Dolly Parton, George Washington and a herd of bison – what unites them? They all appear on a baker’s pies, one for every US state
- Stacey Fong has captured the essence of 44 states in pie fillings over four years, but must wait until the coronavirus pandemic ends to nail the last six
- Colorado’s pie contains bison stewed in beer and broth, Nevada’s is divided into eight slices and flavours, while that for New York is made with good old apple
There’s nothing quite as American as apple pie, or so the popular saying goes – but Stacey Mei Yan Fong begs to differ. The avid baker is striving to create a different pie for every US state (yes, all 50 of them), translating the identity of each into a distinctive flavour.
It’s more than just a pie-in-the-sky fantasy for Fong, who has dreamed up 44 unique creations over the past four years and is well on her way to completing her ambitious 50 Pies/50 States project, documented in a blog of the same name.
Born in Singapore and raised in Hong Kong – she lived in the Tai Tam/Stanley area in Southern district on Hong Kong Island and attended Singapore International School and South Island School – Fong moved to Savannah, Georgia for university, and has lived in the United States ever since.
Today, she lives in New York, working as a freelance handbag and accessory designer.
The unusual endeavour helps the 33-year-old to better understand the country she now calls home. “I have travelled to many places in the US and lived in a few states, but I wanted to take a deep[er] dive. And what better way to learn more about a place than through its food and its people?
“I chose to focus on pie because it is synonymous with America and American culture. Pie is also the perfect receptacle since it is a blank canvas – it can be sweet, or it can be savoury.”
