This Award-Winning Connecticut Pie Has Dominated 51 National Competitions

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Growing up, Michele Stuart promised her grandmother that one day, she would make her pies famous. By 2010, Stuart was whipping up over 5,000 Thanksgiving pie orders in a couple of days from a single shop in Norwalk, Connecticut. Her store, Michele's Pies, had opened three years prior, after Stuart spent a year selling pies out of her kitchen. Stuart's creations remain a sensation to this day, racking up 51 national first-place awards and earning widespread recognition.

Michele's Pies serves some of the most popular classic pies in the United States, like apple pie and Key lime. Part of Stuart's secret to success is simple: opting for good old-fashioned baking techniques, many of which she learned from her grandmother. Her sharp attention to detail includes taking cues from her natural environment. Speaking to Craft to Crumb in 2025, Stuart stated, "The humidity and the temperature outside really determine how much water you need. If it's very dry and humid, add more water."

Michele's Pies offers patrons over 25 different types of pies, which means Stuart does not strictly stick to the basics. Traditional pecan pie is one of the seriously delicious pie recipes you'll wish you knew sooner, but Stuart's signature is a chocolate pecan bourbon pie. In 2007, this pie snagged first place in the National Pie Competition. By 2011, the Daytime Emmys ordered 1,700 of Stuart's chocolate pecan bourbon pies for guests. The pies were also part of the 63rd Emmy Awards gift bags.

Michele Stuart's grandmother did not live to see her success, but her pies are famous, just as Stuart said they would be. Michele's Pies has become a pastry world powerhouse, sporting an impressive 51 blue ribbons from the American Pie Council's National Pie Championships. In 2024 alone, Stuart took home 10 first-place awards for her pies, with winners including the butterscotch pecan pie, crunchy peanut butter pie, chocolate walnut cream pie, and chicken pot pie.

In addition to acclaim in the somewhat niche world of pie competitions, Michele's Pies has garnered national media attention over the years. The company has been featured on Good Morning America and in The New York Times. Stuart also competed in Food Network's competition program, "Throwdown with Bobby Flay," showing off her skills by baking a maple pumpkin pie with pecan streusel.

Given Michele's Pies' presence in major media outlets, it's no surprise the shop has extended beyond Connecticut to build a national footprint. If you're curious to sample Michele's Pies, they're available on Goldbelly. Consider ordering your favorite pie to eat in the fall from a little shop in Norwalk. Then again, award-winning pie is a good idea any time of year.