Spooky Experiences in London this weekend & Treats from Arments Pie & Mash
Posted on October 26th, 2022
By Cheryl
Posted on January 20th, 2023
Celebrating National Pie Day, Monday January 23rd, 2023
National Pie Day seeks to promote sweet and savoury pastries. National Pie Day was first observed in the mid-1970s when Charlie Papazian declared his own birthday to be National Pie Day. Today, pie is enjoyed all around the world with different types and flavours.
We Brits eat millions of pies every year, making them the nation’s ultimate comfort food. So, join us in embracing National Pie Day – yet another fantastic opportunity to celebrate all that’s great about this truly delicious national food!
Definition of a Pie
A baked dish of fruit or meat and/or vegetables with pastry on the bottom, sides, and the top.
Origins of the Pie
Historians believe that the Greeks actually originated pie pastry. The pies during this period were made by a flour-water paste wrapped around meat; this served to cook the meat and seal in the juices. The Romans, sampling the delicacy, carried home recipes for making it (a prize of victory when they conquered Greece).
The early colonists cooked their pies in long narrow pans calling them “coffins” like the crust in England.
Meat pie is found in the Neolithic Period, around 9500 BC. The ancient Egyptians’ diet featured basic pies made from oat, wheat, rye, and barley, and filled with honey and baked over hot coals. The Greeks used a flour-water paste resembling pie pastry, and filled it with meat.
Fruit pies or tarts (pasties) were probably first made in the 1500s. English tradition credits making the first cherry pie to Queen Elizabeth I. Pie came to America with the first English settlers.
The savoury pie had been a traditional British food for some time due to its compact size, which made it easy for people to eat it on the go. Today, the most popular of all pies is Steak and Kidney pie, with apple pie being the most popular sweet pie.
Pie Trivia
Ever wondered where the pie sayings come from? Check out our website here for pie trivia! It’s not all ‘pie in the sky’!
Pie and mash
Pie and mash is traditionally a working-class food which originated in East London. Pie, mash and jellied eels have been served in London since the 19th century, with the first Pie and Eel House being recorded even earlier than the first fish and chip shop. This was Henry Blanchard’s at 101 Union Street in Southwark in 1844. They are still to be found in London, though with many Londoner’s moving out, there is a growing trend for small independent shops to open across England now.
Minced steak pies are the main pie served in traditional pie and mash shops today, along with a steak and kidney and even fruit pies, where once the eel pie was more popular. This was because the eels were plentiful in the River Thames , being one of the few fish that could survive its polluted water.
Potatoes were later served as an accompaniment so that pie and mash became a sit-down meal. This meal was made even more special with the addition of a sauce, known as liquor, which was made from the water used to cook the eels and flavoured with parsley and seasoning.
At Arments today we still make our pies fresh every day from scratch – mincing our beef steak from Ireland and Scotland to making the dough, putting them together with our secret seasoning that makes our unique and traditional flavour. You’ll also find our Steak & Kidney pies on the menu, along with our vegan pie, made with minced soya and vegetables. For those of you who like a sweet treat; we have various fruit pies available weekly too from Apple, Cherry, Rhubarb and Apricot.
For those of you who can’t get down to our shop, you can order our pie, mash and liquor online or give one of our growing numbers of Licensed Sellers a try. You can find your nearest Arments® Licensed Seller here.
Promotional Online Offer for National Pie Day
Enjoy a 10% discount by using code PIEDAY1023 when you order online on Monday January 23rd, 2023!
Look our for our competitions too on our business Facebook Page and Instagram – you could be one of our lucky winners!
Wishing you a very Hap-pie Monday!
