Baking has never been my strength. Perhaps it’s because I’m impatient or perhaps it’s because I have a hard time following directions, but when it comes to pastries, where precision is key, I leave those culinary tasks to the experts, namely my mom and my grandmother.I’ve mentioned before my grandmother’s skill with pies. For as long as I can remember, I’ve stood by her side and watched her effortlessly roll out crusts and whip up fabulous fillings with seldom a measuring cup or spoon in sight. I’d like to have her ability as pies are one of my favorite desserts. But even when I use her recipes for guidance, mine always fall a bit short. Of course, with practice comes perfection. And if I had been baking pies for as long and as often as she has, I would probably be more proud of my efforts. But since I attempt one only a couple of times a year, I still have far to go in my pie-baking development.
Yet despite my inability to bake the prettiest pie, I was inspired by the amazing Barbara from Winos and Foodies to at least endeavor to make a delicious one. Barbara is compiling a roundup of yellow foods for the Lance Armstrong Foundation’s Livestrong Day on May 16. And if you’re not already familiar with the Lance Armstrong Foundation, it’s a ten-year-old Texas-based organization created by the seven-time Tour de France winner and cancer survivor Armstrong. Its mission is to inspire and empower people with cancer towards surviving the disease through education, advocacy, public health initiatives and research.But even though the foundation is American, as New Zealander Barbara noted, its work extends worldwide since, sadly, cancer has no boundaries. Armstrong’s cycling jersey is bright yellow, and that color has come to represent his foundation’s philosophy of living strong and putting up an aggressive fight against the disease, hence the yellow foods. Barbara herself is fighting cancer yet when you read her blog, you find a witty, positive, energetic and creative woman, not daunted by her adversity. She’s living strong and so the least I could do was try and make a yellow pie.
One of my favorite pies is chess pie, a lemony, custardy delight. It’s an old dish that is made with the simplest ingredients. Yet its humble origins belie the sweet and rich results. This is a pastry that harks back to my ancestors, and while the birth of its name is enshrouded in mystery, it doesn’t have anything to do with the game of kings. Instead, some say that it may be named after the town of Chester, England as its lineage goes back to classic English tarts, like the one Sam baked also for this event. Southern food historian John T. Edge has said, however, that the name could either hail from the word “chest” as in pie chest or that it’s a rendition of how a Southerner would sound if saying, “It’s jes pie.”
But even if its name is a puzzle, there's nothing enigmatic about this pie's flavor: simply put, it tastes divine. And since half the ingredients—eggs, lemon juice and corn meal—are yellow, not to mention, there’s such comfort and warmth in a homemade slice of pie, I thought it would make a fine contribution to Barbara’s roundup of yellow treats. Now this isn’t diet food, but it is pure in its simplicity as it’s made with whole, fresh ingredients. And as my ancestors lived long lives eating dishes such as these, I could do worse than emulating some of their dining habits.As you can see from the photos, the pie I baked won’t take the prize for looks. But what it lacks in beauty it more than makes up for in flavor. And after one creamy and bright bite, you’ll realize that this pie isn’t made for beholding, it’s made for devouring. So I tip my fork to the amazing women who came before me, and thank them for such a fantastic food heritage. And I also thank Barbara, whose great strength inspired me to tackle the minute challenge of baking a yellow chess pie.
Chess Pie
Ingredients:
For the crust (makes enough for two):
2 cups of flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup canola oil
1/4 cup milk
For the filling:
3 eggs
1 stick of butter (113.4 grams)
1 cup of sugar
1 tablespoon of yellow corn meal
1 teaspoon of vanilla
The juice from 1 and 1/2 lemons (about 1/2 cup)
1 teaspoon of lemon zest
Method:
For the crust:
Mix flour and salt. Mix oil and milk. Pour oil and milk into flour and salt and stir until combined into a dough. Can add more milk if dry. Separate into two balls (save one ball for another pie). Roll crust out between two sheets of wax paper, line a pie pan with crust.
For the filling:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Melt the butter.
Mix the sugar in with the butter.
Beat the eggs and add vanilla, corn meal, lemon juice and zest.
Add egg mixture to butter and sugar, and mix well.
Pour filling into an unbaked pie shell and bake at 350 for 50 minutes.
Let cool for 20 minutes (so filling can set).
Filling makes enough for one pie.
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