Pecan π

It’s March 14th (3.14) so there had to be something to say about pie, or pi or π.

Luckily, this story came just in time.

Did you realize that Texas has no official State Pie?

Florida has Key lime pie; Vermont claims apple pie; and Indiana residents are partial to something called sugar cream pie.

Now, State Senator Charles Schwertner (R-Bryan) has introduced a resolution would designate pecan pie as the official State Pie of Texas.

Here is the proposed bill:

By: Schwertner 
S.C.R. No. 12

       (In the Senate - Filed February 11, 2013; February 20, 2013,

read first time and referred to Committee on Administration;

March 11, 2013, reported favorably by the following vote:  Yeas 6,

Nays 0; March 11, 2013, sent to printer.)

SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Of all the Lone Star State's unique culinary dishes,

perhaps none says "Texas" more sweetly than pecan pie; and

       WHEREAS, The pecan tree, which was officially designated as

the state tree in 1919, is indigenous to North America and native to

152 counties in Texas, where it grows in river valleys; the State

Health Nut, the pecan is the state's only commercially grown nut,

and Texas pecan growers account for more than 20 percent of all the

pecans grown in the United States; and

       WHEREAS, Though there are many ways to enjoy pecans, it is

practically a given among Texans that they belong, first and

foremost, in a pie; the earliest record of this distinctive dessert

dates to the late 19th century; the weekly humor magazine Texas

Siftings described it in February 1886 as being "not only

delicious" but "capable of being made into a 'real state pie,'" and

in March 1914, the Christian Science Monitor featured a recipe for

"Texas Pecan Pie" with a custard filling that called for a cup of

sweet milk, a cup of sugar, three well-beaten eggs, a tablespoon of

flour, and half a cup of "finely chopped pecan meats"; and

       WHEREAS, It was around 1930 when the pie became the

syrup-based creation it is today; the wife of an executive at the

Karo Syrup Company combined that product with pecans to make a pie,

and it proved to be an irresistible mixture; the pie subsequently

gained national recognition through advertisements forever linking

the syrup with pecans in the public's mind; recipes for pecan pie

began appearing in such popular cookbooks as The Joy of Cooking and

The Fannie Farmer Cookbook in the 1940s, and it became a staple in

restaurants across the state and nation; and

       WHEREAS, Pecan pie recipes are varied and numerous, with

differences regarding the sugar-to-syrup ratio and the size and

consistency of the nuts, and are a matter of debate, strong opinion,

and deeply held family tradition; yet Texans generally agree on two

things:  Texas pecan pies are, hands down, the best, especially when

made with Texas pecans by a Texan, and secondly, whether served hot

or cold, with a scoop of ice cream or without, pecan pie is indeed

the perfect ending to any meal; now, therefore, be it

       RESOLVED, That the 83rd Legislature of the State of Texas

hereby designate pecan pie as the official State Pie of Texas.

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