On a recent winter evening I got to open a birthday present - this year my sister sent me a great pie book. Mid January is a really good time for a pie making session, I thought, and I'd do it just for the sake of the Pie Blog. The Pie Blog is how I learn and teach myself something about baking pies. But being Mid January, and on a tighter budget, I found the cupboard nearly bare, except for a minimum of ingredients. Perfect - we don't need a fancy pie right now. Then I opened up my new pie book and found this 'Angus Barn Chocolate Chess Pie', a pie from the American South (among many other delicious sounding pies I will have to experiment with when fruit season is back.) Do I have some eggs, vanilla, sugar, a little corn meal and pie pastry? Well, indeed I do. Turn the page. Do I have chocolate? (Leftovers from Christmas...yes!) MMM. One more pie, and a game of chess to go along. Apparently the game of chess has nothing to do with the name of a chess pie, but I decided to take it in a new direction for the sake of the Pie Blog. (The Chess name may come from 'pie chest' or the British Cheese pie perhaps, said with a southern hospitable accent...'cheesss' but this pie contains no cheese today at least.) I'm enjoying experiments and games all at once while learning about chess pies.
The Angus Barn name comes from a restaurant in Raleigh, North Carolina. I think of paintings of the eastern light and countryside out there, horse country. I would love to visit again - hope they don't mind (as I so had no problem adding something) a light splash of Mexican Coffee Liquor and calling it 'done'.
* note: Personal Size Pies is the coming trend according to my 'associate' so I made one and photographed it. It went quicker than I could write about it.
Before the main baking event, the pie crust sank in pre-baking but I went with it. Glad I didn't get worried about it, because my Chess Pie turned into a brownie-cookie-light flaky- crust Pizza, all organic with free trade chocolate and delicious. Now being served - thanks to some new tools I received from friends and family this year. Yum!
