My mother always said we did not come from an artistic family, but I beg to differ.  While we may not be artists in the traditional sense, we all have our own way of adding beauty to the world: for my mother, it is through her quilts, for me it is through my garden and for my Grandma Sally, it was through her pies.  

Everyone in our hometown knows my Grandma Sally was famous for two things:playing cards and baking pies.  If you invited her to an event, you could only hope that she would bring one of those sweet pies filled with the freshest of fruit. Strawberry, peach, blackberry and raspberry were just a few of her favorites.  She would roll out a perfectly flaky crust and carefully pinch the edge around the pan before filling it with whatever fruit was in season. She would meticulously choose the best looking pieces of fruit to sit at the top of her pies and she would arrange them so they made a spectacular display.  When she baked 2-crust pies, she would add her signature flower design to the top crust. Grandma’s pies were beautiful. She worked so hard on her pies, she wanted to make sure that everyone had a chance to try them. At holiday gatherings, you would often find her monitoring the dessert table to make sure none of us took more than one slice.  

I had the opportunity to spend hours in the kitchen with my Grandma Sally over the years, learning how to perfect my pie crusts and make those sweet fruit fillings.  I am now excited to share her recipes with you. I am sure you will enjoy my Grandma Sally’s Signature pies as much as I have over the years.

Julie Witten