Sunday, September 9, 2007

A Delightful Slice of 3.1459265


Pie Town, New Mexico, with a population of roughly 65, is home to a lowly two restaurants–The Daily Pie and the Pie-O-Neer. It is also home to the annual pie festival. These people clearly love pie. And since I love pie as well, and free camping, I traveled with some friends from New Mexico Tech to this tiny village to indulge in a slice of heaven. The pie festival featured a pie baking contest, which I would have entered without a second thought had I realized it. Siona, however, submitted her own creation–a prickly-pear and strawberry pie. Unfortunately, it didn't place. Can the judges be trusted?

On the bright side, we enjoyed a day of bizarre and exciting activities, including a pie-eating contest (and no, I did not enter) and a horny-toad race. You read correctly, a horny-toad race. An ethnographer would have a field day with this one. And of course, there was PIE.

The first slice to enter my mouth was purchased on the fair-grounds from a pie stand. The crust, which was thick and rustic, had a fine taste. My cherry filling, however, was from a can. Hugely disappointing. It wasn't even good canned pie filling. But I suppose that's what you get for $2 a slice. Next I headed over to the Pie-O-Neer to try the famed, and Smithsonian-featured, New Mexico Apple Pie. This pie is an intriguing combination of apples, green chile, and pine nuts. Mmmm-mm. I had it a la mode. It would have been better warm, but the filling was a great play of flavors. Sweet and hot go together like Bonnie and Clyde. Some other award-winning sweet and hot flavor combinations in the Land of Enchantment include the Red Chile Dark Chocolate Pate from Santa Fe's Chocolate Smith on 2nd St. and Heidi's organic Raspberry, Ginger, and Red Chile Jam from Heidi's Raspberry Farm in Corrales. So much food, so little time.

I would have liked to have tried a slice of Pie from the Daily Pie, but there just wasn't any room left in my guts. There's always next year...

3 comments:

San said...

As you know, the red chile/dark chocolate combo at Chocolatesmith doesn't quite calculate for me. It IS a little like Bonnie & Clyde--villainous. Especially the aftertaste. But apples and green chile and pine nuts--that gets me salivating. That's a pi I could do long division with.

Flannery said...

Clever, "a pi I could do long division with." I like it.

Bennie said...

The great thing about running enough to stay in shape is that you can indulge your passion for pie whenever you want. Take it from ye olde WildBillTickTock, more miles equals more pie... And more malts etc...

Along with Flanny's other numerous interests and skills is a not so nuanced ability to create things delicious in the kitchen. You go grill, er, ah girl!