Buttermilk Pie

 

What is Buttermilk Pie?  Well, there is the obvious.  And the lesser known; it’s my husband, Mark’s, favorite dessert.

This pie tends to be made in the American South, though I don’t find it commonly here. Some confuse buttermilk pie with chess pie, but probably because the final results looks similar and neither are commonly made anymore.   Chess pie needs to contain cornmeal and usually vinegar for the tartness, and buttermilk pie does not.

Buttermilk pie uses staples you probably have in your kitchen and it was able to be made year around with these simple ingredients.  These types of pies were sometimes called Desperation Pies because of their easy to obtain, non-seasonal ingredients, like Vinegar Pie and Shoofly Pie.  Back in the days when there wasn’t a Walmart in each town, we couldn’t zip to the store to grab a few things.  In winter months most fruit wasn’t available and pantries were often exhausted of their dried fruits.  Enter to the scene, desperation pies—don’t let the name fool you.  These can be delicious!

I’d tried a few recipes for Buttermilk Pie, my favorite being from my friend Charlotte.  I wanted to try out a few experiments on my own to adapt the recipe to find the flavor and consistency I liked best.  Much to my husband’s delight, I worked on several different versions of this pie, but now I’m ready to present to you, my official version of Buttermilk Pie!  I hope you enjoy. (I added the lemon juice and zest, because I like it best. If you want a truer version of desperation pie, leave it out--it's also delicious.)

Buttermilk Pie

 

2 c sugar

¼ c flour

¼ c corn starch

4 eggs

2/3 c buttermilk

½ stick oleo

2 tsp vanilla

¼ tsp salt

2 Tbsp lemon juice

Zest of 1 lemon

1 Pie crust

 

Preheat oven to 365 degrees.  Beat eggs in med bowl until well scrambled.  Add sugar, flour, corn starch and salt until no lumps.  Add buttermilk, vanilla, lemon juice and zest.  Beat in oleo til well mixed.  Pour in pie crust and bake for 45 minutes until top is golden brown and center is set.

For more fun facts on pies, check out this podcast episode of "Miss Kylie's Peculiar Guide for Ladies (and Gentlemen) in the Art of Cookery and Household Management" https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/ZPfzWTTSRyb