Chocolate Chess Pie

I’ve been thinking about my friend Cleves who died a couple of years ago. She was originally from North Carolina and every now and then, especially when we talked about food or cooking or baking, her Southern drawl would become more pronounced than usual. She was an excellent cook and baker and I loved being in the kitchen with her. She made the best Lemon Chess Pie and Chocolate Chess Pie. Sadly, I neglected to get her recipes before she left us. Our friend Cindy, however, did come up with recipes that, although not identical, remind me of Cleves and always make me smile. Thanks, Cindy. I just took the Chocolate Chess Pie out of the oven.

1 – 9″ unbaked pie shesll (yes, store bought is fine)

1/2 cup butter

1 cup sugar

4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, melted

4 eggs

1 1/2 Tablespoons cornmeal

1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In a saucepan over low heat, melt the butter. Remove from heat and whisk in the sugar until smooth. Stir in the chocolate. Whisk in the eggs, then the cornmeal and then the vanilla.

Pour the mixture into the pie shell and bake for between 50 and 60 minutes or until set, and still soft in the center. Let cool at least 1/2 hour before serving (good luck with that!).

Enjoy.

David Lebovitz’s Brown Sugar-Pecan Shortbread about to come out of the oven.