This traditional southern dessert, buttermilk chess pie is rich and creamy with a flaky crust! Serve with freshly whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
All about chess pie!
I love holiday time, we see an abundance of pies all over social media! With so many different types to choose from it’s hard to nail down a favorite. That must be why I always see three or four to choose from at our Thanksgiving and Christmas time tables! Sometimes I’ll be in the mood for a summer Peach Pie or this Southwestern Chicken Pot Pie when the nights get colder.
If I had to choose a favorite, it would probably be pecan pie but it has to have either chocolate or Bourbon in it (or both!) There’s something about that sticky, chewy and crunchy texture that makes it better than any other pie I’ve had. But this Buttermilk Chess Pie is a close second. It has a really unique texture and flavor and reminds me of egg custard pies I would eat as a kid!
FAQ’s about this recipe
It tastes a little sweet but not too sugary, a bit like a creme brûlée dessert.The filling is cooked in a light flaky crust and then dusted with powdered sugar. Buttermilk chess pie is best served at room temperature and can be stored in the fridge for up to three days.
It’s essentially a buttermilk based custard pie. It has sugar in it but as I mentioned, it doesn’t taste particularly sweet like a fruit pie or pecan pie. The filling is cooked in a light flaky crust and then dusted with powdered sugar. Buttermilk chess pie is best served at room temperature and can be stored in the fridge for up to three days.
Don’t worry, you can create your own buttermilk by combining 1 cup of whole milk with 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. Let it stand for 10-15 minutes until it curdles slightly. It’s a good substitute for the real thing but, if you can get real buttermilk easily, then stick with that method.
I would say neither and go with room temperature. It’s best eaten with a good sized scoop of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. Dust the whole pie with powdered sugar just before serving for an extra special presentation.c
The pie takes just over an hour to bake, the surface should be puffed up and look dry on top. It’ll still be a little wobbly when you tap the sides but the i.e. will firm up as it cools. This pie has to cool completely before slicing or you’ll end up with a runny mess.
tips for making the best chess pie
- A frozen pie crust is a great way to save time and stress when the kitchen gets busy.
- When pre-baking your pie crust, pierce it a few time on the base with a fork to reduce it puffing up in the oven.
- Serve with a dollop of vanilla whipped wavy cream on top.
- Store any leftovers in the fridge.
- This pie will slice best once it cools completely.
more tasty holiday pies
Buttermilk Chess Pie
Ingredients
- 1 9 inch frozen pie crust
For the filling
- 3 large eggs
- 1 ½ tsp cornstarch
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 ½ cups buttermilk
- 8 tbsp unsalted butter melted and slightly cooled
- 2 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Turn the oven down to 400°F and place the pie shell in it. Bake for about 12 minutes and slightly golden. Press the base with a fork if it puffs up when cooking.
- Reduce the oven heat to 325 degrees. In a large bowl beat the eggs, cornstarch and sugar until well mixed.
- Beat in the buttermilk and melted butter alternately followed by the lemon juice, zest, nutmeg and salt.
- Place a cookie sheet into the preheated oven.
- Pour the filling into the pie shell.
- Bake for 60-70minutes and the top is crusted and puffy. It will still be jiggly but will firm up as it cools.
- Let cool before attempting to slice.
Nutrition
I too am bumming I was not in Austin this past weekend. All those instagram photos made me so jealous! I am also so jealous of this pie! It looks awesome! I love anything with buttermilk!
Thanks Tieghan, are you going to any other conferences?
I’ve never had the chance to try buttermilk pie but I have a feeling I’d love this – it looks so golden and delicious!
Aghh Laura, you have to try it, so good!
I love nutmeg and put it everywhere I can! Must be very tasty pie!
I think Dean’s sells pints of buttermilk around here…but they’re hard to find! Your buttermilk pie looks terrific…it reminds me of the Hoosier tradition: sugar cream pie.
Hope you’re having a great summer!
I gotta check out this sugar cream pie, sounds amazing Liz!
In the Midwest they make a pie called a Sugar Cream Pie, I recently did a blog post about it but my version uses buttermilk instead of milk. It’s not as custard like (only calls for one egg). After I published the post I had Southerners coming out of the woodwork telling me how much they love buttermilk pies… I never knew such a thing existed! Anyways… your pie looks amazing. I have a soft spot for any type of custard pie.
I need to check out that sugar pie, sounds awesome!
This wouldn’t last long at our house either! It looks fabulous!
Thin crust with tangy custard-like filling…a perfect summer dessert.
Thanks Angie, I’ll be making it again for sure..
This looks amaaazing! I’m drooling :)
Thanks Nessa!!
you make my mouth water every time i visit! This pie is just beyond amazing. Creamy with a slight texture- just dreamy
Chess Pie brings out the southern boy in me! GREG
That looks insanely good! I never had a Buttermilk Chess Pie before and now I must. Great post!
Excellent way to put that leftover buttermilk to good use, I love a good custard pie.
Yep, Franklin’s is on my BBQ bucket list, I’m dying to try his legendary brisket.
When I have leftover buttermilk, I use it for poultry marinades. I don’t think I have seen it in sizes other than quart, I’ll ask the Cruze farm people at the market if I can remember. Oooh, their buttermilk ice cream is to die for.
How have I ever had this pie before?! I must change that asap!!! And yesssss, we gotta get to blogher next year!
You had me at cheese!
Such a beautiful pie, Gerry! Thanks for relinking – pinned! The creamy gooey soft filling is calling my name!
Excited to make this recipe and did. I love a good chess pie of any kind really! Here’s my thoughts and invitation for feedback. 1.) put a tad less buttermilk in so that I could make up with heavy cream? 1 1/4 buttermilk and 1/4 cup of cream to be exact. 2.) have a habit of adding an extra yolk a lot, so mine had 3 eggs + 1 egg yolk 3.) when pouring sugar into measuring cup I made it rounded and heaping, and still thought the finished pie could have been a little sweeter? So, next time I’ll probably test a 1 1/2 cups of sugar recipe to see if that’s where I like it. I also was scared to use a 1/2 tsp of nutmeg, so cut back to 1/4 tsp. This has been a great start to some fun I hope to have researching, I mean tasting!!
Hi Mark, thanks for the feedback and glad you enjoyed the final product. I love how you went ahead and adjusted the recipe, that’s what cooking is all about!