Which three colonist groups brought apple pie to America?

The English, Dutch, and Swedes brought apple pie to the American colonies.

Apple pie was not invented in colonial America. European settlers carried established pie-making traditions across the Atlantic during the 17th and 18th centuries, including recipes and techniques associated with England, the Netherlands, and Sweden. Each tradition contributed to the broader food culture that developed in the colonies.

The Dutch had especially well-documented apple-pie traditions. A Dutch cookbook printed in 1514 records an early appeltaart recipe, centuries before the United States existed. Dutch-style pies later became associated with both lattice crusts and crumb toppings.

The American version also depended on imported European apple varieties. Indigenous North America had crabapples, but settlers needed to plant European apples and wait for productive orchards. That history is why “as American as apple pie” describes a powerful national symbol even though the dessert’s roots are European.