Name: Cranberry Chess Pie
Cook time: 25 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 30 minutes, plus cooling
Yield: Makes one 9" pie
Ingredients: 1 (9") store-bought or homemade prebaked pie crust; 12 oz. fresh or frozen cranberries; 1½ cups (300 g) sugar; ¾ tsp. kosher salt; 1 Tbsp. finely grated lemon zest (from 1 lemon); 1 Tbsp. plus 1½ tsp. fine-ground cornmeal; 1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour; 4 large eggs, room temperature; ½ cup heavy cream; 4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted, slightly cooled; 1 tsp. vanilla extract; ¼ cup fresh lemon juice; Powdered sugar (for serving; optional)

Photo of a cranberry lemon chess pie in a pie dish.

Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Judy Kim

A popular Southern dessert said to originate in England, chess pie consists of staple ingredients: eggs, butter, and sugar, bound with cornmeal, flour, or both. While some recipes rely on tangy buttermilk to offset the rich custard, this version uses lemon juice and barely cooked cranberries instead.

Recipe notes

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