My Thanksgiving Pie

In mid-October a can of pumpkin and a can of condensed milk arrived in the mail and that was the beginning of my Thanksgiving pie.

Poles already eat a lot of the traditional Thanksgiving foods on a regular basis - potatos, cranberries, green beans, cooked carrots and even indyk (turkey, though not as much) are nothing new. The one thing that I could make in order for this to be a true American Thanksgiving was pumpkin pie.

Now, I thought that making a pumpkin pie would be simple. Until I realized that pie as I know it doesn't exist here in Poland. In fact, there is no direct translation for pie, instead it is referred to as ciasto z dyni (or pumpkin cake). This didn't discourage me any, but it did make my pie experience quite interesting!



The first obstacle I ran into was pie crust. At home I can grab an already prepared pie crust out of the refrigerator, but here in Poland that wasn't an option. Luckily, my pie crust expert emailed me her recipe. I was set!

Or so I thought, because after discussing the ingredients with my host mother we ran into a problem - shortening. Crisco doesn't exist here and shortening was not ringing any bells after translation. Finally, after describing the substance in question and coming up with other words (our key word was lard) we figured it out. And, ironically, it's something my host mother uses almost everyday!



Next, I realized I had nothing to cook my pie in. After commiserating about this with other exchange students and being assured by Mom that I could cook pie in any pan, I ended up using a tart dish. It worked out well, despite the fact that it didn't quite look like a traditional pie.



Finally, my Polish Thanksgiving day arrived. My host mother bought the only turkey in the store (whole turkeys aren't that common in Poland) and I started making my pie. With my host mom, Babcia (grandmother) and sister watching, I made the crust, slowly rolled it out and placed it in the tart pan. Despite the few holes which were quickly patched, the crust was a sucess. Part one accomplished.

The pumpkin filling was easy, though I was nervous when instead of adding the individual spices I used a packet with all of them combined(plus more). I put the pie in the oven, watched it cook and one hour later I took out a lovely looking pie. It looked beautiful, but I had no idea how it would taste.




Dinner finally arrived. There were nine of us - my host parents, sister, Babcia, host aunt and uncle, their two kids and me. The table was beautifully set, with the fine china and candles. The food was incredible and dinner was full of laughter and conversation. My pumpkin pie was a huge sucess, in fact everyone loved it and my host sister even suggested we make it again soon!

And I agree, my slice of pumpkin pie was the best piece of pie I've ever tasted. However, what really made the evening incredible was the sense of family, love and thanksgiving I felt. The food, despite it's comforting fimilarity, faded into the background. The night was about celebrating our lives together.



I have so much to be thankful for this year. I have two sets of incredible families, friends on both continents. I have an amazing support system and opportunities I could never have imagined. I am extremely blessed.

I've come to realize that Thanksgiving is more than just an American holiday. The act of giving thanks transcends all borders and can be celebrated by all people. Any day can be Thanksgiving. So in this spirit I wish you, a Happy Thanksgiving!