Chocolate chess pie is a classic Southern pie that tastes like a mix between a brownie and chocolate pudding. Dress it up with some whipped cream or ice cream for the ultimate treat!
Have you ever heard of chocolate chess pie? I’d heard it mentioned a few times but wasn’t actually sure of what it was. Apparently, it’s a classic Southern dessert that tastes like a brownie and chocolate pudding combined together. And it’s all baked together in a nice flaky pie crust.
Hungry yet?
I saw the recipe for this appear in my blog feed and knew that I had to try making it immediately. I already had all the ingredients on hand and happened to have some whipped cream in the fridge, so this was a no-brainer.
My pie filling poofed up a bit after baking, so parts of it were weird looking. No fear though – I covered those spots with some whipped cream and no one knew the difference.
My husband and daughter both enjoyed the pie. It was reminiscent of a fudge brownie, but baked in a pie form. You can absolutely use a pre-baked crust here but I chose to make mine from scratch.
Chocolate chess pie
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1 stick (8 Tablespoons) unsalted butter cold and cut into pieces
- 6-8 Tablespoons ice cold water
Filling
- 1 stick (8 Tablespoons) unsalted butter
- 2 ounces semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chopped
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
- pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Make the crust
- In a food processor, pulse together the flour, salt and sugar. If you don't have a food processor, mix everything together in a large bowl. Pulse in the butter until it resembles wet sand (alternatively, you can cut the butter in with a pastry cutter, two forks or your fingers). Slowly drizzle in the water, about 1/2 teaspoon at a time, until the dough comes together. Do not over mix or over work the dough.
- Flatten into a disc, wrap in plastic, and let it chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour an up to overnight.
- When ready, roll out the dough so it's large enough to fit into a standard 10" pie pan. Tuck the extra dough underneath and flute the edges. Chill for another 30 minutes.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Fill with pie weights and bake for about 20 minutes or until the crust is light golden. Allow to cool.
Make the filling
- In a large microwave safe bowl, add the butter and chocolate and melt on high power, about 45-60 seconds. Stir until the mixture is smooth.
- In a medium sized bowl, mix together the sugar, eggs, salt and vanilla extract. Transfer to the large bowl with the chocolate and mix well.
- Pour the filling into the pre-baked pie crust. Bake in your preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. The center may still jiggle a little bit, and that's OK. Remove the pie from the oven and allow to come to room temperature. Serve with additional shaved chocolate, whipped cream or ice cream.