Chocolate Chess Pie Recipe (2024)

Chocolate Chess Pie is a classic Southern chocolate pie with a creamy middle topped with a crisp topping. Chess pie is easy and so delicious!

Looking for more delicious chocolate recipes? I think you’ll love my Best Chocolate Cake, Best Chocolate Cupcakes, and Grandmother’s Chocolate Cobbler. Yum!

Chocolate Chess Pie Recipe (1)

Chocolate Chess Pie is seriously one of the best things ever created – especially if you love chocolate like I do.

Creamy, custardy, and oh-so chocolatey on the inside, chocolate chess pies are also crowned with the signature crunchy top crust that you’ll find in really good chess pie recipes. This pie is always a favorite dessert. We especially love it topped with a dollop of homemade whipped cream.

And really, the simplicity of a chess pie makes it even more special.

Table of Contents

  • Why You’ll Love This Recipe
  • Easy Chocolate Chess Pie Recipe
  • What is Chess Pie?
  • How To Make Chocolate Chess Pie
  • Ingredients
  • Step-by-Step Instructions
  • Storage Tips
  • Chocolate Chess Pie Recipe

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Delicious chocolate pie recipe. Every single bite is filled with delicious chocolate flavor.

Easy to make. The hands-on time for making this amazing chocolate pie is less than 10 minutes and it is easy enough for a beginning baker. I learned to make it with my Grandmother when I was a young girl and I haven’t looked back!

Great to make ahead or freeze. Since the cooling time is key to this recipe, it is great to make ahead or to freeze to serve later.

Easy Chocolate Chess Pie Recipe

Chocolate Chess Pie Recipe (2)

See the inside of that pie?

Oh my goodness!!!

Irresistible!

What is Chess Pie?

Chess Pie is a traditional southern pie recipe with deep roots in England. Chess pie is made from sugar, flour, butter, and eggs and then baked in a pie crust. The combination of the sugar and flour mixed together gives the pie a crispy, crackle finish on the top while leaving a custard-type filling from the eggs. Cocoa powder is also included in this chocolate version of the classic pie.

How To Make Chocolate Chess Pie

To make this pie, you’ll need the following ingredients:

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Ingredients

Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full listing of ingredients, instructions, notes, and estimated nutritional information.

  • Sugar – I use granulated sugar in this recipe.
  • Unsweetened Cocoa Powder – I use natural unsweetened cocoa powder in this recipe.
  • Flour – a little all-purpose flour is used to thicken the pie filling.
  • Espresso Powder– optional, but recommended to enhance the chocolate flavor in this pie.
  • Salt – just a pinch is used to balance the flavors of the pie.
  • Butter– you’ll use melted and slightly cooled butter for this recipe.
  • Evaporated Milk – I make homemade evaporated milk. You can also use your favorite store-bought.
  • Vanilla extract – enhances the flavors in this sweet pie recipe. Use a high-quality vanilla extract. I love to use my homemade vanilla extract. It is so easy to make and always delicious!
  • Eggs – In this recipe, you’ll use lightly beaten eggs for the pie filling.
  • Pie crust– you’ll need one unbaked pie crust. You can use homemade pie crust or your favorite store-bought in a pinch.

Step-by-Step Instructions

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Chocolate Chess Pie Recipe (5)
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Mix the pie filling. Whisk together sugar, cocoa, flour, salt, and espresso powder. Pour your melted butter and evaporated milk into the sugar and cocoa mixture and beat on high speed with an electric mixer. Mix in vanilla extract and eggs until well combined and continue to mix for about 2 minutes to lighten the batter.

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Pour into the pie crust and bake. Pour the chocolate mixture into a 9-inch, unbaked pie crust. Bake for 55 minutes.

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Cool the pie before slicing. The center of the pie will be a bit soft. Allow it to cool completely on a wire rack for an hour before slicing. The pie will continue to set as it cools.

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Storage Tips

To store leftovers. Cover the pie loosely with wrap and store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

To make ahead. This pie is excellent to make ahead as it is best served cold! Like with the storage instructions, make the pie ahead of time and cool. Cover the pie loosely with wrap and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Remove from the refrigerator, slice, and serve.

To freeze. You can easily freeze a baked Chocolate Chess Pie. Bake and cool completely. Wrap tightly with freezer-safe wrap and place in a freezer bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. To serve, that in the refrigerator overnight and then slice and serve.

Chocolate Chess Pie Recipe (11)

Here’s my recipe for Chocolate Chess Pie. I hope you love it as much as we do!

Chocolate Chess Pie Recipe (12)

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Chocolate Chess Pie Recipe

Robyn Stone

4.83 from 23 votes

Chocolate Chess Pie is a quintessential Southern chocolate pie. Get this family favorite chocolate chess pie recipe.

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 55 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Servings: 8

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cup (297 g) granulated sugar
  • 4 tablespoons (21 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 tablespoons (15 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon (0.58 g) espresso powder, optional
  • pinch (0.4 g) kosher salt
  • 4 tablespoons (57 g) butter, melted and slightly cooled
  • 5 ounces (141 g) evaporated milk
  • 1 teaspoon (5 g) vanilla extract
  • 3 large (150 g) eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 (9-inch) pie crust, unbaked

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 325º F.

  • Whisk sugar, cocoa, flour, and espresso powder (if using) and salt together. Pour butter and evaporated milk into sugar and cocoa mixture and beat on high speed. Add vanilla and eggs. With mixer speed on high speed, mix for approximately 2-3 minutes to lighten.

  • Pour mixture into 9 inch unbaked pie shell and bake for about 55 minutes. The center of the pie will be a bit soft. Allow to cool on a wire rack for at least an hour before slicing. The pie will continue to set as it cools.

Notes

Storage, Make Ahead, and Freezer Instructions

To store leftovers. Cover the pie loosely with wrap and store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

To make ahead. This pie is excellent to make ahead as it is best served cold! Like with the storage instructions, make the pie ahead of time and cool. Cover the pie loosely with wrap and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Remove from the refrigerator, slice, and serve.

To freeze. You can easily freeze a baked Chocolate Chess Pie. Bake and cool completely. Wrap tightly with freezer-safe wrap and place in a freezer bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. To serve, thaw in the refrigerator overnight and then slice and serve.

Nutrition

Calories: 452kcal | Carbohydrates: 60g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 105mg | Sodium: 288mg | Potassium: 149mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 40g | Vitamin A: 319IU | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 67mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Enjoy!
Robyn xo

Categorized as:All Recipes, By Cooking Style, Chocolate, Christmas Recipes, Cooking, Dessert Recipes, Father’s Day Recipes, Freezer Friendly Recipes, Game Day Recipes, Halloween Recipes, Holiday and Occasion Recipes, July 4th Recipes, Mother’s Day Recipes, Pies / Tarts / Cobblers, Recipes, Shower Recipes, Southern Favorites, Thanksgiving Recipes, Valentine’s Day Recipes

Welcome to Add A Pinch

About Robyn

Robyn Stone is a cookbook author, wife, mom, and passionate home cook. Her tested and trusted recipes give readers the confidence to cook recipes the whole family will love. Robyn has been featured on Food Network, People, Southern Living, and more.

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Chocolate Chess Pie Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you know when a chess pie is done? ›

Towards the end of the baking time, the only way you can tell if it's done is by gently jiggling the pie. It should have a very slight jiggle but be totally set in the center. If you're worried it's not done, just bake another 5-10 minutes.

Why is my chess pie not setting? ›

Unlike a typical custard pie, that wobbly middle will not fully set up when it's cool due to the high sugar content. So bake the pie until it just sets up, and there is no jiggle left in the pie.

Why do they call it chocolate chess pie? ›

Another story that points to chess pie's English roots says that English cooks combined spoil-prone ingredients like butter and eggs with sugar to keep them from going bad and used that to create a pie that could be kept unrefrigerated in a chest. “Chest” became “chess,” and the rest is pie history.

What is chocolate chess pie made of? ›

What is chocolate chess pie made of? It's just about one of the easiest chocolate pies you can make! The custardy filling is made with eggs, sugar, milk, butter, cornmeal, vanilla, and unsweetened chocolate.

Why does my chess pie crack? ›

When you move a pie out of the oven too fast, you risk cracking the top. One trick of the trade to keep pies from cracking is to place the pie dish on a cookie tray to bake. That way, when you take it out of the oven once it's finished baking, you don't have to worry about moving it too much.

Does a chess pie need to be refrigerated? ›

Chess pie can be stored at room temperature or refrigerated, whichever you prefer. If you love cold pie, this recipe will keep up to 4 days in the refrigerator.

Can chess pie be left at room temperature? ›

Chess and nut pies (ex. Salted Maple, Hot Cocoa Chess, or Brandy Pecan) are best eaten within 3 days of purchase if stored at room temperature. However, they can also be refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Why cornmeal in chess pie? ›

Though it's not always called upon to thicken the filling, cornmeal is frequently what gives a chess pie it's velvety texture and yellow color. Buttermilk pie, meanwhile, always has buttermilk. More acids, like lemon juice or vinegar, are also frequently added to brighten up the recipe even more.

Why won t my chocolate pie set up? ›

A chocolate pie can not set up if it doesn't have enough cornstarch, egg yolks, or the filling wasn't cooked to 160 degrees. Use this trusted recipe and you won't have any problems!

How do you fix a pie that didn't set? ›

Once you've noticed the problem, the only solution is to protect the crust and pop the pie back in the oven. If you look in the oven and see that your pecan pie crust has turned a perfect golden brown, you'll instinctively want to take it out -- even if the filling is too jiggly or even soupy.

What is the difference between egg pie and chess pie? ›

R. Dull. That same year, a chess pie recipe was published in the Fort Worth Women's Club Cookbook. The major difference in a chess pie from other custard pies is most chess pie recipes call for a small amount of cornmeal (or sometimes flour) to be added to the batter.

What is another name for chess pie? ›

And so, supposedly, the name “Chess Pie” was coined. Chess pie and its many Southern variations — including vinegar pie, transparent pie and Tyler pie (a favorite of Edna Lewis's, putatively named for President John Tyler and perfected by the women of Miss Lewis's hometown of Freetown, Va.)

What is the difference between chess pie and pecan pie? ›

Some nut pies, including some pecan, fall under the category of chess pies. Traditional pecan pie recipes do not include milk or condensed milk in the filling, and are typically regarded as a type of sugar pie similar to British treacle rather than a milk-containing custard (see Pecan pie § Variations).

What is the difference between buttermilk pie and chess pie? ›

However, chess pie is made with cornmeal to thicken the filling, whereas buttermilk pies generally only use all-purpose flour.

What is the difference between chess pie and regular pie? ›

Cornmeal as a stabilizer in the filling is distinct to chess pie.” Buttermilk is the main factor in differentiating the two pies. Adding an acidic ingredient, like buttermilk or vinegar, to the pie will cut down on the sweetness and change the consistency of the filling.

What's the difference between a chess pie and a buttermilk pie? ›

However, chess pie is made with cornmeal to thicken the filling, whereas buttermilk pies generally only use all-purpose flour.

What is a buttermilk chess pie made of? ›

Chess Pie is a simple baked pie consisting of a homemade pie crust and an egg, sugar, and buttermilk filling. It can be varied by adding flavorings such as lemon, vanilla, or chocolate. The recipe dates back to the 1700s, making it a pretty old American dessert.

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