Keep Your Eye on the Pie

For most, pie conjures images of relaxing after a large meal, surrounded by family and friends, and taking time to enjoy the sweeter side of life for a moment. Michele Albano makes those moments by hand.

Albano is the founder of Michele's Pies, a Norwalk-based bakery that is garnering a pretty sweet reputation not just in Westport and Fairfield County, but across the nation. In just a little over two years, the business she started in her ski condo in Killington has grown into something of a sensation.

If you've tasted Michele's pies firsthand, then you probably have an idea why so many blue first-place ribbons adorn the walls of her store. You probably also can tell why her wares were featured on Good Morning America last year and why she was on the Food Network just last Wednesday.

Her recipes are closely-guarded secrets, passed down to her from her grandmother, Louise Rondano. She only uses fresh fruit for her fillings, often purchased from area distributors like Jones Family Farms in Shelton. But the key to her succulent success?

"My pie crust is my own recipe, which I think is the most important part of the pie," Albano said late Friday night, as she took a short break from the holiday rush. "Anyone can make a good filling, but not everyone can make a good pie crust."

There's a dash of humility baked into the statement because, while it may be true that not everyone can make a good pie crust, it's certainly not true that anyone can make a good filling, or at least not one that rivals hers.

Albano's staple is her award-winning Chocolate Pecan Bourbon pie, what got her featured on Good Morning America in the first place. Even the most celebrated food writer would have trouble describing the perfectly sticky, outrageously good party in your mouth that that particular pie can conjure.

But if you think that's the extent of her offerings, you're missing out on a world of goodness.

Step inside her Danbury Road/Main Avenue store and you'll be faced with two burgeoning cases that represent a glutton's greatest dream. Cookies, quiches, creams and cakes: the caloric content is far outweighed by a single bite of any one of these delicacies, all of which shes says are "made by hand with love."

It's not all frosting and festivities for Albano, though. Particularly during holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter are the busiest times), Michele and her staff of ten work long hours baking to meet an ever-growing demand, and rushing around to various pie competitions and to complete deliveries.

On Friday, for instance, Albano was cheery but weary, her apron covered in dried dough and decorative colors at 7 p.m. She pressed crusts as she chatted about meeting Bobby Flay and the insanity of starting a small business in her Vermont kitchen and parlaying appearances at local farmer's markets into her own shop, which she said they have already outgrown.

Though her store is situated in a shopping center at 666 Main Avenue, just over the Wilton border in Norwalk, there are a number of nods to her Vermont roots. Two tables and accompanying stools, hewn from huge tree trunks, sit in front of the beckoning dessert cases, and are adorned with bright yellow flowers. A carved black bear holding a lantern and a welcome sign greets residents as they enter.

While Albano keeps her recipes to herself, for good reason, you can get an idea of the work that goes into each one by looking at the prep. She said she and her staff have already processed 13,000 pounds of pumpkin this year, which includes washing, cutting, scooping, steaming, peeling, pressing, and pureeing the gourds, even before they begin making and filling her signature crusts.

Despite all the work, though, Albano wears the kind of smile that shows just how much she loves her work. The steady stream of customers and the unceasing demand demonstrate that this fact is not going unnoticed.

Michele's Pies will be taking pre-orders for Thanksgiving fixtures through Sunday, meaning you've only got a day and a half to make certain you don't miss the pie train that will deliver the perfect cap to your cornucopia.

That doesn't mean, of course, that you can't come in to the store next week. It does mean that you may well be standing in quite a line and still may not be guaranteed a pie if you.

"Last year, we had a line on Thanksgiving Day that stretched all the way down to the road," Albano said.

Her pies range in price from $7-9 for smaller ones to $20-40 for the larger desserts and you can phone in your orders at 203-354-7144.

And if you'd rather skip the holiday rush and watch her work her magic from afar, catch a re-airing of her appearance on the Food Network's "Throwdown with Bobby Flay" tonight at 11:30 p.m.