Pecan Chess Pie

Custard pies are like two desserts in one. With a creamy filling housed in a sturdy pie crust, they appeal to both pudding lovers and pie aficionados. Cooks have long loved custard pies because the desserts typically use pantry staples and can be dressed up as desired with fruit, chocolate or nuts.

Pecan chess pie does just those things, mixing finely chopped nuts into a basic filling of butter, sugar, eggs and evaporated milk. Then comes the homemade shortening pie crust. The recipe uses piping hot rather than ice cold water to create an unusual type of pie crust that’s pliable and easy to work with. It’s no wonder that chess pie has been a favorite of home cooks since colonial times.

What is chess pecan pie?

Chess pie has southern roots, although its popularity stretches from Appalachia to the Midwest. The origins of the name and this style of custard pie are murky. The ingredients vary from kitchen to kitchen, but butter is standard. Some cooks insist it’s not chess pie unless cornmeal stabilizes a buttermilk custard. Others replace some or all the cornmeal with flour and the buttermilk with evaporated milk. We use both adaptations in this recipe.

Everyone seems to agree that chess pie can be made with pantry staples and upgraded as desired—in this case, with rich buttery pecans. Native to the southern United States, these soft nuts work beautifully in pecan pies and are particularly popular during winter holidays. This recipe uses whole eggs rather than a combination of whole eggs and egg yolks for a light, airy custard that still supports the weight of the finely chopped nuts.

Ingredients for Pecan Chess Pie

• Crust: Make the crust from scratch for the best chess pecan pie. All you need are pantry staples: shortening, all-purpose flour and salt with just enough hot water (yes, hot) to bind them together. If you run out of time, substitute one of the best premade pie crusts recommended by our baking pros.
• Butter: Butter provides a crucial flavor in chess pie, so it’s worth using a high-quality brand. If you’re just reaching for what’s already in the fridge, grab full-fat butter rather than light butter spread or margarine, both of which have been diluted and would set up unevenly in custard.
• Sugar: Use granulated sugar for its neutral taste in the custard for chess pie. Creaming butter and sugar takes longer than you might think, even when using softened butter and a stand or hand mixer for easier whipping, so be patient.
• All-purpose flour: All-purpose flour adds structure to this pecan chess pie recipe without the sometimes-rough texture of cornmeal. By creaming it with the butter and sugar, the flour becomes fully incorporated into the custard without the risk of dry starchy bits.
• Salt: In such a mild pie filling, a little salt brings out the richness of the butter and eggs. The crust also has a touch of salt, but not enough to make the pie taste salty.
• Eggs: Bake with room-temperature eggs. Cold eggs take longer to beat well, and they might chill the butter-heavy custard enough to harden and create lumps. Set the eggs on the counter while you mix the pie crust ingredients. They should be room temperature by the time you’re ready to beat together the filling.
• Evaporated milk: Evaporated milk has been reduced until thick and creamy and has a slightly nutty taste that pairs well with pecans. This type of canned milk isn’t as sweet or thick as condensed milk, so check the label to ensure you’re not popping open the wrong can.
• Vanilla: Pure vanilla extract enhances the richness of the butter, eggs and nuts—if you don’t make a common vanilla mistake and pick up imitation vanilla instead. To ensure your vanilla is pure, make vanilla extract at home. It’s so easy!
• Pecans: Pecans might be more expensive than some other types of nuts, but they are worth the splurge for such a rich pie. Toast the pecans before you chop them for extra flavor.
• Whipped cream: A dollop puts the finishing touch on each slice of chess pecan pie. Make whipped cream from scratch for the fluffiest topping.

Directions

Step 1: Make the pie dough

Preheat the oven to 450°F. In a bowl, beat the shortening and hot water until combined. Add the flour and salt, and then beat again until crumbly. Shape the pie dough into a ball.

Editor’s Tip: If you typically make flaky pie crusts with cold ingredients, this hot water crust may surprise you. The shortening melts into the water first. Then stirring in the flour and salt creates a soft dough that you can roll out immediately with little risk of cracks or tears. This type of crust works well for full-sized pies and for shaping into pasties and hand pies.

Step 2: Shape the crust

Roll out the pastry to fit a 9-inch pie plate. Transfer the crust to the pie plate, trim it to 1/2 inch beyond the plate’s edge and flute the edges of the crust. Line the unpricked pastry crust with a double thickness of heavy-duty aluminum foil.

Step 3: Parbake the pie crust

Bake the crust for eight minutes, then remove the foil and bake for five minutes longer. Transfer the pie crust to a wire rack and reduce the oven temperature to 350°.

Step 4: Mix the custard

In another bowl, cream the butter, sugar, flour and salt. Add the eggs, evaporated milk and vanilla, and beat well. Stir in the chopped pecans.

Step 5: Bake the pie

Pour the custard into the prepared crust. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Editor’s Tip: Check that the oven temperature has dropped to 350° before you slide in the filled pie so that the egg custard bakes evenly without separating or curdling. As it bakes, the center of the custard puffs up and develops a light golden hue. Take the pie out of the oven when the filling still jiggles slightly but doesn’t stick to the test knife.

Step 6: Cool before serving

Cool the pie on a wire rack for one hour, then refrigerate it for at least one hour. Serve pecan chess pie with whipped cream.

Pecan Chess Pie Variations

• Try buttermilk: For a tangier filling, replace the evaporated milk with the same amount of buttermilk. Be sure to use thick cultured buttermilk, ideally made with whole milk, rather than souring milk with vinegar or lemon juice. When you swap in cultured buttermilk for evaporated milk, the custard won’t be as smooth and rich but will have a more complex, traditional flavor.
• Cut back the sugar: Reduce the sugar by 1/2 cup for a less sweet pie. You need some sugar in the recipe for flavor and balance, but this reduction won’t affect the texture or set of the custard.
• Add chocolate: Meld this pecan chess pie recipe with one for chocolate chess pie. Add 3 tablespoons of natural or Dutch-process cocoa, rather than melted chocolate, to this recipe so you don’t throw off the liquid and fat ratios and affect the custard.
• Use pecan halves: Toast the pecan halves and mix them into the filling unchopped. They’ll float to the top of the custard and create that classic pecan pie look.

How to Store Pecan Chess Pie

Store loosely covered chess pecan pie in the refrigerator for the best flavor and texture. It lasts up to four days in the refrigerator. The crust will soften over time, but if you wrap the entire pie loosely, the edges will stay a little crisper.

Can you freeze pecan chess pie?

Pecan chess pie has more egg-and-milk custard than some versions of custard pie, so it doesn’t freeze quite as well. (Eggy custards become grainy and crack when frozen and thawed.) With the chopped pecans in this recipe, however, the shift in texture is less noticeable than in a classic custard pie, so if you have leftovers, wrap them tightly and freeze them for up to three months. For less risk of texture change, freeze just the crust, either as a disk of tightly wrapped pie dough or shaped and crimped in a metal pie plate that can go straight from the freezer to the oven for parbaking.

Pecan Chess Pie Tips

Can you use a different type of pastry for pecan chess pie?

Instead of a hot water crust, bake pecan chess pie in a standard flaky pie crust. Shortening creates a flaky pastry for a single-crust pie when mixed with cold water. The dough will be more fragile and crumbly, but the baked crust will be airier and more delicate. For the ultimate flaky pie crust, make a classic butter pie pastry. Whichever fat you use, it’s still best to parbake the crust to keep the moist filling from making the pastry crust soggy.

How should you serve pecan chess pie?

The custard filling in pecan chess pie holds together better once it has cooled, so serve this pie at room temperature or chilled. Whipped cream pairs well with the custard filling and stays lofty on fridge-cold slices. Flavor it with a touch of hazelnut extract or liqueur to build on the pecans. Or, make bourbon whipped cream for a somewhat stronger hit of alcohol. For an even more decadent topping, replace the whipped cream with the sugar glaze on this old-fashioned chess pie recipe.