour day."
*Middle: "Joan Renner, 15 years old, from West Linn, is transferring blackcaps from her picking carrier to a crate on the John Phillips farm in the Carus community of Clackamas County."
*Bottom: " Portland Victory Farm Volunteer raspberry picking platoon at lunch at a farm near Troutdale, Oregon."

Happy summer solstice and happy picking!

Putting Meringue on Lemon Pies

A 1940 U.S. Forest Service photograph: "CCC enrollee baker Toivo Maki is putting meringue on lemon pies which he baked for the enrollees at the Gegoka CCC camp, Superior National Forest, Minnesota."

Find out more at Oregon State University's digital collections.

The Pie of By-and-By

Michael Hurley is one of my favorite musicians in the world. His songs have that perfect balance of rawness and beauty that makes for real musical honesty that I can't get enough of. He has been putting out records since his release First Songs on Folkways in 1964, but has successfully avoided getting popular (though I'd definitely call him famous, at least among music nerds). Another thing I like about his music is that he often sings about pies (and paints them too). I could go on for quite a while about his music and art, but since this is a pie blog, I'll cut to the chase.

Here is one of his album covers from Wolf Ways released in 1994:

It depicts his werewolf alter-ego, chowing down on what appear to be whoopie pies (?), with some double-crust pies on deck. Here is one of the pie-themed songs (and one of my favorites) on this album, though a different version, this one from his 1998 LP Long Journey:

Check out some more of his pie songs, Water Train and Hoot Owls on Hi-Fi Snock Uptown (1972, and re-issued on Mississippi last year), as well as the rest of his catalog as soon as you get the chance.

Oh that pie, the pie of by-and-by...

** ADDENDUM**
Just received this great message from Mr. Hurley himself about this post...

dear Emily;

thanks for having me on the pie blog. I remain a huge fan of pie. it and tea are about the only consumable vices left to my options. a apple, pear, strawberry, blueberry, pies with no sugar but with honey and a whole wheat crust, they can't kill ya in moderation. I go into this place...my most frequented restaurant in portland, an americanized burrito joint, and they always have two pies they are selling slices out of, baked elsewhere, last time it was the ginger/pear, I order my burrito to eat there and get a slice of pie to go for late night when all the restaurants are closed and I'm hungry again.

cheers

Michael

grape pie?!

why, i never!

but jill & co. did.

So Many Plums

Among the treasures Dan and Jane inherited from the previous owners of their 1950s ranch (including a "sausage formula" tacked to the wall in the basement), was a half-dead but very productive Italian plum tree.



Last year, a friend made plum wine with the plums, and the year before someone made prunes. This year, they've been giving a lot away, eating some raw, making pancakes and preserves. Last night, Jane and I decided to do a little baking.

Dan had collected some wild blueberries and huckleberries. We sprinkled them on top of plums tossed with cinnamon for a beautiful crisp. The wild fruit gave it a delicious tartness.


Then we decided to try for a rustic plum tart. The Italian plums are a good choice for tarts because they are naturally drier than regular plums, so they don't create a ton of juice during baking. I had made several rustic apple tarts last fall, but could never get the crust flaky enough, so I was glad to have Jane's expertise. We used a food processor to make the dough (very basic recipe), and Jane rolled it out while I watched, still a little nervous about the crust. Jane had a tart pan, so we first formed the dough up against the fluted edges, then arranged the plum slices that had been tossed with ginger and cinnamon. At the last minute, we decided to fold the edges over the plums, finished it with egg glaze and a little sugar. Thus, I decided to call the tart semi-rustic, as it started as a fancier french-style tart, but ended up a tiny bit more rustic.



After a chili dinner provided by Mike, we decided to eat both the crisp and the tart.

Yummm!!! I was particularly amazed by the tart and its perfect crust. Here is a pic of Dan and Jane in the TEZ (Tart Enjoyment Zone). Mike and I aren't big ice cream eaters, so we had to use our old freezer-burned ice cream, but no one cared.


And this morning we ate the leftovers for breakfast of course!