Chocolate Chess Pie

By Vaughn Vreeland

Published Nov. 14, 2023

Chocolate Chess Pie
Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
Total Time
3 hours
Prep Time
10 minutes
Cook Time
About 2 hours, plus about 1 hour cooling
Rating
4(658)
Comments
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Classic buttermilk chess pie is quintessential in many Southern homes and its chocolate counterpart is all the more decadent. You can use store-bought pie dough or take the homemade route because the true star of this dessert is its luxurious chocolate filling, slightly firmer than custard but fudgier than a brownie. With just a few staple ingredients, this supremely easy filling requires less than 10 minutes of active time and minimal effort, but yields big-time flavor. It’s also highly adaptable: try adding a tablespoon of bourbon or a couple teaspoons of espresso powder with the cocoa powder. A velvety slice of this chocolate chess pie goes best with a dollop of whipped cream on top, and some bourbon, neat, alongside.

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Ingredients

Yield:1 (9-inch) pie
  • 1store-bought pie crust or 1 disk foolproof pie dough (½ batch)
  • All-purpose flour, if needed for rolling out dough
  • ½ cup/113 grams unsalted butter
  • 4ounces/113 grams semisweet chocolate, chopped
  • 1cup/200 grams granulated sugar
  • 2large eggs, at room temperature
  • 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ¾ teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
  • ¼ cup/26 grams unsweetened cocoa powder
  • Whipped cream (optional), for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    If using store-bought pie crust, skip ahead to Step 2. If using homemade dough, let sit at room temperature for a couple minutes before rolling . On a lightly floured work surface, using a lightly floured rolling pin, beat the dough evenly across the surface, rotating it occasionally, to work it into a slightly flatter round. Add more flour to the surface, lightly flour the dough and roll it out, starting in the center and working outward, occasionally lifting it, giving it quarter-turns and adding more flour as needed to prevent sticking, until it forms an 11-inch circle. (If your dough cracks, just use your fingertips to adhere it together.)

  2. Step 2

    Fit the dough into a 9-inch pie plate, letting the dough slump into the plate, taking care not to stretch it further. Trim the overhang, if needed, so that you’re left with about ½-inch on all sides. Fold the overhang under itself, creating a thick ridge on the sides with two layers of pie dough, and crimp the ridge. Use a fork to poke holes on the bottom of the crust, and freeze for about 15 minutes, until firm.

  3. Step 3

    Meanwhile, arrange an oven rack in the center position and heat the oven to 425 degrees. Line the dough with aluminum foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes.

  4. Step 4

    Remove the foil and pie weights, lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue baking the crust until golden, 10 to 15 minutes.

  5. Step 5

    Cool completely on the baking sheet, at least 30 minutes.

  6. Step 6

    While the crust cools, melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Off heat, add the chocolate and whisk until combined, letting the residual heat melt it completely.

  7. Step 7

    In a medium bowl, whisk the sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt until pale yellow and considerably thicker, about 1 minute. Pour in the melted chocolate mixture and continue to whisk until no streaks remain. Add the cocoa powder and whisk until combined.

  8. Step 8

    Pour the chocolate mixture into the cooled crust and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the filling is slightly puffed and the center is set. Cool completely at room temperature, about 1 hour. (It may be tempting to cut into it warm, but the filling needs time to set up.) Serve with whipped cream, if desired.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
658 user ratings
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Comments

Jerry

If you're using a glass pie plate, taking it from the freezer into a preheated oven isn't a good idea. I've been making a similar chocolate cheese pie for fifty years and I've never pre-baked the crust. It's a go-to recipe for a quick dessert and nobody has ever cried "soggy crust."

Expat in Alsace

And even if it's better pre-baked, this recipe calls for crust to spend a total of an hour and 10 minutes total in the oven! I'm going to try pre-baking it for just 15 minutes, as French tart recipes often dictate.

Foote Notes

Add half a cup of buttermilk or sour cream and it the salty acidity will cut the sweetness nicely and lighten the thick custardy filling.

H. C. Ricks

I read this recipe out of curiosity as I always make Bill Neal’s version. He comments ( and my Mississippi grandmother would have agreed) that chocolate chess pie never includes cornmeal. He also doesn’t use buttermilk, but does use two tablespoons of heavy cream. This isn’t lemon chess pie.

Margaret Hamilton

The recipe I use comes from a 1951 small town NC woman's club cookbook. It uses 1 oz of baking chocolate, 1 cup sugar, 1 stick of butter, 2 eggs, teaspoon of vanilla. It cannot be beat! Hard to imagine using 4 ounces of chocolate plus cocoa. Whoa! You can bake the crust but it also works out great without baking the crust. 25-30 min at 350. Simplify, simplify, simplify!

Tim

I made it on request for a friend and she, like all of us, loved it! Easy to make and utterly delicious!

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