German baker: pie art to a new fascinating level

In Germany, a country known more for kuchen than pie, one baker has become a sensation for her design-savvy, American-style pastries.

Karin Pfeiff-Boschek makes three pies each week, posts pictures of them on Instagram and then gives most of them away to friends and charities. Her online pastry portfolio routinely garners thousands of likes and comments.

That’s no surprise, given the stunning appeal of her dough decorations. Her creations, which she says must look good both pre- and post-baked, are embellished with intricate patterns of cutouts and edible appliques.

The result is a culinary theatre-in-the-round, starring a butter-pastry cascade of rosettes, hearts, leaves, vines, berries, braids, stars, paisley, perforations, diamonds and dots.

She also produces square and rectangular slab pies, a concept partly spurred by Pi Day (in March, when the date 3/14 matches the mathematical ratio) and the formula pi r squared.

Her kitchen repertoire, like that of most households, reflects family traditions. The photogenic pastries are a marital merger combining Pfeiff-Boschek’s background in textile design with a bit of apple pie influence from the American midwest.

Her husband, northern Indiana native Bruce Boschek, moved to Germany in the 1960s to study for his PhD. He brought with him lessons in making pie from his mother, who was an award-winning baker.