Southern Summer Series: Just A Few Miles South #5: Buttermilk Chess Pie! {and American Pie #3}

Every summer I like to chose a cookbook or a special focus and do a summer cooking series. Some of the summer series that I've done in the past are: popsicles; ice creams; cookies; salads; and healthy recipes. One series I've always wanted to do is a series of southern summer recipes. So, this summer I chose a local cookbook from James Beard Nominee, Ouita Michel. Each week I will be cooking recipes from Ouita's Just A Few Miles South Cookbook. 

This week we have a dessert! A traditional southern pie, Buttermilk Chess Pie. Chess pie is a custard dessert pie made with eggs, sugar, butter and flour in a pastry crust. It is usually flavored with lemon juice and vanilla and is sometimes thickened with cornmeal. 

There are a few theories about how the pie got it's name. One is that it refers to a "chest" where pies were stored before refrigeration. Another theory is that it comes from a Southern accent of mishearing "just pie" or "jes' pie." There is another theory that it might be a variation of cheese pie, but there's no cheese in the recipe so I think the name takes roots in the southern accent itself.

This Buttermilk Chess Pie is not thickened with cornmeal. In fact, it has very few ingredients. Once you blind bake the pie crust things come together very quickly. A quick mix of eggs, melted butter, sugar, flour, salt, buttermilk, vanilla, lemon juice, and nutmeg and you're ready to pour it in the pie shell and bake.

 I've had versions of Chess Pie several times, but this is my first time making it. It is sweet and creamy like custard with subtle hints of vanilla and lemon. It's a subtle pie, but one that is delicious and that you can likely make with pantry ingredients. You can serve it like is, or dollop a little whipped cream on top with some berries on the side. 

Buttermilk Chess Pie

Adapted from Just A Few Miles South

by Ouita Michel

Makes 1 (9-inch) pie

1 recipe Midway Bakery All-Butter Pie Crust, blind baked*

3 large eggs

1 stick butter, melted and cooled

1-1/2 cups sugar

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional)

 

Midway Bakery All-Butter Pie Crust: 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1 stick butter (cut into small pieces), 1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar, 2-1/2 to 4 tablespoons cold whole milk. Add flour and salt to a food processor and pulse several times to combine. Add butter and pulse until it is broken into very small pieces and the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add vinegar and then slowly pour in milk, pusling until the dough comes together. Remove from the processor and knead on a floured surface several times. Pat into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 30 minutes before using. 

To blind bake a pie crust, roll out the dough, line a pie pan with it, flute the edges, and prick the bottom all over with a fork. Freeze the crust in the pan for as least 30 minutes. While the crust is freezing, preheat the oven to 375F. Remove the crust from the freezer and line it with parchment paper, allowing about 2 inches to hang over the sides to serve as handles for lifting. Make sure to fit the parchment snugly into the angle where the bottom meets the sides. Fill the pan to the top with uncooked dry beans or rice or ceramic pie weights. Bake 25 minutes. Using the parchment handles, remove the weights from the pie, reduce the temperature to 325F, and continue baking 15 minutes, until the crust has dried out and is light golden brown. Allow it to cool to room temperature before continuing with the recipe. The rice or beans can be reused as pie weights many times. 

For the Buttermilk Chess Filling: Preheat oven to 350F. In a large bowl, beat eggs until light and fluffy. Add butter, sugar, flour, and salt. Then add buttermilk, vanilla, lemon juice, and nutmeg, if desired. Mix to combine.  Pour into the cooled pie shell. Bake 40 minutes, or until the center is firm and set when lightly touched. Cool on a wire rack before serving.