Jan. 23 is the nationally declared holiday celebrating pie.

This dish is considered to be America’s most traditional dessert. Many people eat pies to celebrate holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving. Diners and restaurants across the nation display pies to entice customers to have a slice before they finish their meal.

The holiday’s creator, Charlie Papazian, a Boulder, Colorado teacher, told his students in the 70s that his birthday would also be known as a day to celebrate the dessert he loved so much.

Papazian founded the American Pie Council and registered the holiday. Promotions for Pie Day started in 1986 and the holiday came to be.

According to Tippins Original Pies, a pie manufacturer, “Charlie likes pie, and he celebrates with candles on his birthday pie. It’s a holiday simply to celebrate pie, because pie so deserves to be celebrated.”

With humble origins, the holiday commemorates the simplicity of enjoying a good dessert.

Some people believe the holiday falls on March 14, National Pi Day. The mathematical number is celebrated in the month of March but is often confused with the dessert celebrated in January.

According to National Today, a publisher that tracks daily holidays, “National Pie Day has nothing to do with math and everything to do with that sweet American treat.”

From fruit pies to cream pies to meat pies, this dessert has been around since Egyptian times. The first recorded recipe was created by ancient Romans — a rye-crusted goat cheese and honey pie. Usually, the crust was not eaten as it functioned as a bag, to cook the filling and prevent burning.

The ancient dish eventually became popular throughout European countries.

According to the American Pie Council early European pies were not considered desserts. Most pies contained meat with more crust than filling. Birds were used to create the pie filling and their legs were left over the side of the dish, functioning as handles used to lift the pie.

While the American Pie Council speculates about the date, they believe the first fruit pies and tarts were created in 16th-century England. Queen Elizabeth I is attributed with making the first cherry pie. It was through the dish’s popularity in Europe that Americans eat pie today.

According to the American Pie Council, “Pie came to America with the first English settlers. Over the years, pie has evolved to become what it is today ‘the most traditional American dessert.’ Pie has become so much a part of American culture throughout the years, that we now commonly use the term ‘as American as apple pie.'”

Those who wish to celebrate the holiday can bake, eat and enjoy their favorite pie.