Shoofly and Other Pies from Pennsylvania

Shoofly pie, with its sticky warmth and goodness, is what a pie should be — sweet, spicy, filling, and an interesting combination of textures bobbing around in the mouth. Even if it’s not made in your own oven, you can imagine, as you bite into it, motherly hands covered in red checked oven mitts pulling the finished pie fresh from the heat. This is not a pie for those who desire a delicate melt-in-your-mouth experience, or just a nip of sweetness, from a dessert.

Shoofly pie is made from molasses, brown sugar, cinnamon, flour, butter, and salt, and sometimes nutmeg. Traditional shoofly pies are made with either a “wet bottom” (soft filling and crumb topping) or “dry bottom” (crumb topping mixed into the filling). Most of the ingredients will keep in the larder for the winter, even without