Chess Pie
This recipe is a Southern favorite and family recipe from Debra Walker’s Texas cousin. Recipe was prepared by Carlton Christian.
ORIGIN OF CHESS PIE
“Chess pies are a Southern specialty with a simple filling of eggs, sugar, butter, and a small amount of flour. Some recipes include cornmeal and others are made with vinegar or buttermilk. Flavorings, such as vanilla, lemon juice, or chocolate are also added to vary the basic recipe.”
The origin of the name, Chess Pie, is uncertain. A bit of folklore surrounds the name. Some think it’s a corruption of cheese, referring to English lemon curd pie, of which the filling bears a close resemblance. Supposedly Southern cookbooks used to describe pies with curd-like textures as cheesecakes or cheese pies, even if they contained no cheese.
Another suggests that the word is “chest,” used to describe these pies baked with so much sugar they could be stored in a pie chest rather than refrigerated where most pies needed to be kept.
Another folklore is about a cook with a thick Southern drawl who was asked what she was baking that smelled so great – “Jes’ pie” was her answer.
| Servings | Prep Time |
| 8servings | 15minutes |
| Cook Time |
| 1hour |
|
|
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Beat eggs in a large bowl. Mix in sugar, melted butter, flour, buttermilk and vanilla. Pour into pie shell. Bake at 350 degrees F for 55-60 minutes (or until knife inserted comes out clean) and filling is lightly browned.
Recipe Notes
