Pie Cookbooks Because That’s How I Roll

250 Superb Pies and Pastries (1950) Edited by Ruth Berolzheimer, Culinary Arts Institute

This cookbook is a fine example of Ruth’s work. She had her hand in so many beautiful cookbooks — here is one more. It’s the softcover format that’s long on vintage style.

Black-and-white images illustrate a technique or show off exceptional pies, but the full-color pics are what my cookbook lovin’ dreams are made of.

Chapters include:

• Chiffon Pies
• Cream and Custard Pies
• Fruit and Berry Pies
• Miscellaneous Pies
• Pastries and Meringues
• Tarts
• Fancy Pastries
• Cream Puffs

Beneath each chapter heading lies the list of pies and page numbers. Do remember that in 1950, shortening meant butter. If you see shortening in a recipe, use butter, okay?

Dive into dishes like Florida Pie, Rum Chiffon Pie, Lemon Potato Pie, Banbury Tarts, or Pineapple Tarts in just 48 pages. Cute and display-worthy, though be advised you may need some pie experience to bake from this one.

Vintage cookbooks, like this one, sometimes assume the baker has basic pie knowledge. If that ain’t you, get it for future

A la Mode: 120 Recipes in 60 Pairings: Pies, Tarts, Cakes, Crisps, and More Topped with Ice Cream, Gelato, Frozen Custard, and More (2016) by Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough

This book is a brilliant idea. How often do we top a homemade pie with ice cream? Find recipes for pie pairing galore. It’s 224 pages of incredible match-ups. My pie lovin’ dreams begin and end here.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Ice Cream Basics
• Pies and Tarts
• Crisps, Cobblers, and Fruit Desserts
• Bake Shop Treats: Cookies, Bars, Bear Claws, and More
• Cakes: Sponge, Pound, Sheet, Bundt, and More
• Layer Cakes and Other Celebrations

These recipes are something else.

Consider Bourbon Peach Pie with Vanilla Bean Gelato, Strawberry-Almond Crumb Pie with Banana-Nougatine Ice Cream, Chocolate Sugar Pie with Peanut Butter-Chocolate Ripple Frozen Custard, and Apricot Brandy Slab Pie with Chai Frozen Custard and a Lemon Curd Swirl.

Drool over the swoon-worthy images that go with many recipe

America’s Best Pies 2014-2015: Nearly 200 Recipes You’ll Love (2014) by American Pie Council with Linda Hoskins

Want to know about the best competition ever? Since 1995, the National Pie Championships have sought to crown the best-of-the-best pie makers in a multitude of categories.

This 8 x 1.4 x 9-inch cookbook features 200 of the best award-winners.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• American Pie Council’s Tips for a Great Pie
• Apple
• Cherry
• Chocolate
• Citrus
• Cream Cheese
• Cream
• Fruit and Berry
• Nut
• Open
• Peanut Butter
• Pumpkin
• Raisin
• Special Categories
• Special Dietary
• Sweet Potato

Edged in a red-and-white check, you’ll have zero issues following or reading recipes. Images dot a page here or there. Recipes share the name, location, competition, and award.

Look to Pumpkin Pie with a Kick, Berry Good Lemon Pie, Mama Mia’s Cherry Pie, Mint Chocolate Chip Cream Pie, and Chocolate Caramel Pecan Pie to give you an idea of what to expect.

For proven award-winners, this is a great place to start.

Apple Pie Perfect: 100 Delicious and Decidedly Different Recipes for America’s Favorite Pie (2002) by Ken Haedrich

You’ll find another “Pie” book by Ken Haedrich below — and you’ll like it. But this time, it’s all apple pie in 100 different ways over 250 pages (including the index).

Each chapter lists the pies and page numbers found within it (you know I love that).

Chapters include:

• Pastries for Your Apple Pies
• Apple Pies of Fall and Winter
• Distinctly Summer Apple Pies
• Very Apple Apple Pies
• Special Occasion Apple Pies
• The Cream of the Crop
• Apple Pie Pure and Wholesome
• When Apple Pie Meets Pantry
• Apple Pie on the Fringes
• A Few for the Kids
• Apple Pie in a Jiffy

Here I am trying to write this article to highlight the best pie cookbooks, and I’m marking what I need to make next.

Will it be Strawberry Pink Lady Apple Pie or Tropical Apple Pie with Coconut Crumb Topping? Vanilla Bean Apple Cherry Pie or All-Granny Pecan Crumb Crust Pie? It’s hard to say.

I know that the lengthy stories before each recipe and the callouts scattered through lend for an 8.5 x 1.25 x 9.5-inch cookbook you can read and use.

You’ll find a few images, but it’s going to be okay. You have so much apple info to read and Ken’s directions; you can’t go wrong.

The Artful Pie: Unforgettable Recipes for Creative Cooks (1993) by Lisa Cherkasky and Renee Comet

Okay, all you image lovers, The Artful Pie has images accompanying each recipe and a few extra photos just for fun. Devour 159 pages in this 10 x 0.5 x 10-inch book with your eyes and your fork.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Pie Crust Recipes
• Pie Crust Basics
• The Pies

Butter-Brickle Banana Cream, Cool Lime Pie with Tequila (I like the way they think), Strawberry-Orange Frappe Pie (wow!), Ultrasmooth Chocolate Mud Pie, and Chocolate Caramel Hazelnut Pie are decent representations of the goodness you’ll find here.

Get a load of the Lemon-Lime Slice Pie that uses whole lemons and limes, Shaker-style.

Art of the Pie: A Practical Guide to Homemade Crusts, Fillings, and Life (2016) by Kate McDermott

This is THE Kate McDermott of Pie Camps®. Learn from her experienced, expert hands throughout 352 pages in an 8.5 x 1.2 x 10.4-inch book devoted to all things pie (including the index, as always).

Cookbook readers and cookbook bakers: THIS is a masterpiece of a book that will make you BOTH beyond thrilled.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Flour, Salt, Fat, and Water: How to Make Pie Dough
• Fruit, Sweetener, Seasoning, and Thickener: How to Fill and Finish Your Pie
• The Quintessential Apple Pie
• A Berry Pie for Julia
• Sweet as a Peach (and Other Stone Fruits)
• Old Fashioned Rhubarb and Citrus Pies
• Creamy, Nutty, Cool, and Yummy
• Savory Supper Pies

Test Apple Cranberry Walnut Pie, Apricot Raspberry Pie, Raspberry Rhubarb Pie, or Angel Food Pie for a spectacular ending to any meal. Images are everywhere. Enjoy this feast for the eyes and your guests.

Best of Country Pies: Over 200 down-home favorites from the best cooks in the country (2001) by Reman Publications

You know the publisher as the one responsible for Taste of Home. Best of Country Pies is Taste of Home, but before TOH was TOH.

The cookbook follows the same familiar format with the name and location of the recipe submitter, followed by a short blurb and then the recipe. Some are more homemade than others.

Chapters include:

• Pie Pointers
• Fresh Fruit Pies
• Custard, Pudding, and Cream Pies
• Cool Refrigerator Pies
• Freezer and Ice Cream Pies
• Crisps and Cobblers
• Tempting Tarts

I’ve owned this cookbook for longer than my youngest (12 1/2) has been alive. I’ve made the Bluebarb Pie many times over the years. Judging from the pages, I made more recipes from this book than that, but I didn’t write in my cookbooks then, so I’m unsure what I made.

I need to make the Candy Bar Pie and the Tin Roof Pie. Yes, the Frosted Orange Pie too. I have plenty to explore. I think you’ll like this one, too.

Better Homes and Gardens 365 Pies and Tarts (2012) by Better Homes and Gardens

Each pie includes nutritional information and an occasional secondary recipe for a sauce or other topping. Don’t let it ruin your appetite. It’s pie! Enjoy it, all 416 pages (including the index) of them.

Chapters include:

• Pastry Primer
• Apples, Pears, and More
• Berries and Cherries
• Stone Fruits
• Chocolate
• Nut Pies and Tarts
• Pumpkin and Sweet Potato
• Cream Pies and More
• Meringue
• Spectacular Pies and Tarts
• Rustic Pies and Tarts
• Petite Pies and Tarts
• Ice Cream Pies
• Lower Calorie
• Savory Pies and Tarts

Creamy Apple Pie, Honeycrisp Apple and Browned Butter Tart, Double-Chocolate-Mascarpone Raspberry Pie, Dropped Chocolate Pie, and Extreme Chocolate Pie tempt me without a problem.

You should know that some recipes appear on a red-colored page. An assortment of images gives you an idea of what you’re in for, but it’s a BH&G 8.25 x 1.1 x 9.25-inch cookbook. You know you’re in for nothing but good recipes already, right?

Better Homes and Gardens All-Time Favorite Pies (1978) by BH&G

Right on the first page is a fantastic photo of “Favorite Homemade Pies.” Talk about a stunner. Expect pudding mixes and gelatin packages in many a recipe.

Chapters include:

• Favorite Homemade Pies
• Fabulous Fruit Pies
• Satiny-Smooth Cream Pies
• Classy Custard Pies
• Refreshing Refrigerated Pies
• Never-Better Ice Cream Pies
• Pie Crusts and Toppers

Will you make Hawaiian Apple Pie or Lemon Layer Pie? Peanut-Ice Cream Pie or Peach Parfait Pie? If you don’t mind packaged pudding mixes, then you will have a slew of new recipes to try.

It’s 96 pages of pie-loving fun.

Better Homes and Gardens Pies and Cakes (1966) by Better Homes and Gardens

Oh, the colors of this cookbook get me right here. It contains everything I love in a vintage cookbook: vivid colors, plenty of food images, and a variety of dishware to go with it.

Okay, not that old-timey, since it has a 1960s printing, but retro enough. Note that some pies begin with a packaged pudding or unflavored gelatin mix.

Chapters include:

• Pies: Perennial Fruit Pie Favorites, Petite Fruit Pies, Smooth Cream Pies, Custard-Type Pies, Fluffy Chiffon Pies, Chilly Parfait and Frozen Pies, Shells an Crusts,
• Picture Perfect Pies and Cakes:
  • Wonderful Chocolate Cakes
  • Elegant White Cakes
  • Golden Yellow Cakes
  • Savory Spice Cakes
  • Cupcake Treat
  • Upside-down and Pudding Cakes
  • The Lightest Cakes Ever
  • Luscious Tortes
  • Festive Fruitcakes
  • New Tricks with Cake Mixes
  • Cake Cues
  • Finishing Touches

My picks? Searching through the 98-page cookbook (half of which belongs to cakes) may not take long, but it is fun (so much color). My copy even has notes of the former owner on the Crumb Top Plum Pie.

You know I love when people write in their cookbooks!

Caramel Apple Pie, Vanilla Cream Pie, and Peanut Butter Pie sound good. If you get this cookbook, flip to page 35 for the fun image of chiffon pies. Aren’t those eye-catching amazing?

Blue Ribbon Pies: 75 of the Most Mouthwatering, Award-Winning Recipes from America’s State, County, and Local Fairs (1987) by Maria Polushkin Robbins

Let the blue ribbons behind these pie recipes speak for themselves. Do you have to have images too? No? Good. This 5.5 x 0.5 x 8.5-inch cookbook doesn’t include them.

But it does have 131-pages of pie and pie crust recipes. One of the pie recipes even won the creator a refrigerator.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Tips for Making Perfect Pie Crusts
• The Pie Crusts
• The Pies
• Each chapter then lists all the recipes and the page number.

Ribbon-winning pies include Aunt Dolly’s Lemon Sponge Pie, Oatmeal Pie (Maria writes it tastes like pecan pie), Raspberry-Apple Pie, Alaska Snow Pie, Autumn Glory Pie, and Blueberry-Peach Pie.

Each recipe includes the creator’s name, location, and the name of the fair.

Some recipes have a sentence or two to share the back story, but that’s not typical. The norm, however, is pages of clearly written, easy-to-follow, prize-winning pies.

The Book of Pie: Over 100 Recipes, from Savory Fillings to Flaky Crusts (2020) by Cider Mill Press

This layout is terrific. Clean and crisp, it’s a cinch to follow along the 240 pages in the 8 x 1.2 x 10-inch book. Images take up the entire page. It’s pretty nice.

Chapters inside “Book of Pie” include:

• Crusts
• Cream, Custard, and Pudding
• Fruit
• Nutty
• Handpies
• Savory

Salted Caramel and Pecan Pie, Carrot and White Chocolate Pie, and Pear and Gingerbread Cream Pie hit the right notes. You don’t see a recipe for Rhubarb Brown Sugar and Fennel Pie daily.

The Book On Pie: Everything You Need to Know to Bake Perfect Pies by Erin Jeanne McDowell

If you have pie learning to do (and really, there’s always something to learn), pick up The Book on Pie. It’s a 7.94 x 1.15 x 10-inch, 352-page book you’ll find hard to set down.

From clear instructions on making pies to drool-worthy pie images, this cookbook helps you mix and match pie crusts and toppings for creative pies all your own.

Chapters inside “The Book on Pie” include:

• Doughs and Crusts
• Décor and Toppings
• Fruit Pies
• Custard Pies
• Cream, Chiffon, and Cold-Set Pies
• Savory Pies

All the choices! All the options! How do you choose? Roasted Pineapple Pie or Cardamom Crème Brûlée Pie? Peanut-Butter Cream Pie with Raspberry Meringue or Triple Chocolate Caramel Truffle Pie?

Recipes are marked as easy, medium, or hard so you can tweak your skills or find a pie to fit your schedule.

Bubby’s Homemade Pies (2007) by Ron Silver and Jen Bervin

Read the intro, and you might find yourself nodding along. As the author writes:

“My hope is that this book will soon be punctuated with fruit stains, the pages slightly tattered — even a bit stuck together — and that you can hand it down in that shape to your nieces, nephews, great-grandchildren, or whoever is chosen to carry the pie torch on into the future.”

You might just do that in this lovely mix of recipes, illustrations, and pie-related reads.

Chapters include:

• Crust Basics: An Illustrated Primer
• A Fruit Pie Primer
• Spring and Summer Fruit Pies
• Autumn and Winter Pies
• Savory Pies and Pastries
• Deep-Dish Desserts
  • Crumbles, Crisps, Cobblers, Buckles, Pandowdies, and Brown Bettys

Explore the seasons in sweet and savory pies over 361 pages. Whiskey-Apple Crumble Pie, Raspberry-Tangerine Tart, Apricot-Sour Cherry Pie, and Ginger-Honey Apple Pie would make any day of the year that much better.

Cooking with Bon Appetit: Pies and Tarts (1986) by Bon Appetit

I like the callouts with things like “Hints for Freezing” or “Chess Pies” with more info contained therein. Flip ahead to page 56 for some images. That Strawberry Tart with Beurre Noisette is a beautiful thing to behold. Drool over 119 pages of pie recipes.

Chapters include:

• Foreword
• Basic Crusts and Pastries
• Fruit Pies
• Custard and Cream Pies
• Nut and Chess Pies
• Frozen Pies

Much like the layout of the Ideal pie cookbook you’ll see listed below, this one is also short on frills.

Streusel-Topped Sour Cream Apple Pie, Swedish Apple Tart, and Frozen White Chocolate Pie with Raspberries win my vote. Let’s throw Orange Sherbet Pie in there, too, for a tiny sample of recipe titles I want to eat now.

We had better add French Coconut Pie in there too. That’s the kind of cookbook this is, you know — the type where you keep finding something new to try.

Easy as Pie: The Essential Pie Cookbook for Every Season and Reason (2019) by Saura Madani

This author oversees the pastry program for three restaurants where she works. Learn the art of pastry in 192 pages of the 7.5 x 0.5 x 9.25-inch cookbook. The 50 recipes should keep you busy.

Chapters inside “Easy as Pie” include:

• The Simple Art of Pie
• Foolproof Crust: A Step-by-Step Guide
• Master Crust Recipes
• Spring and Summer Pies
• Fall and Winter Pies
• Anytime Pies

This book has pie images you want to live inside. From Toasted S’mores Icebox Pie to Blood Orange Meringue Pie and Pear, Raisin, and Gruyere Pie, this is a cookbook with a bountiful selection of classic and unique pies for dinner or dessert.

The Essential Pie Cookbook: 50 Sweet & Savory Recipes (2021) Edited by Saura Kline

This cookbook contains 50 dessert or savory recipes for your dining pleasure. Make a pie for any meal. It’s an 8 x 0.42 x 8-inch, 154-page book with a lovely design.

Chapters include:

• Pie: A Love Story
• Crusts
• Fruit Pies
• Creamy, Nutty, and Chocolatey Pies
• Savory Pies
• Beyond Pies

Find the usual suspects and a couple of unexpected items (I’m looking at you, Salted Honey Pie). Will you check out the Peanut Butter and Jelly Pie or the Summer Peach Galette?

Either way, don’t miss Saura’s pie tips.

Farmhand’s Favorite Pies: Blue Ribbon Food from the Farm: Recipes, Hints, and How-Tos from the Heartland (2001) by Amy and David Butler with Sharon Reiss

It’s a cute cookbook with photos and illustrations. Learn the finer arts of pie making. I especially like the drawings sharing how to make pie top patterns. I never think to do anything. But then again, I am all about getting maximum pie crust.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Gettin’ Started
• Pastries: Flaky Crusts of All Sorts
• Cream Pies
• One Crust Favorites
• Amazing Meringue
• Fruit Pies
• Southern Favorites
• Handmade Rustic Tarts
• Tasty Cobblers

Beneath each chapter lies the pies within it and the page number. Orange Silk Meringue Pie, Alabama Sweet Potato Pie, and Banana Velvet Cream Pie would be perfect now.

Images aren’t nestled into every page, but there are still a few pics dotted throughout the 112-page book.

Farm Journal’s Complete Pie Cookbook: 700 Best Dessert and Main Dish Pies in the Country (1965) by the Editors of Farm Journal

I’ve yakked about the joys of Farm Journal Cookbooks and Farm Journal former editor Nell B. Nichols. This cookbook is another one of Nell’s.

More than 308 pages of pies (dessert and main dish), plus charming illustrations, abound.

Chapters include:

• All About Pies and Pie Crusts of All Kinds
• Heading: Dessert Pies (with the following chapters):
  • Fruit Pies
  • Custard and Cream Pies
  • Refrigerator and Ice Cream Pies
  • Deep-Dish and Cake Pies, Cobblers, and Dumplings
  • Tarts and Turnovers
  • Fast-Fix Pies
• Pie Toppings
• New Heading: Main-Dish Pies with chapters including:
  • Meat and Chicken Pies and Cheese, Fish, Sea Food (not a typo)
  • Vegetable Pies

Chapters divide further divide, as noted within the description after each chapter. Illustrations are listed separately.

Each time I read this book, I discover something else to tempt me back into the kitchen. This time, Gold Nugget Orange Pie (page 147), “A light, tall, fluffy and handsome chiffon pie that tastes wonderful,” sure sounds good.

All-Season Peach Pie, Coconut-Crunch Apple Pie, Chocolate Peppermint-Candy Pie, and Lemon-Layered Alaska Pie appear at the top of my list. I could continue.

These books are considered classics for a reason.

The Four & Twenty Blackbirds Pie Book: Uncommon Recipes from the Celebrated Brooklyn Pie Shop (2013) by Emily Elsen and Melissa Elsen

These sisters share their pie-making secrets. As owners of the Brooklyn pie shop and café of the same name, expect over 60 pie recipes and 90 excellent images to go with it.

Devour 224 pages of awesome in this 8.45 x 0.9 x 10.3-inch book.

Chapters include:

• Ingredients
• Sourcing
• Tools
• Techniques
• Spring
• Summer
• Fall
• Winter
• Crusts

Lemon Verbena Raspberry Galette, Lavender Honey Custard Pie, Cinnamon Apricot Pie with Vanilla Pouring Cream, and Paprika Peach Pie are a sampling of the unique flavors in this book. Expect the unexpected — and the extraordinary.

The Good Cook: Pies and Pastries (1981) by Time-Life Books

Thorough, dependable, interesting — those are a few words I’d use to describe this impressive cookbook on all things pie and pastry. At 176 pages, with a few images scattered throughout, this book could be your clear and insightful guide to baking pie.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Short Crust
• Puff Pastry
• Chou
• Specialty Pastries
• Anthology of Recipes

Each chapter breaks down further.

For example, Anthology of Recipes divides into: Fruit Pies; Custard and Cream Pies; Cheese Pies and Cheesecakes; Nut, Vegetable, and Meat Pies; Puff Pastries; Chou Pastries; Strudel and Phyllo Pastries; Fried Pastries; Fillings; and Standard Preparations. Raspberry Chiffon Pie, Rum Cream Pie, Angie Earl’s Lemon Pie, Marsala Peach Pie, and Plum Pie are a tiny sample of the recipes inside.

It’s from Time-Life Books, for goodness’ sake. You know it’s a good one.

The Great American Pie Book: Recipes for the Sweet and the Savory from Chicken Potpie to Peach Blueberry (1992) by Judith Choate

For a minute, I was concerned it would be another cookbook with an odd-colored marble background that makes it hard to read. Nope! Only chapter pages include such an animal (thank goodness).

The rest of the book contains legible text and instructions.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• General Information
• Crusts and Toppings
• Main-Course Pies and Appetizers
• Dessert Pies
• Tarts, Turnovers, Fried Pies, and Dumplings

I meant to begin with dessert pies, but I got stuck in Brunswick Chicken Pie. After pulling myself out of the savory pies (fantastic recipes in there), I discovered Praline Peach Pie, Nesselrode Pie, and Chocolate Silk Pie (it’s a stunner on page 109).

Pictures dot the book for a little visual oomph. I call this book a 127-page “win.”

Great Pies and Tarts: Over 150 Recipes to Bake, Share, and Enjoy (2006) by Carole Walter

Any book associated with Carole Walter is going to be a good one. Check out this 7.71 x 1.41 x 9.33-inch book, and you’ll see what I mean. Each recipe includes a short summary and an “At a Glance” box.

This callout box varies by section, but generally, it will consist of the yield, required pan, what type of pastry prep you need, the oven temp, baking time, and the difficulty.

Chapters include:

• Chapter One: Before You Begin:
  • Ingredients
  • Fruit and Berry Glossary
  • Equipment Techniques and Procedures
• Chapter Two: The Primer:
  • The Pastry Primer
  • About Apple Pie
  • About Lemon Meringue Pie
  • About Open Fruit Tarts
  • About French Fruit Tarts with Pastry Cream
• Chapter Three: Beyond the Primer: Pastry Doughs and Crunchy Shells
  • From Orchards, Vines, and Bushes
  • Decadent and Delicious
  • Pie and Tart Potpourri
  • Cobblers, Crisps, and Crumbles
  • Out of the Deep Freeze
  • Little Tarts, Pies, and Turnovers
  • Lusciously Light and Lean
  • Favorite Savory Pies and Tarts
  • Sauces, Toppings, and Garnishes

I know, I know. This book isn’t full of images. But you don’t want a paperweight; you want a book you can use. Follow along easily thanks to Carole’s detailed instructions, accompanying illustrations, and easy-to-follow directions.

Flip just over a hundred pages in to see the selection of images. You won’t lack options at 488 pages (including the index and resource pages).

Will you choose the Black and Blue Mango Pie, Banana Cream Pie with Pecan Brittle, or Pistachio ‘n Peach Ice Cream Pie in Krispie Meringue? Or maybe just the Main Attraction Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie.

Handheld Pies: Dozens of Pint-Size Sweets and Savories (2011) by Sarah Billingsley and Rachel Wharton

This book combines a love of handheld pies (you KNOW how much I love fried pies!) with homemade goodness AND local business backstories. Oh, did I mention the family recipes in here too?

It’s an enjoyable 7.25 x 0.75 x 8.5-inch little read I’m already busy earmarking.

Chapters include:

• Equipment
• Ingredients
• Techniques
• Free-Form Pies
• Structured Pies
• Jar Pies
• Nuts and Bolts

It’s 143 pages (including the index). The few images can’t help but make you hungry.

Unfortunately, the colored fonts may prove challenging to read for some. That’s too bad because there’s a nice mix of business profiles and stories with the recipes.

Orange Marmalade-Mascarpone Pop Tarts, Buttermilk Whiskey Pie, and Chocolate Mousse Pie (a pie in a jar) look or sound positively delightful (images aren’t with every recipe).

Icebox Pies (2002) by Lauren Chattman

rts will draw you in. Yes, you need to bake the cookie crumb crust, but after a short six to eight-minute bake, the rest of the pie process is a cinch.

Chapters include:

• Discovering Icebox Pies
• No Rolling Pin Required:
  • Simple Crumb Crusts
  • Cool and Creamy Mousse and Custard Pies
  • Chocolate Dream Pies
  • Fruit and Cream Combos
  • Ice Cream Parlor Pies
  • I Can’t Believe It’s an Icebox Pie
  • Dressing it Up

Stay chill and consume 136 pages of refrigerator pie recipes in the 8.34 x 0.73 x 8.2-inch book. Peruse White Chocolate Ganache and Banana Pie, Triple Chocolate Mint Pie, and Papaya Mousse Pie.

Images don’t accompany every recipe though the book still has plenty. It’s a unique layout I think you’ll enjoy.

Ideals Pies and Pastries Cookbook (1982) by Naomi Arbit and June Turner

These books may not include summaries or stories, so they aren’t the kind of cookbook you can read — but it is 64 pages crammed with pie and pastry recipes. The images there are will be enough to keep you planning, scheming, and plotting what recipe you’ll make next.

Chapters include:

• Pie and Pastry Basics
• Piecrusts’ Cream Pies
• Custard Pies
• Refrigerator Pies
• Chiffon Pies
• Fruit Pies
• Meringue Shells and Pies
• Tart Crusts and Tarts
• Fillings
• Glazes
• Napoleons, Eclairs, and Cream Puffs
• Bars
• Butterhorns
• Brownies
• Petits Fours
• Small Sweets
• Strudel

If you’ve seen one of these cookbooks, you know how fun they are. Some recipes are homemade, while others use convenience foods like pudding mix or unflavored gelatin.

Forgive these little blips because there’s more to this cookbook once you get past the cream pies.

Chocolate Layer Pie, Governor’s Palace Rum Pie (it does use gelatin), Hot Fudge Sunday Pie, and Scandinavian Apricot Flan will, as Rose Nylund would say, have you “blow your vertubenflugen” in celebration.

Kitchen Library: Quiches, Pies, and Tarts (2006) by Confident Cooking

I hadn’t heard of “Confident Cooking” before, but the pic of the test kitchen team sold me. Recipes include one to three ratings to let you know if it’s a recipe great for a beginning (and typically faster to make) or an expert. I was not expecting this book to amaze and delight. Images and instructions abound.

Chapters include:

• The Art of Pastry Making
• Quiches
• Mini Quiches
• Pies
• Tarts
• Finger Foods

Honestly, I am in love with this cookbook. I started flipping past quiche to get to the pies — and I kept getting swept up in the recipes.

That’s when I realized; this isn’t a cookbook about desserts.

It is all savory tarts, pies, and the rest. It’s also incredible, so I’m leaving it in. Recipes include ounces, cups, and grams. Images are everywhere and well done.

The Lost Art of Pie Making Made Easy (2004) by Barbara Swell

Get yer pies here. Barbara possesses quick wit. Her short intro is funny and in a style that reminds me of Lora Brody.

Barbara does include a surprising bit of “use pie to catch a man” kind of talk for a 2004 cookbook. Still, it’s generally entertaining.

Chapters include:

• The Lost Art of Pie
• The Pie Contest
• The Pie Aunts
• Pie Crust
• Pie Hints
• Meringue
• Men Love Pie
• Fruit Pies
• Lemon Pies
• Cream Pies
• Custard Pies
• Nut Pies
• Pennsylvania Dutch Pies
• Quick Pies
• Holiday Pies
• Chicken Pies

Double Sour Cherry Amaretto Pie, Mama’s Rum Bittersweet Pie, and Dee Dee’s Vanilla Crumb Pie top my list in this 71-page, 5.54 x 0.19 x 8.44-inch cookbook using recipes from various vintage sources.

If you need a good laugh, and would appreciate the pie-making suggestions and tips — this book will help.

I Love Pies and Tarts (2005) by Nancy Kershner

This 7.92 x 0.35 x 7.96-inch book is what happens when a pastry chef shares traditional and modern pie recipes. I hate to tell you there aren’t images because this is a great pie-centered cookbook. I don’t want you to miss out.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Getting Started
• All-American Fruit Pies
• Traditional Favorites
• Chocolate Pies
• Rustic Desserts
• Sophisticated Tarts
• Savory Pies

Toasted Coconut Custard Pie, Pineapple Cheese Pie, Caramelized Banana Cream Pie, and Bourbon Pecan Pie are great reps on the traditional side of things.

Now, flippity flip over to the “Chocolate Pies” section for serious dessert ideas like Chocolate Candy Bar Pie and Mini Molten Pies. Do not ignore the rest of the areas in this book like Raspberry Jam Tart and Double Chocolate Ganache Tarts.

Okay, sorry. I can’t resist the chocolate chapter or any other part of this 120-page cookbook (including the index). Some, however, may not be such fans of the odd font color choice.

If you have problems with colored fonts, the red print in this book may prove difficult.

James McNair’s Pie Cookbook (1989) by James McNair

I’ve cooked plenty out of James McNair’s Favorites. If you own Favorites, then you already have the recipes found here.

Otherwise, at 95 pages (including the index), this 8.1 x 0.4 x 8.8-inch only pie cookbook won’t take up a ton of space, but it will offer up 35 recipes you might consider must-haves.

Chapters in “James McNair’s Pie Cookbook” include:

• Introduction
• Making Perfect Pies
• Seasonal Pies
• Staple Pies

Read James’ excellent intro, and then browse through a plethora of pies. I like the family recipes included in this book.

Cherry Cream Pie, Cranberry Orange Pie, Hazelnut Chocolate Pie, and James’ mother’s Lemon Meringue Pie (they ate it a little warm). Full-color images accompany each recipe.

The Magic of Mini Pies: Sweet and Savory Miniature Pies and Tarts (2013) by Abigail R. Gehring

Make every day adorable with more than 50 mini pies and tarts recipes. Recipes lean to basic, so it’s easy to dig in and get going. If you are looking for something more advanced, this book probably won’t work for you.

Chapters include:

• Piecrust Recipes
• Savory Pies
• Fruit and Berry Pies
• Chocolate, Cream, Nut, and Other Delicious Pies

Flip through 144 pages of mini pie cuteness in a 5.5 x 0.5 x 8-inch book. Dark Chocolate Cherry Pies, Choc-Nutty Bourbon Pies, Banana Dulce de Leche Pies, and Holiday Raisin Pies give you a nice place to begin.

Magpie: Sweets and Savories from Philadelphia’s Favorite Pie Boutique (2015) by Holly Ricciardi

Cookbooks from bakeries make my (former) travel writer heart sing. I loved visiting bakeries for many reasons, though there was more to it than food.

Bakery owners, especially in the small towns or the locally-owned big city bakeries, were long on passion. Speaking with them always made my day. Of course, anything that included flaky pastry or lemon curd didn’t hurt either.

Enter: Magpie, a pie bakery with a pie cookbook.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Flaky Piecrust
• Fruity Pies
• (Mostly) Creamy Pies
• Quiches, Potpies, and Other Savories

I love her intro (I love it!). I want to bake up the Café Mocha Pie, Chocolate Peanut Butter Mousse Pie with Pretzel Crunch, Cookies and Cream Pie, and Granola S’mores Pie.

I am in total love with this 8.88 x 1 x 8.88-inch cookbook. Although Holly closed Magpie in 2018 (not for lack of success, but to try something new), the delectable spirit of Magpie lives on in 256-pages of pie perfection.

Maida Heatter’s Pies and Tarts (1997) by Maida Heatter

Ah, it’s a classic. Maida Heatter was known as the Queen of Cakes, but that’s not the only area she excelled. You’ll see what I mean when you leaf through 273 pages of Maida’s pies and tarts.

Chapters include:

• Pie and Tart Basics
• Pies and Turnovers
• Tarts
• Shortcakes, Cobblers, and More
• Fruit Desserts
• Mousses, Puddings, Custards, Etc.
• Sauces and Extras

This 7.36 x 0.96 x 9.38-inch book isn’t Maida’s most accessibly book to read. The colored font in a purply-pink is not the easiest to read — and that’s for the ingredients.

But.

If you can get through it, each recipe includes a summary and the sort of precision that’s synonymous with her work. Choose from Marbleized Chiffon Pie or Coffee and Cognac Pie. Check out Kirsch Strawberry Pie and Old-Fashioned Butterscotch Pie.

Then, keep on flipping. There are plenty of amazing recipes here (and illustrations).

Martha Stewart’s Pies and Tarts (1985) by Martha Stewart

It might be early Martha Stewart, yet adjectives like organized, dependable, and thorough still apply. I like this 216-page pie-focused cookbook.

Images abound with 1980s flair, so it’s a fun look at place settings, linens, and general décor of the time.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Apples
• Pears
• Peaches, Plums, Apricots, and Nectarines
• Berries
• Citrus Fruits
• Other Fruits
• Vegetables
• Nuts
• Chocolate, Custards, and Creams
• The Pie Party
• Master Recipes and Techniques

Choose among Martha’s Mile-High Lemon Meringue Pie, Carrot-Parsnip Pie (more than dessert pies in this book), and Red Raspberry Tartlets.

Honestly, every bit of this 8.75 x 1 x 10.5-inch book is lovely, although I should point out that the font may be slightly too small for some.

The New Pie: Modern Techniques for the Classic American Dessert: A Baking Book (2019) by Chris Taylor and Paul Arguin

Take what you know about your favorite comfort food, and set it aside. This 272-page, 8.54 x 0.96 x 9.46-inch cookbook went a different direction.

Chapters include:

• The New Pie Crusts
• The New Cream Pies
• The New Fruit Pies
• The New Nut Pies
• The New Cocktail Pies
• The New Custard Pies
• The New Showpiece Pies
• Frills, Garnishes, and other Accessories for the New Pies

Measurements are by volume and by weight, in standard and metric values. Gauge the commonality of ingredients with the helpful rating system.

Ratings also include the type of equipment (from simple to specialty) and ease of construction for the 75 pies in this pretty book.

Explore Sweet Potato with Hazelnut Crunch, Strawberry Margarita with Salted Rim, and German Chocolate Pecan.

Pamela Z. Asquith’s Sweet and Savory Pies (1985) by Pamela Z. Asquith

The author begins by feeling like no one was making apple pies anymore. While I know this isn’t the case (I make them roughly once every month and a half and have friends who make pie far more), I find it interesting that the author lamented the loss of homemade apple pie back in the 1980s.

Some pies include more backstory than others (and those are my favorite). At 141 pages (including the index), it’s practically irresistible.

Chapters inside Pamela Z. Asquith’s cookbook include:

• Introduction
• Equipment
• Ingredients
• Pie Shells, Toppings, and Glazes
• Apple Pies
• Fruit Pies
• Nut Pies
• Cream and Custard Pies
• Savory Pies

Illustrations guide you along the path to pie baking perfection. If you have pie problems, check out the author’s chart regarding common problems and solutions to poor pies on pages 38 and 39. I love a good chart.

I also like the recipes, such as Nectarine and Cherry Pie, Coconut Cream Pie, Chocolate Almond Pie, and Strawberry Rhubarb Pie, where Pamela writes, “This combination goes down in the annals of happy marriages.”

I know I’d be happy, if not ecstatic, if someone made me a strawberry rhubarb pie.

The Perfect Pie Book (1984) by Anne Marshall

The first image in the book commanded my attention, with its vintage mixer and scattering of pies. Spoiler alert: this Australian cookbook didn’t let go over all 112 pages (you may find the “consumer guide” or glossary helpful).

Chapters include:

• Weights and Measures
• American and British Consumer Guide
• Introduction
• Pie Crusts
• Meat Pies
• Chicken and Rabbit Pies
• Fish Pies
• Vegetable Pies
• Savory Flans and Tarts
• Pizza Pies
• Potato Topped Pies
• Party Pies
• Fruit Pies
• Fruit Flans, Tarts, and Tartlets
• Custard Pies
• Meringue Pies
• Chiffon Pies
• Crumb Crust Pies
• Cheesecakes

Lemon and Orange Tart, Hungarian Apple Pie (it includes raspberry jam!), Passionfruit Chiffon Pie, and Chocolate Mint Pie make it clear Aussies know their way around the kitchen.

A smattering of images whets your appetite. What will you bake next?

The Perfect Pie: Your Ultimate Guide to Classic and Modern Pies, Tarts, Galettes, and More (2019) by America’s Test Kitchen

If you don’t know America’s Test Kitchen, take a good look. These people make the same recipe repeatedly, tweaking it here and there to make it the best it can be. Then, they share why it works and detailed recipe instructions.

Chapters include:

• Mastering the Classics
• Custard, Cream, and Curd Pies
• Upping Your Pie Game
• Elegant Tarts
• Pies Big and Small
• Regional Pies
• Icebox and Ice Cream Pies
• Pie and Tart Doughs
• Sauces, Toppings, and More

Every recipe includes images of the finished product and a few steps it took to get there. Ruffle through Ricotta Lemon-Thyme Pie, Banoffee Pie, Chai Blackberry Pie, and Caramel Turtle Icebox Pie.

The usual pie recipes appear here, plus plenty more in the 376-page, 9 x 1.01 x 10.31-inch cookbook.

The Perfect Pie: More than 125 All-Time Favorite Pies and Tarts (2000) by Susan G. Purdy

The introduction begins with a line from Don Marquis in his Sonnets to a Red-Haired Lady, “I love you as New Englanders love pie.” At 374 pages, it’s a pie cookbook you won’t finish anytime soon.

If you’ve been baking for any length of time, there’s a high probability you already own or have borrowed a Susan G. Purdy title.

Each recipe begins with an intro sharing the origin story or helpful hint and “Advanced Preparation” to take some of the stress off of entertaining.

Chapters include:

• Chapter One: Introduction:
  • The Language of Pies
  • About the Recipes in this Book
  • Measurements and Equivalents
  • Pastry-Making Troubleshooting:
    • Hints and Tips, Equipment, Ingredients, High Altitude Baking
• Chapter Two: The Basics of Pastry Making:
  • All-Purpose Flaky Crust
  • Rolling, Fitting, Shaping, and Baking Pie and Tart Crusts
  • About Freezing Pastry
• Chapter Three: Pastry Recipes:
  • Pastry Fillings and Toppings
  • Fruit and Berry Pies
  • Fruit Tarts and Galettes
  • Custard and Cream Pies and Tarts
  • Chiffon Pies
  • Individual Pastries, Tartlets, and Turnovers
  • Meringue Shell “Angel” Pies
  • Dumplings, Cobblers, Crisps, and Clafoutis
  • Strudel, Frozen Pies

It’s a 6.94 x 0.94 x 9.09-inch book without images. You may need to prop open the book based on the book’s physical size and where your recipe falls within it.

That’s a small price to pay for 374 pages (including the index) of pies and tarts, including treats like Fresh Fruit Tart with Lemonade or Orange Cream, Kentucky Bourbon Chess Pie, and Mocha Hazelnut Tart.

Perfect Pies (1999) by Consulting Editor Martha Day

It’s a lovely little 64-page book, all 8.26 x 0.48 x 8.1 inches of it. Images and illustrations accompany each recipe. Do you need another pie cookbook? You just might after browsing through this one.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Meat Pies, Poultry and Game Pies
• Fish Pies
• Vegetable Pies
• Sweet Pies

Pear and Blueberry Pie, the lovely Peach Leaf Pie (seriously, it’s a work of art), Spinach and Feta Pie (because feta), and a Pennsylvania Dutch Ham and Apple Pie give you plenty of reasons to make a pie for dinner and dessert.

Pie (2006) by Angela Boggiano

This is another London-published 7.75 x 0.75 x 10.25-inch, 191-page cookbook. It’s also full of all things pie (which may not always mean dessert). I included it for its sheer variety.

No, images aren’t on every page, but I like the summaries above each recipe and the recipes themselves. I figured you would too.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Homepie
• Handlepie
• Noblepie
• Sweetpie
• Extrapie

Peach and Apricot Amaretti Pie (I do love Amaretto), Chocolate and Pistachio Cream Pie, Apple Pie with Cheese Pastry (I still don’t know how I feel about cheese and apples together), and Mrs. White’s Treacle Pie.

The images there will fill you with glee.

Pie: 300 Tried and True Recipes for Delicious Homemade Pie (2004) by Ken Haedrich

You can flip slightly past the center section to find a selection of images if you need them. Classic recipes or new, it’s an exciting compendium of must-bake pies.

Learn from this 8 x 1.5 x 9- inch book, read it for fun, and bake a huge range of pastries. It’s a win for me.

Chapters include:

• Required Reading:
  • What It Takes to Make the Perfect Pie
  • Pie Pastries and Crumb Crusts
• A Profusion of Summer Fruit Pies
  • Berry Good Pies
  • Make Mine Apple
  • Cranberry, Pear, Pumpkin, and Other Classic Fall Pies
• The Notable Nut: Pecan Pie and Beyond
• Rich, Sweet, and Simple: Chess, Buttermilk, and Other Custard Pies
• Personal Pies, Turnovers, and Other Little Pie Treats
• A Plethora of Icebox Pies: Cream Pies, Chiffon Pies, and So Much More
• Inviting Ice Cream and Other Freezer Pies
• A Pie Potpourri
• The Final Touch

I’m intrigued by the idea of the Rose Water Custard Pie with Sugared Peaches and Berries. While I think of rose water as new, Ken shares it is a Shaker thing (page 390) and “As with perfume, a suggestion is often more enticing than a bold statement.”

I’m also adding Chocolate S’mores Pie with Jubilee Cherry Sauce, Bittersweet Chocolate Turtle Pie, and Strawberry-Raspberry Mint Pie (uses frozen berries, for reasons the author shares).

Okay, so Creamy White Chocolate-Strawberry Pie and Lemon-Raspberry Icebox Pie with an Oreo Crust have my attention too (and for a good reason).

Pie Academy: Master the Perfect Crust and 255 Amazing Fillings, with Fruits, Nuts, Creams, Custards, Ice Cream, and More; Expert Techniques for Making Fabulous Pies from Scratch (2020) by Ken Haedrich

If you know Ken, you know his style. This book dazzles with 255 pie recipes. It’s also enormous. At 8.1 x 1.3 x 10.6 inches and 470 pages, expect step-by-step direction and excellent instruction. This book is the total package (and weighs almost four pounds!).

Chapters include:

• Part One: Behind the Scenes:
  • The Pie Maker’s Tools
  • In the Pantry
  • How to Make a Pie
• Part Two: The Wonderful World of Pie:
  • A Panoply of Pie Doughs
  • Berry Pies
  • More Summer Delights
  • Make Mine Apple
  • The Other Fall Classics
  • The Notable Nut
  • Rich, Sweet, and Simple
  • Small Packages
  • Icebox Pies
  • Cream Pies
  • From the Freezer
  • A Pie Potpourri
  • The Pie Maker’s Pantry

Me again. You didn’t know, but I started reading this cookbook and forgot everything else for the past 20 minutes. Here’s a stupid small sampling of pie recipes: Double-Crust Apricot-Mango Pie, Butterscotch Banana Cream Pie, Dulce de Leche and Peanut Butter Cup Pie, and Floating-Top Cherry Vanilla Pie.

Ken’s latest book is a work of art in every sense of the word.

The Pie Book: Over 400 Classic Recipes (2018) by Louis P. De Gouy

If you want a manual on pie, meet the man who served as an apprentice to his father (Jean H. De Gouy, Esquire of Cuisine) at Austrian and Belgium courts. Louis P. De Gouy was Master Chef and Chef Steward in many countries (and 30 years at the Waldorf Astoria).

Louis also founded Gourmet magazine. First published in 1949, this 432-page, 6.3 x 1.4 x 9.4-inch reprint offers a mind-boggling range of more than 400 pie recipes.

Chapters include:

• Technical Data
• Pastry and Crust Recipes
• Pie Recipes
• Chiffon Pie Recipes
• Topping, Garnishing, and Glazing

Enticing recipes include Orange Spicy Pumpkin Cream Pie, Apricot Golden Blossom Pie, Butterscotch Peanut Butter Pie, and Chocolate Coconut Pie.

Use the Table of Contents to find the recipe you need. No images. Big entertainers will appreciate how way this book offers a 9″ pie recipe and another for multiple pies.

Pie Every Day: Recipes and Slices of Life (1997) by Pat Willard

I was prepared not to like this 7.38 x 0.98 x 8.25-inch book. You never know how a food memoir will go.

But then I read a small portion where Pat shared a humorous equation: “My husband loves pie + I learn to make pies = We will be forever one.”

Learn Pat’s story and plenty of recipes in over 140 pages.

Chapters include:

• Pies at the Bar Ten: How it Began
• All Kinds of Crusts: Self-Help to Overcome Your Fear of Making Pie Crusts
• Dessert for Breakfast: Pies to Meet the Morning Light
• Sitting Around Gabbing in the Afternoon: Quick Pies for When Friends Drop In
• The Children’s Hour: Afterschool and Baby Treats
• The Pleasure of Your Company: Fancy Little Hors d’Ouevres and Party Nibbles
• What’s for Dinner?: Hefty Main Dishes and Perfect Solutions for Leftovers
• Oh My! You Shouldn’t Have: Knock-’em-Dead Creations and Labors of Love
• Sweet Dreams: Apple Pies to Soothe You to Sleep

Flaming Peach Pie (yes, you get to light it on fire!), Cappuccino Pie, Frozen Lemon Souffle Pie, Nancy’s Lethal Pecan Pie hangover Cure, and Miss Glover’s Coconut Custard Pie.

Consume this book with glee. Pat writes with a humorous style. If you like stories and recipes, this book is for you.

Pie for Everyone: Recipes and Stories from Petee’s Pie, New York’s Best Pie Shop (2020) by Petra Paredez

Relish 224 pages in a 8.35 x 0.95 x 10.3-inch book. This cookbook’s colors, font, and layout make me so happy. I adore the design. Yet, the recipes are still an easy read. Isn’t that thoughtful?

Chapters include:

• Introduction:
  • Pie Foundations
• The Recipes:
  • Crusts and Crumbs
  • Baked Fruit Pies
  • Chilled Pies
  • Custard, Chess, and Nut Pies
  • Savory Pies and Quiches
  • A La Mode: Toppings and Other Delicious Homemade Pie Ingredients

Find a list of all the pies and page numbers at the front of the book. Will you prepare a Spring Cordial Pie or Maple-Wild Blueberry Pie? Persimmon Pudding Pie, Cardamom-Rose Custard, and Salty Chocolate Chess Pie hint at what to expect. What a gorgeous book.

Pie Love: Inventive Recipes for Sweet and Savory Pies, Galettes, Pastry Creams, Tarts, and Turnovers (2013) by Warren Brown

If you are familiar with Cake Love, this is Warren Brown’s follow-up cookbook. All I can say is, ‘Hooray!” You may remember Warren from the Red Velvet Cake everything. He was a lawyer who left that life for cake baking. I can’t say I blame him.

Chapters include:

• Piecrusts
• Sweet Pie Fillings
• Tart Crusts
• Sweet Tarts
• Savory Pies

Blueberry Maple Pie; Mango Meringue Pie (his meringue is beautiful); Banana, Chocolate, and Coconut Cream Pie; and Chocolate and Vanilla Pudding Cream Turnovers have made me wonder why I bothered to grab strawberries today.

Images are great, but not with every recipe. You won’t even care with Warren’s help guiding you every step of the way.

The Pie and Pastry Bible (1998) by Rose Levy Beranbaum

If you are familiar with Rose’s cookbooks, you know the format. This time, find more than 300 recipes and 200 drawings, but only 70 images (in the center section). It’s a monster of a 7 x 1.9 x 10-inch book at 704 pages. I would say this is a book for someone who doesn’t mind spending significant time on a pie.

Chapters include:

• Pie Crusts
• Fruit Pies
• Chiffon Pies
• Meringue Pies and Tarts
• Custard Pies and Tarts
• Ice Cream Pies and Ice Cream
• Tarts and Tartlets
• Savory Tarts and Pies and Quiche
• Biscuits and Scones
• Filo
• Strudel
• Puff
• Pastry and Croissant
• Danish Pastry
• Brioche
• Cream Puff Pastry
• Fillings and Toppings
• Sauces and Glazes

Choose savory pies like Chicken Pot Pie or Shepherd’s Pie. Filter through dessert pies like Pumpkin Pie or Honeycomb Chiffon Pie. If you want a book with options, this is a good one.

Ingredients use measurement and weight for three pie sizes, followed by instructions for the food processor or by hand. Handy, right?

Pie and Pastry Cookbook (1968) by Betty Crocker

This cover makes my vintage cookbook-loving heart sing. It’s the cover you’d prop up on display when you aren’t actively baking from it.

Back in the 1960s, people saved up coupons to get this cookbook. For the most part, it’s still as relevant as ever (some recipes list convenient foods).

Chapters include:

• What Makes a Pie?
• Pie as a Preliminary
• Pie as the Main Event
• Pie for the Grand Finale
• Pies from Coast to Coast
• Pie in the Sky
• Pies in Disguise

Apple Meringue Pie, Rhubarb-Pear Pie, and Perfect Pineapple Pie jump out at me. Okay, so does the Chocolate Chiffon Pie. Oh, and the Strawberry Chiffon Pie. Vintage images and illustrations adorn the 160 pages (including the index).

Pies (2013) by Josee Fiset and Dominique Boue from Premiere Moisson Bakery

It’s pure joy to flip through the pages of this 8.75 x 0.5 x 8.5-inch cookbook. Each recipe features a gorgeous full-color image. Callouts may include a personal note from the author to give you a handy tip.

Flip to page 154 for parfait ideas using different combinations of their recipes. Wow. Just WOW.

Chapters inside “Pies” include:

• Pie Pastries
• Traditional Pies
• Fresh Pies
• Creative Pies
• Savory Ideas
• Culinary Information and Tricks

I’ve penciled in Ginger Flavored Sugar Pie, Awfully Good Olden Time Cream Pie, Raspberry Ganache Delight Pie, plus Velvety Peach and Pear Pie, and I’m not even halfway through this cookbook.

Expect a mix of classic and unique pie recipes in 179 pages. Dig in!

Pies, Pies, and More Pies! (2010) by Viola Goren

Sweet or savory, this 144-page, 9.33 x 0.7 x 8.25-inch pie cookbook completes any taste. These are picture-perfect recipes.

Yet, even those recipes that include things like pastry cream do so in an understandable, uncomplicated way.

Chapters in the “Pies, Pies, and More Pies” cookbook include:

• Introduction
• Pie Essentials
• Basic Recipes
• Fruits and Berries
• Chocolate and Nuts
• Sweet Cheese and Apples
• Savory Cheese and Apples
• Meat, Chicken, and Fish
• Conversion Charts

Viola’s Strawberry Tart is a pretty thing. So, too, is the Freeform Fig Pie with a Touch of Orange, Raspberry Tart with Lemon Crème Brûlée, and the Apricot Pie with Pistachio-Almond Cream.

Every pie or tart has an image (and lovely images at that). I haven’t made a tart yet, let alone a tartlet, but after gazing in awe at the pics and reading through the recipes, I can’t wait to get to work.

Make beautiful pies and pastries with a modern touch using this inspiring cookbook.

Pies: Sweet and Savory (2013) by Caroline Bretherton with Jane Bamforth

This kind of layout thrills me. I like the brief intro at the top, the simple list of ingredients, and chunked recipes for quick scanning. Recipes include prep and cook time to aid your meal or dessert planning.

Images aren’t with every recipe, but do forgive this minor annoyance. This DK cookbook is the pie bomb (or something like that). What are the cool kids saying now?

Chapters include:

• Recipe Planners
• Meat Pies and Tarts
• Poultry Pies and Tarts
• In Praise of Pie Dough
• Fish Pies and Tarts
• Vegetarian Pies and Tarts
• Fruit Pies and Tarts
• Chocolate Pies and Tarts
• Other Sweet Pies and Tarts

The recipe planner section is a helpful addition. Located in the front of the book, flip to Top-Crust Pies for a selection of sweet and savory pies in the book (plus page number).

Find a list of Double-Crust Pies, Cobblers and Crumbles, Individual Pies and Tarts, Quiches and Savory Tarts, Sweet Tarts, plus a few more. It’s a handy, helpful way to narrow down what you crave. Spoiler alert: you will want plenty.

From Spinach, Cheese, and Thyme Tart to Banana and Nutella Crumble Tartlets or Caramelized Mango Tartlets to Pear Pie with Walnut Crust, this is a 352-page book to cherish.

Pillsbury Easy as Pie: 140 Simple Recipes (2010) by Pillsbury

As you might expect from a brand cookbook, this one begins with refrigerated pie crusts. Swap with one of your own for a surprisingly fantastic selection of pie.

Images don’t accompany every photo, but you’ll find plenty to pique your interest. It’s a 207-page, 8 x 1.08 x 9-inch cookbook you might find hard to resist.

Chapters in the “Easy as Pie” cookbook include:

• Easy as Pie
• Fruit and Berry Harvest
• Creamy and Chilled Favorites
• Holiday Pies and Tarts
• Savory Pies and Quiches

Apple-Blueberry Pie with Strawberry Sauce, Apple Tart with Cider-Bourbon Sauce, Bananas Foster Tart, and Chai Cream Pie will make you rethink dessert.

Puddings and Pies: Traditional Desserts for a New Generation (1991) by Barbara J. Grunes

Isn’t this fun? Barbara’s New England kitchen churned out pie after fabulous pie (195 pages of them), but includes a unique difference.

Barbara’s friend’s mother was a dancing instructor to royalty for a time. Her friend gifted the author two of her mother’s handwritten cookbooks. Barbara put her modern spin on them to reflect a 1990s kitchen.

Chapters inside “Puddings and Pies” include:

• Introduction:
• Puddings: Steamed Puddings
  • Holiday Steamed Puddings
  • Baked Puddings
  • Duffs, Fools, Flummeries
  • Custards
• Chocolate Puddings
• Pies:
  • Summer/Autumn Pies
  • Yogurt Pies
  • Crisps, Crumbles, Cobblers, Dowdies, Buckles, Grunts, and Slumps
  • Winter Pies
  • Chocolate Pies

Peach Streusel Pie, Plum Ginger Pie, Raspberry Cheese Pie, Eggnog Pie with Ginger Cream, Boston Brownie Fudge Pie with Two Sauces…I could go on. I’m so impressed by this cookbook.

No, there aren’t images. It’s a simple 7.5 x 0.75 x 10-inch cookbook with recipes *I’m* sure to use and love. You can’t get much higher praise than that.

Reader’s Digest Perfect Pies: 180 Delicious Main Dish, Snack, and Dessert Recipes (2003) by Beth Allen

It’s 144 pages of pies in every form. Do you know what else is great about this cookbook? There are more than 40 kinds of pie crusts in this 9.54 x 0.62 x 11.2-inch cookbook.

Add in over 20 topping recipes, and you’ve got one delicious book.

Chapters inside “Reader’s Digest Perfect Pies” include:

• Pie Smarts
• Morning Pies
• Supper Pies
• Teeny Tiny Pies
• Fruit Pies
• Chocolate with Love
• Custard and Cream Pies
• Country Kitchen Pies

Blueberry Streusel Pie, Orange Custard Cream Pie, Chocolate Marble Pie, and Chocolate Orange Truffle Tart would be the first to go from the pie plate to my plate.

This book looks good, includes heaps of images, and offers up 180 tested pie recipes.

Simple Tarts: Sweet and Savory Recipes for All Occasions (1996) by Elizabeth Wolf-Cohen

Images occupy a full page in this snazzy 8.74 x 0.51 x 8.74-inch cookbook. Although they don’t go with every recipe, they are abundant. The introduction includes plenty of images to help you figure out how to roll the pastry. Become the Queen of Tarts with this tart-filled wonder.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Making Pastry
• From the Oceans to the Prairies
• Vegetable Tarts
• Fruit and Nut Tarts
• Chocolate, Custard, and Cream Tarts
• Recipe Index

Cherry Almond Tart, Summer Berry Tart on Hazelnut Crust, Double Chocolate Truffle Tarts, and Chocolate Souffle Tarts are a teeny little slice of this 80-page cookbook.

Yes, there are savory tarts here too. Most recipes fit two to a page, so expect lots of pie recipes to savor and enjoy (and you will).

Sister Pie: The Recipes and Stories of a Big-Hearted Bakery in Detroit (2018) by Lisa Ludwinski

Feel like part of the corner bakery with this attractive cookbook. Find 75 recipes and 75 images plus illustrations in the 256-page, 7.7 x 1.04 x 10.28-inch cookbook to keep your beauty-loving heart happy.

I think you’ll love Lisa’s tone. Her recipe summaries are the meringue on the pie, for sure.

Chapters inside “Sister Pie” include:

• The Pie
  • The Dough
  • The Crust
  • Spring and Summer Pies
  • Fall and Winter Pies
  • Anytime Pies
  • Hand Pies
• And Everything Else
  • Cookies, etc.
  • Breakfast
  • Sister Salads
• Epilogue
• Acknowledgments
• Recipe Index

Get your pie on with a bevy of pie recipes you’ll feel proud to share. Creative flavors like Blueberry Plum Balsamic Pie, Apple Sage Gouda Pie, and Sweet Beet Pie will help update any dessert spread.

Sunset Pies and Pastries (1985) by Sunset Books

Who needs a bunch of chapters to make a good cookbook? Not this one from Sunset Books. Maybe you are familiar with these titles already. I own a few different titles and enjoy each one.

Expect some images to show you how to do something and occasional pictures of pies and pastries.

Chapters inside “Sunset Pies and Pastries” include:

• Pie Crusts
• Sweet Pies
• Sweet Pastries
• Savory Pies and Pastries
• Recipe Index

Look on the lower right-hand corner for “Special Features,” which contains eight skills:

• Old-Fashioned Micemeat
• How To Partially Bake a Pie Crust
• Making Chocolate Curls
• Storing Tart Shells
• Working with Fila
• Puff Pastry Treats
• Hors d’Ouevre Pastries
• Metric Conversion Chart

I love charts, and pages eight to nine feature a chart of crumb crusts and sweetened shortcrust recipes. As for the pie, Strawberry Peach Pie sounds like summer in a pie. Cranberry Crunch Pie, Lemon Cake Pie, Butterscotch Pie, and Chocolate-topped Rum Pie (wow, does that look amazing) would make any day infinitely better.

Sweetie Pie: Deliciously Indulgent Recipes for Dessert Pies, Tarts, and Flans (2015) by Hannah Miles

I often ignore my decision to make this a post about American pie cookbooks. But then I sometimes break it. Like now, and my inclusion of this 7.5 x 0.6 x 9.25-inch London-published pie book. Rifle through the delightful 144-pages, and you’ll soon understand. These images are lovely.

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Classics,
• Fresh and Fruity
• Rich and Indulgent
• Family Treats
• Global
• Holiday Specials
• Recipe Index
• Acknowledgments

I love the white dish holding Malted Mascarpone Pie. Hazelnut Croquant Pie includes a divine image. It’s almost funny to see Mississippi Mud Pie and Cookie Dough Pie after such fancy pastries. Yet, that’s the way this cookbook plays out with page after page of want-to-bake recipes.

Four words: Chocolate Caramel Crunch Pie. Okay, okay. I need to stop listing recipes and play in the kitchen now. Don’t worry—recipes include ounces, grams, and cups for your baking pleasure.

Tarts with Tops On or How to Make the Perfect Pie (2003) by Tamasin Day-Lewis

English author Tamasin already had cookbooks and a food column behind her when she penned “Tarts.” Please don’t skip over the intro; it’s a great read. Images pepper many a page. Yes, this English cookbook uses cups and ounces. Hooray!

Chapters inside “Tarts with Tops On” include:

• Introduction
• Savory Pies
• Traditional Pies
• Other People’s Pies
• Apple Pies,
• American Pies
• Sweet Pies
• Pie Dough

I can’t decide what to share with you. It’s tough to set a limit when there are recipes for Galician Pork and Sausage Pie, Somerset Pork Pie with Cider and Apples, and Cheddar Cheese and Onion Pie.

For dessert, dish out Sour Cream Apple and Walnut Pie, Jefferson Davis Pie, Mango Pie, or Raspberry Ripple Ice Cream Pie (what a dream!). All 143 pages of this 7.75 x 9.75-inch book are pure pie joy.

Taste of Home Best Loved Pies: 185 Delicious Delights (2010) by Taste of Home

You know these crowdsourced cookbooks. Love them or hate them, this one follows the same format. I tend to love them (and skip over the non-homemade recipes).

Images abound but don’t entirely cover every recipe in the 112-page 11 x 8.5 x 0.25-inch book. Opening with homemade crust recipes is a nice touch.

Chapters inside the “Taste of Home Best Loved Pies” cookbook include:

• Preparing a Crust
• Fruit Pies and Other Classics
• Cream, Custard, and Pudding Pies
• Ice Cream and Freezer Pies
• Tarts and Dessert Pizzas
• Cobblers, Crumbles, and More
• Recipe Index

Once you get onto a chapter page, you’ll see a list of pies in the chapter and page numbers. It’s a simple way to navigate the types of pastries.

Look over Spiced Plum Pie, Concord Grape Pie, Crumb-Topped Apple and Pumpkin Pie (that’s different!), Greek Honey Nut Pie, or Eggnog Pumpkin Pie. Jeez, I didn’t get past the first chapter.

Typically simple in prep, it’s a cookbook perfect for a beginner, though the unique recipes make it a boon for seasoned bakers.

Teeny’s Tour of Pie: Mastering the Art of Pie in 67 Recipes (2014) by Teeny Lamothe

Pie is an all-year-round thing to me, but I get the appeal of splitting it up. Most people don’t think of pumpkins in the summer. Okay, I do, as I whip up a batch of muffins or a loaf of quick bread. But I get it. Most people aren’t me.

Expect images on most pages, but they aren’t always of the pie. Don’t let that deter you. This 272-page 8.06 x 0.69 x 8-inch pie cookbook drew me right in.

Chapters inside “Teeny’s Tour of Pie” include:

• In Pursuit of Pie
• Tools of the Trade
• The Elements of Crust
• Fall: Pies to Frolic With
• Winter: Pies to Hibernate By
• Springs: Pies to Chase Away the Chill
• Summer: Pies to Picnic With
• The End Which is Actually the Beginning
• Recipe Index
• Conversion Tables

Do you fancy Earl Grey Cream Pie in a Sugar Cookie Crust? Or perhaps the Strawberry Basil Pie, PieLab’s Snickerdoodle Pipe, Derbyish Pie, or S’mores Pie are more up your alley?

Maybe you’ll start with the Teeny Lamothe’s mother’s Rhubarb Strawberry Custard Pie? It’s a favorite of her mother and looks like it could top my list (and perhaps yours too) no problem.

Totally Pies Cookbook (1998) by Helene Siegel

You know these cookbooks (I’ve included them on other cookbook lists here on Little Indiana Bakes). This shaped cookbook is a 95-page 4.93 x 0.35 x 5.98-inch book that is a little less wonky than others. Short and sweet, this is a worthy addition for pie bakers short on space.

Chapters inside the “Totally Pies” cookbook include:

• Introduction
• Primal Pies
• Uptown Tarts
• Pies for One
• Meals-in-a-Pie
• Incredible Crusts, Plump Fillings, and Crystal Glazes

Image-free, these mini cookbooks offer up pies with ingredients you recognize. Try Maple Peach Pie with Pecan Topping, Cranberry Raisin Crumble, or Pumpkin Praline Pie.

Check out White Chocolate-Ginger Mousse or Roasted Peaches and Ricotta Tart for something a little different. Recipes have a sentence or two, and some pages include a food quote for fun.