National Apple Pie Day

May 13 is National Apple Pie Day and nothing is more American than apple pie… or is it?

Apple pie is actually a European creation. The French have “tarte tatin,” the Austrians “apfelstrudel” and the British apple pie.

Apples found their way to the United States via the early British colonists who carried over apple seeds and apple tree seedlings. The apple is a tricky fruit to grow as the characteristics of the mother plant do not necessary carry over to the fruit grown from its seed.

Still, Americans were creating–and writing about–apple pie from the early 18th century onwards. The phrase “as American as apple pie” actually comes from the World War II era where servicemen and women were instructed to answer reporters that they were fighting for “mom and apple pie.”

^{(photo © Dan Parsons/cc license)}