INTRODUCING THE PRIMER FOR THE ULTIMATE PORTABLE PASTRY: HAND PIES From savory empanadas to pot pies, patties, and pasties, the first hand pies provided a portable and quick meal, satiating appetites for hours.And who could resist a complete meal in edible packaging? Whether it’s potato-and-pea samosas or spinach-and-feta spanakopita, nearly every geographical region in history has offered a savory version of hand pies.Thus, the jump to sweet hand pies was only natural.

Though baked sweet pies were likely a concept brought to America by colonists, it’s said that the first sweet fried pie in the US was a beacon of the South.Dating back to 1770, these pies were slitted multiple times for venting and were filled with a popular crab apple filling, duly gaining the nickname of “crab lanterns.” As technologies progressed, hand pies entered commercial production.In the 1920s, Hubig’s Pies became the local pie authority in New Orleans, Louisiana, packaging hand pies in flavors like lemon, apple, and peach and setting the stage for brands like B&G Pies, Hostess, and Drake’s to hit the market in later years.

These convenient treats continue to sweep the nation—and for delicious reason.No matter how you fill it, fry it, or bake it, this treat, rich with culture and history, is versatile and simple to pull together once

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