Tart or pie

(we won’t even go into cake)

The general consensus is that a thinner crust and less filling with an open top equal a tart, but if you put in more filling and put another layer of pastry on top, this makes a ‘closed’ pie. Both can be either sweet or savoury.

So, if you’re with me here, this is:

But here is where I get perplexed sometimes – aren’t there just some kinds of tarts or pies that ‘go’ with the terms pie or tart? So, lemon merengue pie or ricotta pie (and god, cheesecake!) will rarely be called a tart, no matter what. Or a pecan pie, which for alliterative purposes is not called a tart. Or, say, a Bakewell tart (which has pastry on top!) is not called a Bakewell pie for some reason. Are there pastries that transcend categories and then is there really a point in this differentiation?

For the record, I like tarts, cakes and pies no matter their name but I’m also a person who thinks too much.

Some people say that the amount of filling is another differentiator. A pie is baked in a deeper dish and thus holds more filling (not always true, in my experience, though I vastly prefer pies with a lot of filling and a thin crust). In a tart, the crust plays a more prominent role in terms of texture and is usually more crumbly. Tarts are also seen as more refined and ‘European’ while pies are cozier, homier and ‘American.’

Thoughts? More existential questions?

– K