There are hundreds of different pies in the Southern arsenal (and almost as many cookbooks on the subject), so choosing a pie to make for National Pi Day proved to be quite difficult. When I finally narrowed it down to chocolate, my decision didn't exactly become easier. There's chocolate fudge pie, chocolate cream pie, chocolate pudding pie, chocolate chip pecan pie... Well, you get the drift.
Once I whittled down the option to chocolate chess, hundreds of variations seemed to appear before me. But when it came down to it, the only main difference between all those recipes seemed to be the addition of evaporated milk. Of course I needed to know which was the best, so I decided to try both. When in doubt, make two pies!
Before baking, I thought I preferred the filling with evaporated milk. It was silky (almost like Hershey's syrup), smooth, and quite addicting. The filling sans milk was in fact a little grainy. Just nothing special. And trust me, I was a very inquisitive taster. It took multiple spoon licks to truly form a solid opinion.
But what happened in those 45 minutes in the oven was definitely a game changer. The evaporated milk filling had a very unattractive speckled top, not sexy at all. The taste was good but lacking any complexity. The sans milk pie, on the other hand, was a true beauty. At first it was all puffed up and airy, but as it cooled and sank down a bit, it developed a very attractive crackle. And the taste? A rich, fudgy slice of heaven.
In the end, the chocolate chess pie is quintessentially Southern. It requires only the most basic ingredients and just a few minutes of your time. It's soul-satisfying and the perfect way to end any meal. So what are you waiting for? Go make it today!

Chocolate Chess Pie
Adapted from Southern Pies by Nancie McDermott
Serves 8
For the crust
1 sleeve chocolate graham crackers
1 stick butter, melted
1 tablespoon sugar
For the filling
1 stick butter
1 (1 ounce) square unsweetened chocolate (or 3 tablespoons cocoa powder)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Preheat oven to 350°.
To make the crust, crush the graham crackers into fine crumbs. (I like to put them in a large ziploc and smash them with a rolling pin. It's very satisfying.) Add sugar and melted butter and mix until well combined. Push into a 9 inch pie pan to form a thin crust on the bottom and sides. (I also like to save a few bites for myself.) Bake for 8 minutes, remove from oven, and chill until firm and crunchy, about an hour.
Lower oven temperature to 325°.
To make the filling, heat the butter and chocolate in a saucepan over medium until melted and smooth. Remove from the burner and add the sugar, mixing until well combined. Stir in eggs, vanilla, and salt. Pour the filling into the pie crust and bake for around 45 minutes, until top is puffed and the center is just set. To be honest, I like mine a little on the gooey side so I start checking around 40 minutes just to be safe (however, my mom likes her chess pie totally set and would prefer around 50 minutes. It's your call here.). I also covered the edges of the crust with foil about half way through to keep it from burning.
Remove the pie from the oven and allow to cool for at least 20 - 30 minutes. It is delicious warm or at room temperature. Serve with fresh whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Related: Recipe: Browned Butter Butterscotch Pie
(Images: Nealey Dozier)
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Comments (23)
This looks great! I'll make it this week, if not today. Would you happen to know how much a "sleeve" of chocolate graham crackers weighs? In case I end up getting some non-standard grahams. ;-)
One more thing, not to be tooo nit-picky, but a wonderful pie like this deserves something better than a crummy, disposable-foil pie plate, especially when you're making the crust yourself. Perhaps a good pie plate recommendation could be the basis of a future post?
funny how i was just thinking about a pie in this sort of vein!
what a great post! and thank you for including not just the square of chocolate, but the powder equivalent.
PS - I think an italics tag was left open on your post.
In an amazingly rare event, I actually have everything needed to make this on hand. As a dyed-in-the-wool nerd, I believe it is my duty to properly celebrate Pi Day when I get home from work.
Looks delicious! Why is it called chess pie?
Ann-Marie - A chess is a type of custardy pie filling. There's all manner of different types that you can find recipes for around the intertubes (and presumably Southern cookbooks as well).
Can I use any chocolate cookies for the crust? I'm in the UK so no graham crackers of any kind (except Golden Grahams cereal).
A Chocolate Chess Pie! Yum! I actually made a Buttermilk Chess Pie to celebrate Pi Day!
LOVE chocolate chess pie. I usually make it with a shortbread crust rather than graham cracker, but I'm sure both are delicious.
Shady Lane - I see Nigella Lawson using some kind of chocolate biscuits all the time in recipes where I would use chocolate graham crackers. In her UK-version recipes she calls them "plain chocolate biscuits." So my guess is that those are probably your best substitute.
I'm definitely going to try this pi (pie). Yum.
Wow, I might start my baking off with this. Seems easy enough and I have all of the ingredients on hand.
Shady Lane -- feel free to use a standard pastry crust for this recipe, which is traditional to chess pie. My chocolate graham cracker crust is just a new little spin on it. Chocolate wafer cookies would work as well. Let us know your results!
Made it tonight. So simple. So good. So going to make it again later this week for company (because the first one will be gone before the sun comes up...).
I made this last night as soon as I saw the post, and it was great! And so easy! I wasn't sure if I should refrigerate it or not, but I did and am shocked that it was (if possible) even better this morning straight from the fridge than it was warm last night!
shady lane--I'm in the UK also, and I used Nice biscuits for the crust. The hint of coconut went well with the chocolate filling (even though it might not have been in total harmony with the original recipe).
I love the idea of using Nice biscuits for the crust!! We have no chocolate graham crackers in Canada either. Definitely giving this a try!
Made this pie yesterday, and it was lovely. I didn't like the look of the crackly top so I whipped up some cream and covered it all up. Delicious!
I tried this receipt last night. I was very excited but when I tried it, it tasted a bit..eggy. I was expecting more creamy and fudgy. Any idea where I might have gone wrong?
I made it with an oreo crust, it was delicious!
@custak - sometimes if the eggs are a little old you end up with an eggy flavor, that could be it. When i made this it tasted like brownies.
Made this last night, subbing a 7 oz box of chocolate mocha nut cookies for the chocolate grahams. Didn't bother pre-baking the crust as I don't bother when making a graham cracker crust. Wickedly delicious! But... TWO freaking' sticks of butter in this dish. Wish I had only used enough butter to get the crumb crust to stick together. Glad I made it, but this is definitely a once a year kind of pie!
This looks great, but since I eat primal (paleo with dairy), I'm going to make a nut crust and use Splenda instead of sugar. Can't wait to see how yummy this is gonna be. Thanks!
Wow, this was AMAZING! I made it last night and it was so good, it made my husband cry. I made a plain graham cracker crust, doubled the salt (I like my chocolate salty), and used 2 and a half squares of a Ghirardelli bar. So good, thank you.
I created an account just to comment on this post.. it was THAT GOOD. This is one of the best things I think I've ever baked - and one of the easiest. I used a pre-made Graham crust, but a friend made it on my recommendation with frozen pie crust and said it was absolutely delicious as well. It's been a whole week since the last bite of chess pie was eaten and I'm in withdrawals.
I grew up with Chocolate Chess Pie- something my Papa would make every Thanksgiving, then my mom, then me. I have never seen anyone mention it online before, so my day has totally been made! It is best first thing in the morning with a glass of milk. Or late at night with a glass of milk. or anytime with a glass of milk...the point is a cold glass of milk takes this from "OMG this pie is amazing!" to "OMG THIS IS THE GREATEST PIE THAT HAS EVER BEEN MADE IN THE HISTORY OF MANKIND EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" its true.