If you grew up in Utah or visited around July 24^th and asked around about why firework stands were still up late after the 4^th of July; you probably already know what day I am talking about… Pioneer Day. A celebration of when the pioneers travelled west and settled in Utah. A more recent addition to the day is a play on the word “Pioneer” to “Pie and Beer”. I’m not sure who started it but do we really need to ask too many prying questions if it involves eating pie? With an apple pie cooking in the oven (I’m drooling here because it smells delicious), cold beer waiting, and a firework show later tonight; I’m wishing you all a Happy Pie and Beer Day!

All of my pies start with the same classic crust. Simply let the butter and cream cheese come to room temperature. Then use your hands to combine with the flour until the mixture comes together. This recipe yields 4 crusts but since my pie dish is a little larger, I split mine into 3 crusts this time. I used two for this recipe, one for the bottom of the pie and one for the top crust.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/3 cups unsalted butter
• 8 oz cream cheese (1 package)
• 3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour