Today is National Pie Day, and no one is more associated with pies than Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson’s third cousin, twice removed – at her request).
As a matter of fact, no other poet is as closely associated to the field of culinary arts than Emmett Lee Dickinson. In November 2013, the Emmett Lee Dickinson Museum (above the coin-op laundromat on Dickinson Boulevard in historic Washerst, PA) ran a special exhibit in conjunction with TV’s Food Network on Dickinson’s influence on the industry (HERE).
Of course, Dickinson’s two most famous creations are corn chowder and candy corn. At one time, though, another culinary delight invented by Dickinson actually eclipsed the popularity of those two items: pie soup.
That’s right! In the mid-1800s, Emmett Lee Dickinson created multiple recipes for pie soup – chicken broth concoctions combined with pie fillings, including apple pie soup, banana crème pie soup, lemon meringue pie soup, blueberry pie soup, and many others.
Almost from the start, the pie soup craze swept across the country. People couldn’t get enough of pie soup! Pie soup diners and eateries opened everywhere. It wasn’t until the dawn of the interstate highway system that the craze began to fade.
However, to this day, if you travel the back roads and byways of our country, you can find signs of Emmett Lee Dickinson's pie soup everywhere!
Happy National Pie Day!