Blueberries are part of my heritage

My mom baked pies the way some mothers make cakes—effortlessly and often. She could whip up a pie from whatever was in the pantry: eggs, butter, milk, brown sugar, or any fruit she had on hand. Dessert wasn’t an occasional treat in our house; it was expected. It was tradition.

Recently, I found my mother’s Good Housekeeping cookbook—the one with her treasured cream pie recipe tucked inside. It had been packed away for at least ten years. I thought it was gone forever. Holding it again felt like opening a time capsule, and I cannot wait to bake that pie the way she did.

But my mother’s true specialty was blueberry pie. It came together so easily for her. Little prep. Always-available berries. A crust that baked up the same every time. And most of all, it was a recipe passed down from her mother—a pie as central to our family as sweet potato pie is in others.

Why blueberries? Because their story is intertwined with ours.

Blueberries are one of North America’s original indigenous crops, with deep cultural significance for African Americans—especially those with Native ancestry. My grandfather’s lineage traces back to the Cherokee, and my great-grandfather was a Cherokee medicine man. In Kentucky, where my family is from, Native communities like the Cherokee used wild blueberries for food, healing, and ceremony. Long before commercial farms existed, blueberries were dried and added to stews, puddings, and medicinal teas.

By the early 1900s, as agriculture expanded, blueberries also became one of the more accessible crops for African American farmers to cultivate—an important economic pathway during a time of limited opportunities.

These historical connections matter, especially during this season when food, tradition, and community are woven so tightly together. This pie carries all of that for me—heritage, memory, flavor, and love. And every time I smell it baking, I’m transported back to childhood, smiling as the sweet aroma fills the house.

Try my recipe—and for a perfect pairing, enjoy it with a glass of tawny port. Pure, simple, nostalgic goodness.