Hidden under many a New England pie crust is a whole lot of history as revealed by author/historian/archivist Robert S. Cox in his third book in a trilogy on New England culinary history.

In his new book, “New England Pie,” which follows “A History of Chowder” and “Cranberry Culture,” Cox has chosen a seasonal signature pie — both savory and sweet for each of the book’s chapters. He includes multiple recipes for each pie, reflecting both the bakers’ range of interpretations and the times in which they live(ed) from the 1700s up to the present day.

In the following interview, Cox, who resides in Amherst, Mass., filled us in on the history of regional pie making.

Q. You say in the book’s introduction: “Anthropologists have observed that food and foodways are among the strongest cultural markers we have.” Can you explain?

A. If you want to understand culture, food is an important piece. You see when immigrant families (come to the U.S.), their language disappears pretty quickly; dress and other behaviors adapt to the environment and culture around them, but food hangs on. People who are here five or six generations have (at least) one recipe that’s still treasured — from an aunt back in the old country. Also, for people who have been here a long time — Yankees since the 17th century — food reflects what’s grown, sold, consumed in an area, and when you live in New England that has a pretty distinctive and hard climate. Food was a day-to-day part of people’s lives.

Q. Why pie for the third book in the trilogy?

A. Pie is in all parts of this country, but New England has a strong relationship with pies going way back. We have a very strong attachment to both the savory and sweet. Other parts of the country lean more toward the sweet — fruit, cream, custard pies.

Q. How did you research the book? Do you bake yourself? Did you do a lot of pie tasting?

A. There are a couple pieces. I’m generally a disaster as a cook. I can boil water but anything more complicated, I’m pretty much a hopeless case. My wife is a very good cook.

I read other books and yes, I did pie tastings almost everywhere I went. I was a paleontologist before this. If you’re going to work on organisms, make sure they’re really pretty or really edible. I (discovered) it’s easy to make a pie, but it’s hard to make a good pie.

I looked for places that thought of themselves as very local. I wanted to also see what was different in each state. I found a diner (for example) in Vermont that had really distinctive maple pecan pie. I also found individual people willing to let me sit down and watch them bake. My mother-in-law did a French meat pie. She uses her grandmother’s recipe. A friend in Vermont did a rhubarb pie for me that was just awesome. Somebody else, on the Massachusetts/New Hampshire border, made me a blueberry pie with berries picked that morning. I was looking for any individual who would talk to me about how they made the pie and what the pie meant to them.

Q. Why do you think pies have remained “our constant companion”?

A. After 1750, when you look at those modern pies, they are generally quite simple, direct ways of presenting foods. And they’re portable; you can take them to a picnic, which is why they’ve held on so long in New England. Pies are also about as far as you can get from a pretentious food. Purity of ingredients and directness of presentation make a really good pie.

Q. What is the most surprising thing you discovered about pie making while doing your research?

A. The most surprising thing for me was the mock pies. I knew about false or faux pies like Boston Cream or Whoopie pies that people call pies even though they’re not at all. The mock pie is made by cooks who take an ingredient and make it something it’s not. Maybe an ingredient is too expensive or forbidden in your diet, or you have too much on hand and want to make it seem like something else. The most famous: mock apple pies on the back of the Ritz Cracker box goes back to the 1830s. The mock cherry pie (less known) is made of cranberries and vanilla and a handful of other things. It comes out of this 1890s period. It takes cranberries during harvest season and puts them to use. Another thing mocking does in a traditional domestic setting is show your skill in presenting something using ingredients that are cheap and available to seem expensive or rare — and really delicious.

Q. I love the December chapter on mincemeat pie. My mother-in-law was the only person we knew who made it, for my father, who was the only person who ate it. But since she’s gone, we haven’t had a mincemeat pie on the holiday table. So did you write this to face your fears of mincemeat?

A. It’s a very old pie. It goes back to middle ages. They would take minced meat and mix in chopped fruit and also lard and spices. It was enormously popular in the 18th and 19th century, particularly at Christmas. A popular early processed food was canned minced meat. I think my fear and your fear is you don’t really know what’s in there, right?

Q. So, what pies were popular for Christmas besides mincemeat?

A. French meat pie — traditionally served after midnight Mass on Christmas Eve — and a family recipe for me. And probably a chicken pie — a traditional Thanksgiving/Christmas pie. I think apple would still be the number-one fruit pie. It’s so prevalent as a pie once the summer fruits are all gone in New England.

“New England Pie” by Robert Cox (American Palate/History Press) is $21.99, softcover, illustrated.

NORA’S FRENCH MEAT PIE

2 pounds ground beef (80/20)

1 pounds ground pork

1 potato, boiled and mashed

¼ teaspoon black pepper

¼–½ teaspoon each sage, cloves, cinnamon, to taste

¼ teaspoon thyme

Pinch of nutmeg

1 small onion, minced fine

Double pie crust (store-bought works fine)

4 pats butter

Combine meats, onion and seasoning well and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes, stirring the meat to break it up several times. Drain off liquid. Let stand for fat to rise to top and discard fat; return the rest of liquid to the meat. Combine with mashed potato. Place in pastry-lined pie tin. Cover with top crust and place 4 pats of butter evenly on top. Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes or until browned. Meat mixture may be made the day before and refrigerated until ready to use. Makes one 9-inch pie. Great for brunch buffet.

Suzette’s variations:

• Alter the ratio of beef to pork to 50:50.

• Double the amount of potato.

• Omit the thyme, cinnamon and, usually, onion.

• Substitute Bell’s Poultry Seasoning with (optionally) a pinch of ground sage and ground cloves.

Recipe courtesy of “New England Pie: History Under a Crust” by Robert Cox.

What: Robert Cox will sign copies of his book “New England Pie”

When: Dec. 12, from 1 to 3 p.m.

Where: Bank Square Books, 53 W. Main St., Mystic.

Info: Visit www.banksquarebooks.com or call the bookstore at (860) 536-3795.