Buttermilk Chess Pie for Pi Day

As I have said before, Pi Day has become a special holiday for me. I also much prefer pie over cake, which most people don't agree with. (And yes, that is a Pi dish in the picture above.)

Last year, I became enamored with the idea of making a chess pie. I don't know why - I had literally never tried a chess pie in my life and couldn't even describe one to you. But somehow, I got this idea in my head, and it just wouldn't let up. I read recipe after recipe, and they all varied by little bits (I even drew an elaborate chart to see how many tablespoons of this and how many cups of that went into each recipe I found). The recipe below is what I pulled together from my research. (I have no idea if this is indicative of traditional chess pie, but I really like how it turned out.)

A note about crust: I don't make my own crust anymore since going gluten-free. I'm still wobbly on gluten-free baking, and I haven't yet attempted pie crust. I have, however, found a gluten-free crust that I LOVE that's premade. It's the Whole Foods brand, found in their freezer section, and it comes two per package. I've used them for both sweet and savory pies and found them to be very tasty. Just take a look in the package before you buy them - sometimes the edges are a bit broken up. (And the pie in the photo above is not actually a Whole Foods crust - they look a little better than that.)

Buttermilk Chess Pie
1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 Tbsp cornmeal
5 eggs
2/3 cup buttermilk
1 stick butter (1/2 cup), melted
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350°. Place pie crust on a baking sheet. Mix together sugar, cornmeal, eggs, and buttermilk until blended. Mix in melted butter and vanilla. Pour mixture into prepared pie crust. Bake for about 45 minutes or until the center is set. Cool before serving.

Pi Day for Ron

Pi Day (or March 14th for the 3.14 in Pi) never meant much to me. In school, I had a number of math teachers who tried to make it fun, but math was never my favorite class.

My brother Ron, however, loved it. At his last job, he had instituted Pi Day festivities, sending out invites months ahead and rallying everyone to join in on a silly mid-week celebration. In fact, he loved anything quirky or odd or just plain stupid like Pi Day. That's just the kind of guy he was.

Ron passed away suddenly last year, and pretty much nothing has been right since. He was one of my best friends, and I think he was finally starting to see me as an adult and not his stupid kid sister. He was the one who was constantly finding things to share with me - YouTube videos, new TV shows, weird catchphrases - and this past year has been awkward trying to find and enjoy these things on my own. I've been left with a lot of sad memories, which I know he would have hated.

Pi Day, though. That's a thing he loved for no real reason other than it was quirky. It's something I can be damned sure I'm going to celebrate for the rest of my life because it made him happy. And if pie can't fix things, even just for a little while, then I don't know what else can.

Because I'd much rather remember Ron on a day like today, for reasons like pie.

Bacon Chocolate Cream Pie
1 1/2 cups crushed Oreos (about 15 cookies broken in a food processor)
3 Tbsp butter, melted
1 pint heavy cream
1 Tbsp powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla paste
1 package chocolate pudding, prepared as directed
5 pieces candied bacon, chopped

Mix together crushed oreos and butter until all the crumbs are moist. Gently pat into the bottom and sides of a pie dish. Refrigerate until ready to use.

In a mixer, whip heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla until soft peaks form. Don't overwhip the cream. Gently fold half the whipped cream into the pudding and pour into the prepared pie dish. Top with the remaining whipped cream and decorate with the chopped bacon. Chill before serving.