Lemon Chess Pie

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Scotch

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Joined
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This traditional Southern dessert is truly as easy as pie and it's really, really good:

LEMON CHESS PIE

Note — Have all ingredients at room temperature.

4 large eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon cornmeal
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted, cooled
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Put the eggs a large mixing bowl, and whisk briefly to blend.

Whisk in the following, one at a time, blending until each
ingredient has been incorporated before adding the next:
sugar
cornmeal
flour
salt
melted butter
buttermilk
lemon juice
lemon zest
vanilla
Pour the filling into the unbaked pie crust, and bake in
the middle of the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes,
until the pie is golden brown on top and almost set.
The center of the pie should remain slightly loose; it will
set as it cools. Remove to a cooling rack, and cool
completely before serving.

Serve at room temperature with lightly sweetened
whipped cream.


268614319_tmYsC-L.jpg
 
This traditional Southern dessert is truly as easy as pie and it's really, really good:

LEMON CHESS PIE

Note — Have all ingredients at room temperature.

4 large eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon cornmeal
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted, cooled
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Put the eggs a large mixing bowl, and whisk briefly to blend.

Whisk in the following, one at a time, blending until each
ingredient has been incorporated before adding the next:
sugar
cornmeal
flour
salt
melted butter
buttermilk
lemon juice
lemon zest
vanilla
Pour the filling into the unbaked pie crust, and bake in
the middle of the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes,
until the pie is golden brown on top and almost set.
The center of the pie should remain slightly loose; it will
set as it cools. Remove to a cooling rack, and cool
completely before serving.

Serve at room temperature with lightly sweetened
whipped cream.


268614319_tmYsC-L.jpg


born and in tennessee through teen age, i love chess pie, and lemon is one of my favorites. you bet! i will make this, thanks
 
Wow, beautiful, Scotch!

I have heard a lot about chess pie, but have never tried one. This version will be my first!

Lee
 
And I have another version from my Tennessee grandmother:
1 unbaked pie shell
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
1 tablespoon vinegar
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla

Stir together sugar, butter, vinegar, eggs and vanilla. Don't overmix. Pour into pie shell, bake in 375 degree oven until golden brown. It will still shimmy in the middle. Let cool, serve warm or cold.

This is the easiest version of many, many good chess pies. You may also want to add a cup of chopped pecans before you bake it.
 
COOL! This recipe looks awesome Scotch. I didn't see it when you first posted it so I'm glad it got bumped. This is on my "try it out" list.
 
And I have another version from my Tennessee grandmother:
1 unbaked pie shell
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
1 tablespoon vinegar
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla

Stir together sugar, butter, vinegar, eggs and vanilla. Don't overmix. Pour into pie shell, bake in 375 degree oven until golden brown. It will still shimmy in the middle. Let cool, serve warm or cold.

This is the easiest version of many, many good chess pies. You may also want to add a cup of chopped pecans before you bake it.

From what I've read, most people call that a Vinegar Pie, which is very closely related to Chess Pie. I'll have to give it a try!
 
I made this pie this weekend and it turned out great. The family just loved it.
Thank you for sharing.
Glad you liked it -- but who wouldn't? (I didn't create the recipe, so I can say that.) I love that it's so easy and quick.
 
Scotch, I'm going to have to try yours!!! And I've already saved it into my recipe collection. Thanks!

I too have another version - This is old west cooking, Pre-Civil War stuff, adjusted to modern oven baking and greatly simplified from your recipe:

Chess Pie

2 Cups sugar
1 Tbls. Flour
1/2 Lb. Butter
1/2 Tsp. Vanilla (or 1 vanilla bean, scraped)
1 Tsp. Grated Lemon Peel
6 Eggs

Mix 2 cups sugar and 1 heaping tbls. flour together, and add 1/2 lb. of softened butter. Blend until light and fluffy. Add 6 eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Add vanilla plus grated lemon peel. Place in unbaked pie crust and bake at 300 degrees until knife comes out clean... about an hour.
 
I made this pie this afternoon and just had a slice with whipped cream.

It's delicious! The filling is buttery, tart and smooth as silk.

Rather than measure the zest into a tablespoon as indicated, I just zested the two lemons I needed for the 1/3 cup of juice.

I recommend this recipe to anyone who likes lemon desserts.
 
Uhm, why is it called Chess pie? I was expecting a checkerboard design on the pie at the very least but was disappointed to see a common looking pie. :)
 
It's a mystery lost in the fog of time. There are several theories, however:

1. "Chess" is a mispronunciation of "cheese," as the pie sort of resembles the kind of cheese pies popular in centuries past.

2. "Chess" is a mispronunciation of "chest" as the pies were stored in a special cabinet called a "pie chest."

3. "Chess" is a mispronunciation of the term "jes' pie," reflecting it's simple roots -- that is, it's "just pie."

Take your pick. It's good no matter what you call it.

BTW, here's an interesting article on the subject from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess_pie
 
Scotch, 'chess' wanna thank you for the link. ;-) That was interesting. Kinda made me think back to another strange-sounding down-homey American dessert called shoo-fly pie I encountered in Lancaster, PA a few years back. :)
 

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