Coffee Chess Pie

Love the flavor of coffee? Then this dessert is calling your name! This Coffee Chess Pie features a creamy coffee custard in a flaky pie shell. Grab a fork and dig in!

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I look forward to my morning cup of coffee. While the caffeine is nice, it’s not really about the caffeine for me. I just really like the taste of coffee. I’ve loved coffee-flavored desserts for as long as I can remember. The complexity of the coffee flavor combined with the sweet dessert was a match made in heaven!

I got to thinking about coffee desserts the other day. I often include coffee in my chocolate cake recipes. (It adds a wonderful depth of flavor.) I’ve used actual coffee in a coffee cake recipe, too. Also fantastic. And of course a good bowl of coffee ice cream is hard to beat. But what about coffee in pie form?

I puzzled and puzzled until my puzzler was sore. Nope, I’ve never come across coffee in a pie. Then I thought of something I hadn’t before. What if I made a pie with coffee? And that’s how this Coffee Chess Pie came into being!

Coffee Chess Pie

I started thinking – now how could I create a pie with a strong coffee flavor? I decided to use a Buttermilk Chess Pie as the base. Chess pies in general often have a higher sugar content, and they remind me of a sweetened custard. The sugar would be helpful to balance the bitterness of the coffee. And the thought of a coffee custard pie sounded pretty tasty!

After a few rounds of experimenting, I settled on the version below. This pie is creamy in a good way…and it’s packed with coffee flavor. Not only does it use cold brew coffee, but it calls for ¼ cup of espresso powder, too. But there’s plenty of brown sugar and granulated sugar in there to balance out the coffee. Add in the cream, and you’ve got yourself a darned good cup of coffee…just in pie form!

This Coffee Chess Pie recipe does call for you to bake the pie crust blind for 15 minutes. Baking blind simply means baking the crust by itself for a few minutes before adding the filling. Just place pie weights on top of the dough before baking. Don’t have pie weights? No problem! Just lay a piece of aluminum foil over the dough and add dry peas or coins. I have a jar of spare coins I keep in my office – it comes in handy whenever I bake blind!

While the pie crust is baking, you can get to making the custard filling. A good custard should be creamy and smooth. And in this case, that custard should also have a deep coffee flavor. I added a dollop of fresh whipped cream to these pie slices when I served them – the light and airy whipped cream compliments the deeper flavor of the custard quite nicely.

I also dusted the top of the pie lightly with powdered sugar before serving. The dark brown coffee custard admittedly doesn’t look that appetizing. An easy way to fix that is to tap a bit of powdered sugar through a fine mesh sifter right onto the pie. This should be done right before serving as the sugar will dissolve into the pie once it rests.

Like most custard pies, this Coffee Chess Pie should be served cold so plan accordingly. I made the pie around mid-day, and let it rest in the fridge for a few hours before serving it that evening. You could also cover the pie with plastic wrap and let it rest in the fridge overnight. I do recommend making the whipped cream fresh right before you slice and serve the pie – it’ll taste better that way!

How to Store Leftovers

Leftover slices of this pie should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Feel free to just wrap the pie dish itself with plastic wrap. As long as they are already baked, custard pies also freeze well. Just let the pie cool completely before wrapping in plastic wrap and aluminum foil. Freeze for up to 3 months, and just let the pie thaw in the fridge overnight.

If you’re a fan of coffee desserts, then put this Coffee Chess Pie on the baking list. It’s a fun way to enjoy the flavors of that cup o’ joe…just with a fork. Happy Baking!

Did you bake this Coffee Chess Pie recipe at home? Leave a comment, or snap a photo and tag me on Instagram (@Spicedblog) – I’d love to see your version!

Coffee Chess Pie

Love the flavor of coffee? Then this dessert is calling your name! This Coffee Chess Pie features a creamy coffee custard in a flaky pie shell. Grab a fork and dig in!

5 from 4 votes

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 25 minutes minutes

Chilling Time: 4 hours hours

Total Time: 5 hours hours 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 8 servings

Calories: 573kcal

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Ingredients

For the Dough

• 1⅓ cups all-purpose flour
• 2 Tbsp brown sugar
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ cup unsalted butter cold
• 2 Tbsp vodka see note
• 2-4 Tbsp cold water

For the Coffee Chess Pie

• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1 cup cold brew coffee
• ½ cup unsalted butter melted and cooled slightly
• ¼ cup espresso powder
• 3 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 2 Tbsp fine yellow cornmeal
• 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• ½ tsp salt
• 4 large eggs room temperature
• ¾ cup heavy whipping cream room temperature
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 large egg white
• {For garnish} Fresh whipped cream
• {For garnish} Chocolate-covered coffee beans
• {For garnish} Confectioner’s sugar

Instructions

For the Dough

• Using a food processor, add flour, brown sugar and salt; pulse until well combined.
• Cut butter into small cubes and add to the food processor; pulse until a crumbly mixture forms.
• Add vodka and 2 Tbsp of water; pulse until well combined. Continue adding water 1 Tbsp at a time (and pulsing) until dough comes together in a ball.
• Shape dough into a disc and wrap with plastic wrap; refrigerate for at least 2 hours. (Note: Dough can be made the day before and refrigerated overnight.)
• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Working on a lightly floured surface, roll pie dough into a 12” circle.
• Transfer pie dough into pan and gently press dough into pan; Leave ~1” of overhang on all sides
• Fold excess dough under itself and use 2 fingers to crimp the edges. Freeze dough for at least 15 minutes.
• Prick bottom of pie with fork. Place foil on top of dough and fill with pie weights, dried beans or rice.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until edges of pie dough have just begun to turn golden brown.
• Remove foil (and weights) and continue baking for 5 more minutes.
• Place pie dish on a wire rack and let cool for at least 15 minutes.

For the Coffee Chess Pie

• Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.
• Using a medium saucepan, add light brown sugar and coffee; whisk together until well combined.
• Place over medium-low heat and let simmer, stirring often, until mixture has reduced to 1 cup. (Note: This should take ~12-15 minutes.)
• Remove coffee mixture from heat and let cool at room temperature for at least 15 minutes.
• Using a large bowl, add reduced coffee mixture, melted butter, espresso powder, sugar, cornmeal, flour and salt; stir until well combined.
• Using a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, whipping cream and vanilla extract. Pour mixture until bowl with coffee; stir until well combined.
• Pour mixture into pie crust.
• Whisk egg white with 1 Tbsp of water. Brush this mixture around edges of the pie crust.
• Place pie dish on parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 40 minutes and then tent the top of the pie with aluminum foil. Continue baking for 30-35 more minutes or until edges of filling are set but center still has a slight jiggle. (Note: The center of the filling should read 200°F on an instant-read thermometer.)
• Let pie cool at room temperature for 1 hour and then refrigerate until ready to serve.
• Before serving, dust the pie lightly with confectioner’s sugar. Garnish with a dollop of fresh whipped cream and several chocolate covered coffee beans.

Notes

The alcohol in the crust will evaporate while baking. Substituting vodka (or another 80-proof alcohol) for ½ of the liquid in pie dough will lead to a flakier crust once baked. Try it out!

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