Cherry Pie and George

Today is Cherry Pie Day. Now, I like pie and I like cherries, I like cherry pie just fine, so I am quite pleased to celebrate Cherry Pie Day today. However, --

It is funny cherries were chosen for the pie in February since fresh cherries are not yet readily available and won't be until summer. Hmmm.

The official word is cherry pie was chosen to honor George Washington and his honesty about chopping down his father's cherry tree with his new hatchet. Then why is Cherry Pie Day today and not on February 22, George's birthday?

Besides that, there seems to be a question about the truth of that cherry tree chopping story, too. It is likely that an ex-parson Mason Locke Weems included this "curious anecdote" in his book, the first biography of Washington because he was a seller of books. Even if he didn't chop down the tree and confess to his dad, it's a good story to teach kids to be honest. There is no proof that it didn't happen.

Why this date? Why cherries? Why cherry pie?

Cherries are yummy, but they are so much more. They are healthy! Yea! They are full of vitamins and even antioxidants and flavonoids. Add to that the fact that cherries are low in calories and contain no fat. Cherries are also very heart smart. Wow. They do deserve their own day.

Because there are no fresh cherries, we can buy a can of cherry pie filling, And February, at least in the Northern Hemisphere, is often unbearably cold, so we may as well heat up the cherries and put them in a pie.

Happy Cherry Pie Day and Bon Apetit!

technorati tags: cherries, cherrypieday, georgewashington, vicki'sblog, masonlockeweems