This perfect Brown Sugar Chess Pie recipe is an old fashioned custard pie flavored with molasses hinted brown sugar, cornmeal and vinegar making it the best pie to serve all fall long! If you love this custard filled pie, definitely try this Classic Chess Pie, Egg Pie, Buttermilk Pie, Maple Chess Pie , Pecan Pie and my Sweet Potato Chess Pie!
A Delicious Brown Sugar Chess Pie Recipe PERFECT For the Holidays!
Good ole fashioned chess pie is a classic, and the best part of it is the simplicity in making it.
What Is Chess Pie?
A chess pie recipe is a lovely Southern classic pie. It has a custard base with eggs that starts off as runny but ends up baking perfectly almost like a souffle.
What makes a chess pie different from other egg pies or custard pies is the additional ingredients of vinegar and cornmeal.
The origin of the name for the chess pie recipe is uncertain but it is believed that these pies contained so much sugar that it could be stored in a chest pie instead of being refrigerated.
My Big Mama made a mean chess pie, and it always causes me to wonder how such few ingredients can bake into such a perfectly chewy and delightfully sweet pastry.
I think there is a lot to be said about the dessert recipes of yesterday and yesteryear. They didn’t require a lot of ingredients or preparation because those resources didn’t exist quite frankly.
Ingredients for Chess Pie Recipe
The main ingredients for a classic chess pie are the following:
- Eggs
- Butter
- Sugar
- Cornmeal
- Vinegar
These ingredients make up what would be a classic pie.
Tip: The key for these ingredients to work wonderfully is for them to be at ROOM TEMPERATURE. Trust me, I have tried to bake a chess pie with cold eggs or colder butter and the custard didn’t set.
Perfect Crust for Pie Recipe
The pie dough for this pie crust is a homemade crust. I usually make my Perfect Pie Crust recipe because it is so simple to make and bakes up wonderfully flaky and delicious. It is an all butter crust, and it couldn’t taste more delicious.
Tip: Just remember when you are making your pie crust, make sure it is cold so it will bake up super flaky!
My big mama worked full time, made home cooked meals every single day (both breakfast, lunch and dinner) and took care of her brigade in the best way possible. And there was never a lack for dessert around her home either. I’m amazed when I think about all she accomplished while baking pies at the same time.
What I love about this pie is how it just “works”. You can throw it together quickly but it can also be quite the treat for the holidays. Thanksgiving and pies always go together, quite perfectly might I add. No one ever knows about the simplicity nor do they really care when they take a bite out of something out of this world delicious.
The hows and whats of the process in making it don’t concern people. They are only concerned about taste and memories associated with that taste. It is truly a trick of the brain that works quite well, especially on Thanksgiving when you have a ton of recipes to make for a ton of people in a limited amount of time.
Brown Sugar Chess Pie
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup butter room temperature
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar packed
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 1 tablespoon yellow cornmeal
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon vinegar
- 1 prepared pie crust in pie pan
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Beat butter, both sugars, eggs, cornmeal, vanilla and vinegar together in a medium sized bowl using a hand mixer or in the bowl of your stand mixer until well combined.
- If using my pie crust recipe, roll one of the disks out into the pie plate then use a fork to poke holes along the sides and bottom of the pie crust. Line the pie crust with parchment paper. Fill with pie weights, making sure the weights are evenly distributed around the pie dish. Pre-bake the crust for 10 minutes. Carefully remove the parchment paper/pie weights. If you would like, you can brush some egg wash on the outside of the crust as well (just take 1 egg and whisk together with a teaspoon of water).
- Pour batter into prepared pie shell and bake for 35-40 minutes.
- Cool for at least 4 hours and serve.
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Oh, my goodness! This pie is FABULOUS! i made one this morning for Thanksgiving, and I had to try just a teeny tiny slice before I served it to anyone else-you know, to make sure it was ok (wink, wink!). It is soooo delicious! I’ve loved chess pie my whole life, and this brown sugar version is just that much more delicious. For those who’ve never tried chess pie–try this! And try the traditional kind too!
Hooray Angie! I am so glad it turned out so well for you!!! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving my dear!
This pie looks ridiculously delicious!
It’s the first time I’ve heard of chess pie and it has my name written ALL over it! <3
This pie is beautiful! I have never had a chess pie before!
I have never had chess pie before but your brown sugar version has me dying to try! Gorgeous photos my dear!
I’ve never had chess pie either, but now I REALLY want to!
I love a good chess pie. My mom makes a fabulous buttermilk pie. I can’t wait to try this one 🙂
I’ve never had chess pie before, so I’m totally missing out! I love all of the warm, cozy flavors in here! Delish!
What is it? ‘Jes pie! That’s how I hear it came by its name. This one looks lovely and cozy. I want it!
That’s a beautiful pie. Sometimes desserts with simple ingredients are the best!