WYOMING - Pie #50 of 50 - Maia Oustinoff Albers
No State Foods
I have been to Wyoming, not once but twice. I have been to Jackson Hole, driven through the Teton pass and stood at the foot in the shadows of the Devil’s Tower.
Wyoming is the last state on my road trip but the first state to give women the right to vote, home to the first official National Park, Yellowstone (1872), the first National Monument, Devil’s Tower (1906) and where JCPenney stores were started. How poetic this is isn’t lost on me. My previous job at JCPenney was the main proponent in my journey to becoming a permanent resident here in America.
To say Wyoming is breath taking would be the understatement of the century. From the decent in the plane to the drive through Teton pass there wasn’t one moment where the views weren’t postcard perfect. It is vast, it is wild and all you want to do is breath it all in. From sunrise to sunset it hard to comprehend just how beautiful one place can be.
I knew right off the bat that Wyoming was going to the a savory pie! I knew I wanted either bison or elk in it with a wild berry component. Since Wyoming is the last state in my 50 pies series, I knew I had to do an in state delivery and bake. I knew I had to end the project in the state it was for.
I decided to capture the sweet trouble that fills this state in an elk chili pie with a little Teton lattice on top served with a Huckleberry demi glacé. Elk range from mountainous wilderness areas to lowland deserts and plains and are plentiful on both public and private lands. The huckleberry often confused with the blueberry due to its close resemblance. Although very similar in taste, the big difference is the seeds within the huckleberry that give it a crunchy texture when fresh and its thicker skin. The flavor is a little more tart than blueberries, with an intense blueberry flavor.
All these flavors together the spiciness of the chili, with the tartness of the Demi glacé! I served it with a little sour cream to cut the heat and my favorite boxed wine Bandit!
This pie is dedicated to my friend of 14 years Maia Oustinoff Albers. I first met Maia at a party at Peirce the Maryland pie recipient’s house in Savannah, GA. From then on Maia and I were instant friends. I remember driving around Savannah blasting Shiny Toy Guns in her VW golf. Maia graduated a year before me and I remember thinking OH LORD I gotta make new friends but knew she would be waiting on the other side for me in New York! In New York we continued to hang going to shows at Music Hall of Williamsburg, drinking many tecante’s at the Levee and getting into all sorts of sweet trouble. There was one time during our early 20’s in New York where both Maia and I were going through a tumultuous time, everything seemed to be falling apart. I got us tickets to a Bon Iver show. We held hands for the entirely of the show and sobbed. It sounds pretty tragic but it was one of the most beautiful memories I have of our friendship. Bon Iver will always have a special place in our hearts and bond us because of it. She made the move to Jackson Hole almost a decade ago and at the time I was so sad but couldn’t have been more excited to have another place to visit or excited to see what the next chapter of her adventure would look like.
Our souls ride on the same waves. Our highs are high and our lows are low but like the base of the Tetons we stand tall no matter what the weather or what life has in store of us.
I am so blessed to have Maia as a friend. It’s rare in life you find people that sing the same tune as you.
Like Wyoming there is no place on earth like our friendship.
*roll credits* That’s The Way The World Goes Round by John Prine plays.
I DID IT Y’ALL! 50 DONE 🇺🇸💪🏼🇺🇸