Buttermilk Pie

Perhaps through veins too, as every recipe from this state includes it. According to community cookbooks, Texas homemakers have long preferred buttermilk over regular milk when making their pancakes, biscuits, cakes, and even dressings. I'm almost tempted to ask if any Texans take their coffee with the stuff.

The Buttermilk Pie is an old mainstay and shares many similarities with the southland's Chess Pie and other Great Depression pies like the sugar cream, the vinegar, and the poor man's. The distinction is of course in the details, and with our pie of concern, I promise you the details are very good. A tangy, smooth vanilla custard awaits you atop a flaky crust, the elixir to melt away the troubles of a hot day. The Buttermilk Pie has a complexity in flavor that belies its simplistic preparation. It emanates the vibes of a grandmother's love.

It was such a favorite of former first lady of Texas Laura Bush that she developed her own recipe for the pie, to which she added coconut and a healthy topping of whipped cream. In Hays County, a ways north of San Antonio, the town of Kyle has developed a reputation as "The Pie Capital of Texas." Julie Albertson, "The Pie Queen," runs the Texas Pie Company there, where Buttermilk Pie is a favorite on the menu. Julie supposedly wields the magical power to imbue her custom pies within cantations meant to aid lonesome souls in finding lovers. She in fact found her husband by baking one of these "love pies."

Though I've yet to master spell craft and other matters of the occult, I feel confident that you, and indeed Texans, will find love within this recipe. Feel free to omit the coconut if you aren't partial, but I do think Miss Laura had a pretty good point with its inclusion.

Serves: 9-inch pie
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Bake Time: 60 minutes
Cool Time: 1 hour

INGREDIENTS

• 4 eggs
• 1⅓ cups (265g) granulated sugar
• 1 cup (235ml) buttermilk
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• Zest and juice of ½ lemon
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 cup (110g) sweetened, shredded coconut (optional)
• 1 single-crust Pie Crust (page 17)
• 1 egg, beaten together with 3 tbsp water, for egg wash
• Whipped cream or whipped topping, for serving

METHOD

1. In a large bowl, whisk together thoroughly the eggs, sugar, buttermilk, vanilla extract, lemon zest and juice, flour, salt, and nutmeg, in this order, until well combined. Add the coconut, if desired, and let the mixture stand for 15 minutes while preparing the crust.

2. Preheat the oven to 325°F (165°C).

3. Roll out and fit your prepared pie crust into a deep 9-inch (23cm) pie dish. Brush the crimped edges and the bottom of the crust with the egg wash.

4. Pour the filling into the crust and bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until the top has lightly browned and only wobbles slightly in the center when jostled. Remove and place on a wire rack for at least 1 hour to cool before serving. Serve garnished with whipped cream or whipped topping.