Okmulgee County ~ 2 Down, 75 To Go

Can you find yummy, homemade pie in Okmulgee County? You can if you know where to look. Tucked away on Seminole Ave. in downtown Okmulgee, is the first place you should look - Coleman's Bakery.

The staff is friendly and helpful and the atmosphere is quaint.

The beefy cheeseburger complete with toasted bun is a great way to begin at Coleman's. A bargain at $3.55. It's clearly handmade to order, so be prepared to be patient. Once you've eaten a proper lunch, it's time to move on to the real reason for the visit - pie.

On this particularly warm and sunny day, I'm traveling with the spunky and stylish Fran Bevel. This is Fran. She's pointing out how quaint and welcoming the bakery is.

So the time finally came to try the pie. Sensing that we were on a mission, the generous baker offered us each a slice, on the house. Score! (We would have said nice things anyway!) So after some deliberation, we settled on a piece of Coconut Cream Pie and a piece of Pecan Pie. The Coconut Cream was good, not great. But the Pecan was amazing. Okmulgee is famous for Pecan Pie, so this makes sense. http://http//www.answers.com/topic/okmulgee-pecan-festival.


The Pecan Pie is held together with a flaky and flavorful crust. The overall balance of the pie was perfect. The pecan top was crunchy and caramelized and utter yummy. The filling was sweet and satisfying, without being overly sweet or gooey, common pitfalls of the Pecan Pie. Instead, it was creamy and nicely jelled. It was, in a word. Yum.

So, for Okmulgee County - the official best piece of pie is the Pecan Pie at Coleman's Bakery.

Fran and I did find a few other pieces of pie worth a mention. If you travel a little farther South through Okmulgee County, you will reach Henryetta. Just off of I-40 is The Hungry Traveler.

We sampled the Chocolate Pecan Pie and the Custard Pie. Both really, really good. I didn't love the crust on either. But the Chocolate Pecan Pie was basically a brownie with a pie crust. A very good idea. The Custard Pie brought back great memories of Tippin's Pies.

But, alas. there can be one winner. Congratulations, Coleman's.

McCurtain County ~ 1 Down, 76 To Go

Every journey has a beginning. My journey begins in McCurtain County, Oklahoma. I have undertaken a quest to find the best piece of pie in every county in Oklahoma, all 77 of them. I have imposed some simple rules on myself. They are:

1. The pie must be housemade in a non-chain restaurant.
2. I must eat at least 3 pieces of pie in a county before declaring a winner.

First Up:
McCurtain County
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McCurtain_County,_Oklahoma


And the winner is...


Coconut Cream Pie
The Pie Lady, Broken Bow, OK

Open just over a year, The Pie Lady has solidified her reputation for award winning desserts. Also serving breakfast and lunch, it's the sweet stuff that will bring me back to The Pie Lady the next time I pass through Broken Bow.

From the flaky crust to the lushious coconut cream, to the perfectly beaten marainge, which stands up to the halo of toasted coconut, this pie is pefection on a plate. And, at $2.50, perfection is also a bargain.

"My mother used to tell me that I was putting in too much (of an ingredient). So, I would just tell myself that one day, I would have my own place and I could make it my way" says Pie Lady, Ann Carter.



I, for one, am grateful she did not follow her mother's advice. While the Coconut Cream Pie verges on sinfullness, it successfully falls into the category of astonishingly just right.

77 Pieces of Pie

For 5 years I've wanted to begin a project...about pie. It's time to begin. Over the next 12 months we will find the 77 best pieces of pie in Oklahoma. One per county. We will also make pie, from scratch, as often as possible.

First, like with everything in life, it's time to prepare. Research. Researching pie. Yeah, that does make it better.