Food For Thought

I was searching for a retro dessert, a Chess Pie Recipe, on the Internet today, because my sister and I had been discussing how nice it would be to make one. The only time I have ever made this dessert was about twelve years ago, when my Mother talked about how Mama used to bake her exceptional chess pie. Our Grandmother had a wonderful touch whenever she baked. Seeing that whimsical look on Mother’s face made me do a search for this delectable pie. I can still remember the surprised look when I announced that I was to bake her this beloved dessert. This expression quickly turned to anticipation and even a few licks of her rosy lips. She promised me that is was almost as good as her Mother had made.

Today when I saw this photograph of Chess Pie, taken by Michael Stern, I knew just by looking that it was what I was looking for. This will certainly please my sister, who lives on the west coast. Perhaps her son will make one for her this Sunday.

After a few minutes of searching, I was on the phone speaking with Donna King @ Bon Ton Mini-Mart, in Henderson, KY. When I asked her about the recipe she said it was her own. I explained my Grandmother used to make this and I was looking for a recipe. She didn’t wait a second before asking me if I had a paper and pen. I grabbed one and she patiently recited the ingredients and added a few tips, too. Thank you Donna King for your sweetness and generosity. For anyone who might like to make this for Mother’s Day, here you go.

Donna King’s Famous Chess Pie

3 large eggs

1 1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup milk

1/2 cup unsalted butter (melted)

3 Tbsp cornmeal

1 tsp vanilla

1 9″ unbaked pie shell

1)  Preheat Oven to 425º

2)  Blend all ingredients while melting the butter.

3)  Add melted butter and combine thoroughly

4)  Pour into unbaked pie shell

5) Turn heat down to 350º, as soon as you place the pie into the oven. I recommend placing the pie onto a cookie sheet.

6) Bake about 30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the center is firm. Remove and cool completely before serving.

Note: *Variation: I have seen recipes where buttermilk is substituted for the milk.

Tags: Donna King's Chess Pie

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 5th, 2010 at 6:13 pm and is filed under Retro Recipes, Trying Something New, Writing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.