Dini McCullough Amozurrutia

When Dini McCullough Amozurrutia appeared on the HIBT Podcast's 583rd episode, she didn't just talk pie. She talked about walking away from a legal career to build a pandemic-born baking business from scratch. A writer and former attorney, Amozurrutia launched Dini's Divine Pies in March 2022, operating out of the Washington DC metro area with a focus on small-batch, all-butter crust pies made with premium ingredients. Her Instagram account @dinisdivinepies, which now has 1.7K followers, lays out the brand's core promise in three lines. Small-batch pies. Premium ingredients. All-butter crusts.

She has spoken publicly about the intentional choices that come with running a small, artisanal operation. Saying no to new product concepts that don't align with her brand. Leaning into forecasting to manage food, liquor, and labor costs. Iterating on signature items like her cheddar-and-bacon pie, a staple that still requires ongoing recipe tweaks to get right. In its first two years, the business pulled in $200,000 in sales through farmers markets, pop-ups, and wholesale accounts across the region. In 2023, Amozurrutia ran a Kickstarter campaign to fund a permanent Dini's Divine Pies & Pie Stand. She raised $4,890 from 55 backers.

Amozurrutia is now focused on what comes after the stand. She is raising a pre-seed round to build out a commercial kitchen and distribution network that could move her pies into retail and wholesale channels across the mid-Atlantic without losing the handcrafted quality that built the business. She is also exploring a second book project that would document the recipes and stories behind the first three years of Dini's Divine Pies. The next chapter is less about farmers market lineups and more about building a company that can outlast its founder—while keeping every pie crust rolled by hand.