Lemon Chess Pie

This Lemon Chess Pie is tangy with a smooth custard like filling.  It’s a great citrus dessert perfect for Mother’s Day or Easter. 

With the lemon lovers in my house, a lemon chess pie is always a big hit. The texture is smooth and creamy  with a light citrus flavor.  Chess pie is pretty common in the south with the two most popular being chocolate and lemon. Most will have a bit of cornmeal to help stabilize the custardy filling. The authors of The Four and Twenty Blackbirds Pie Book added some orange juice with the lemon juice in this recipe which creates a citrusy flavor without making it too tart.  The texture is just perfect and while rich, it almost seems light.

 
I made this the first time over the holidays, but it’s one of those year round desserts. Soon we will have lots of fresh fruit for pies and cobblers, but we still have a few weeks and Mothers’ day and Easter are coming up. This would be perfect to serve for either occasion.  Somehow this pie does not feel as heavy has some desserts. The lemon orange combination make this pie perfect to serve after any meal.

How to keep a pie crust from getting soggy:

 
The Elsen sisters added a couple of tips for keeping the pie crust from getting soggy. The filling is first placed in a partially cooked pie crust. To keep it from getting soggy, I baked it on a preheated cookie sheet and then at the end, I brushed it with an egg white wash and baked it for a few more minutes. That seemed to work as the crust was not soggy on the bottom at all. If you’re not familar with the Elsen sisters, they opened a pie shop in Brooklyn called Four and Twenty Blackbirds which appears to be doing pretty well. They have received a lot of positive press and awards over the years. Based on this recipe I can see why.

 
This is a pie that you have to make in advance because it needs to cool for three hours so that the custard can set.  A chess pie is normally served at room temperature, but if you don’t finish it off in a day or two, it’s still pretty yummy after it’s been refrigerated. Add a dollop of whipped cream to compliment the citrus flavor and serve with our favorite Pistachio Cranberry Shortbread.

The Four and Twenty Blackbirds Pie Book

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Lemon Chess Pie

This Lemon Chess Pie is tangy with a smooth custard like filling. It’s a great citrus dessert perfect for Mother’s Day or Easter.

• Author: Barbara Curry
• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 40 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
• Yield: 8–10 1x
• Category: dessert

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

• 9 inch pie crust, partially baked
• 1 lemon lemon zest
• 1 ⅔ cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon stone ground yellow cornmeal
• 1 tablespoon flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 5 tablespoons butter, melted
• 5 eggs
• ⅔ cup heavy cream
• 7 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 3 lemons
• 3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
• ½ teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

1.Pie Crust: Roll out pie crust and place in pie plate. Refrigerate until chilled and prick with a fork. Then place in freezer for about 10 minutes. Place a flat cookie sheet in oven and preheat to 425º.

2.Remove pie crust from freezer and line with aluminum foil. Place pie weights on top of foil with more around the edges. Bake for 20 minutes until the edges are set. Remove from the oven and let cool for 1 minute. Brush the Botton and sides with a thin layer of egg white whisked with 1 teaspoon of water. Return to the oven and cook for 3 more minutes. Remove and let cool.

3.Preheat oven to 325º.

4.PIE: In a large bowl, whisk together the lemon zest, sugar, cornmeal, flour and salt. Add melted butter and stir with a wooden spoon, then add eggs one at a time stirring well after each addition. Continue to stir briskly until filling is thick and light colored. Stir in the heavy cream then lumen juice, orange juice and vanilla.

5.Pour pie filling into cooled pie crust. Bake for 40-50 minutes rotating half way through. Remove when the edges are set and center is slightly jiggly and it is golden on top. Do not overbake or the custard can separate. The filling will continue to cook as it cools. Allow to cool on a wire rack for 3-4 hours.