Chess Pie

Linda King Kellermann | March 10, 2021

"I associate this recipe with my Kentucky heritage," said Carolyn Kellermann Millhiser, Joseph Lodge's great-granddaughter. "My mother grew up on a farm and in my youth in the 1940s, I would spend several weeks every summer on the farm."

 

Her mother, Lynda King Kellermann, would make this recipe using staple ingredients found in a Southern kitchen pantry—eggs, milk, and butter from the farm; and flour, cornmeal, and vanilla from the store. Cornmeal is what distinguishes this pie from other custard pies.

 

This recipes uses our Basic Pie Dough. 

Level
Intermediate
Prep Time
1.5 hours
Cook Time
1 hour
Serves
6-8
Cook it With Our
Seasoned Cast Iron Pie Pan
Cast Iron Chess Pie Recipe

Ingredients

  • Basic Pie Dough or 9-inch prepared pie crust
  • 5 large egg yolks
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • ½ cup salted butter, melted
  • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon white cornmeal
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

  1. Prepare Basic Pie Dough. 
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 
  3. Beat together the egg yolks and half the sugar, then beat in the remaining sugar. Beat in the milk, melted butter, flour, cornmeal, and vanilla.  
  4. Pour the filling into the prepared pie crust.  
  5. Bake until the crust is lightly browned and the filling is bubbling (it won’t look entirely set at this point), about 55-60 minutes.
  6. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack until the filling sets, about an hour.
  7. Serve at room temperature.
     
Skillet and Egg Logo
Skillet and Egg Logo
Contributed By: Linda King Kellermann

This recipe comes to us courtesy of her daughter, Carolyn Millhiser.

 

Carolyn Millhiser, Joseph Lodge's great-granddaughter, lives in the Joseph Lodge family home. Carolyn's knowledge of the family history spans from the company's origin and history to vintage iron. She is the author of From Hand Pour to Automation: A History of Lodge Manufacturing Company from 1896 to 1988 and a contributing author of A Skillet Full, created by the South Pittsburg Historic Preservation Society. She volunteers at the South Pittsburg Heritage Museum in downtown South Pittsburg, Tennessee.

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