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Legend of the Moon Pie

© Virginia Marin

Il veut prendre la lune avec les dents
(He wants to take the moon between his teeth)
Alluding to the old proverb about eating the moon

Once, in the early eons of time, the earth was blessed with many wondrous creations: mountains, oceans, flora, fauna and heavenly bodies to behold. But no creation has been more beautiful, more delectible or hypnotic than the Moon. A Moon Pie, that is...

A Moon Pie is a miniature full-moon-shaped, edible, sticky, somewhat crunchy concoction of graham cracker cookie dough and marshmellows which is covered with chocolate.

Born in Tennessee in the early nineteen hundreds, Moon Pies were originally made for coal miners as a special treat to brighten their black days under ground. Legend has it that the name Moon Pie originated with a miner who once said, "I'd like a cookie as big as the moon."

Well, the Moon Pie is not as big as the moon but it is big on flavor. After the first bite into a Moon Pie the flavor explodes, filling the mouth with a delectible taste that is pure bliss. It is no wonder that Moon Pies have held their popularity since their genesis in the early nineteen hundreds.

Country folk swear that after the first bite into a Moon Pie, an image of the Man-in-the-Moon appears on the surface of the pie--and winks.

The Legend of the Moon Pie By Dubh Sidhe

Once a long time ago, there was an old man named Plumion who lived alone, for he was unmarried and very poor. In winter he made his living by gathering wood and selling his bundles in the market place for a few precious coins with which he would purchase food.

One day Plumion was busy about his work when the weather turned terribly bad. The snow swirled around him with stinging fingers and the northwind howled like ravinous wolves. Plumion was shivering from the harsh wintery blast. His only warmth came from a flimsy woolen neck scarf, a time-worn hat and thread-bare gloves which had long ago seen a better day. He was thankful for the heavy sack of wood on his back which gave him some extra warmth and protection. Plumion's vissage did, indeed, speak to his poverty.

Now it happened along the way that Plumion came upon a ragged old woman who asked him for a handful of wood to burn for heat. He was filled with compassion and gave unto her his entire sack of wood. In return, she gave to him a bag of sweet crumbs which he placed in his deepest pocket. Plumion was so taken with this humble act that he removed his scarf and placed it around the hag's neck.

The copyright of the article Legend of the Moon Pie in Folklore is owned by Larry Low. Permission to republish Legend of the Moon Pie in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.