Buttermilk Pie

I realize I've been posting a lot of dessert recipes lately. I promise I'll post some more healthy and/or savory recipes soon, but I just made this recipe today and it was too good not to share. Y'all, this pie tastes like a sugar cookie. A giant, velvety, creamy sugar cookie. I roasted off some fruit and piled it on top so I don't feel as guilty (and support my local farmers' market), but that doesn't change the fact that this pie is essentially a 2" thick pizza-sized gooey sugar cookie. There's a hint of tang from the buttermilk and sweet, floral vanilla bean, which is complemented by the tartness of the fruit on top. Although I made it with plums this week, you could easily swap them out for peaches, berries, or other summer fruits. You can roast them or not, and I've also served this pie plain.

The crust is my standard sweet pie crust. While the buttermilk pie at the bakery that inspired this recipe uses a shortbread cookie crust, I've found that my all-butter flaky pie crust stands up to the custard and can take on pretty decorations like the pattern in these pictures. I'll spare you the details since I've covered them in quite a few other posts, but remember to keep the butter (and the finished dough) cold and handle it as little as possible to avoid overworking it. There's no need to blind-bake it here because it takes so long to bake the custard, though you may need to cover the edges to prevent them from too much browning.

The filling is pretty unique. I'm sure many of you haven't even heard of a buttermilk pie, especially if you aren't in the south and don't use buttermilk on a regular basis. It's a lot like a chess pie, which is a rich, custardy filling almost like pecan pie without the pecans. This recipe starts with melted butter, sugar, and eggs plus a bit of flour to hold it together and, of course, the buttermilk. The buttermilk bulks up the pie, gives it a lovely creamy color, and provides a subtle tartness so the sweetness isn't too overwhelming. The eggs and the flour are responsible for the texture; the pie should just jiggle when you pull it out of the oven and will set to a dense, fudgy custard after chilling for a few hours. The trick is to mix it by hand until just combined to avoid whipping air into the filling.

I also like to throw in a vanilla bean for flavor. If you don't have a vanilla bean, you can easily substitute a spoonful or two of vanilla extract. I've also seen this recipe made with a pinch of nutmeg, and you can try different flavors as well. You could stir in some citrus zest for extra tartness or fold in fresh fruit or fruit puree to bake right in instead of topping the pie (or do both).

For my fruit this week, I sliced up some plums, sprinkled them with sugar, and roasted them until tender. This draws out more of the fruit's natural sweetness and enhances the color. As I said earlier, I used plums because they happened to look particularly good at the farmers' market but really any fruit will do. You certainly don't have to roast them either. It may also be a good idea to leave the fruit off the pie until you plan to serve it; I just checked on mine from earlier today and some of the juices bled out onto the pie. It's still going to taste delicious regardless of what fruit you use or when you serve it, but I'd recommend a mix of colors just before serving for maximum appeal.

1 Recipe Sweet Pie Crust (See Below)
1 Stick Butter, Melted
1 Cup + 2 T Sugar
3 Eggs
1 Vanilla Bean
Pinch Salt
3 T Flour
1 Cup Buttermilk
1 Pint Fruit, Optional

Heat oven to 350F and grease a 9" pie plate.

Roll the dough out to 10-11" in diameter and transfer to the prepared tin. Press gently to adhere and chill until cold.

Meanwhile, whisk the butter and 1 cup sugar together. Add the eggs one at a time, then whisk in the vanilla bean and salt. Fold in the flour and stir in the buttermilk.

Pour the custard into the crust and bake for 50-60 minutes or until just set, covering the edges if necessary.

Optional: Increase oven temperature to 375F and line a cookie tray with parchment. If using peaches or plums, cut into segments as desired. Spread the fruit onto the prepared tray and sprinkle with the remaining sugar. Roast for 10-15 minutes or until tender.

Makes 1 9" Pie
Recipe Adapted from Tasting Table

For the crust:
Pulse 1 1/4 C flour, 1/4 C sugar, and 1/4 tsp salt in a food processor until combined. Add 1 stick chilled and cubed butter and pulse until small pieces remain. Combine the an yolk with a tablespoon of cold water and add in. Pulse until it begins to form a ball, adding more water as necessary. Chill.