Lemon Chess Pie

This is a very old, southern dessert about which is there is a lot of speculation where the name and the pie came from.   Like pecan pie, another traditional southern dessert, it is tooth achingly sweet, but at least this one has a very tart and lemony counterpoint to all the sweetness.  Even so, it is an extremely sweet and rich pie that no one should ever eat more than a tiny sliver of.   It is good, but also quite deadly!  If you try to eat more than just a sliver, I warned you!    As always, enjoy!

Lemon Chess Pie

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 inch pie pan with pie crust. Set aside.

Beat together the following until smooth and well blended:

2 cups sugar

½ cup strained fresh lemon juice

grated rind of two lemons

2 tbsp corn meal

2 tbsp flour

½ cup butter milk or yogurt
4 eggs

¼ cup melted butter

pinch of salt

Pour this mixture into the pie shell and bake about 45-60 minutes. The top of the pie will be lightly browned and the filling will jiggle a little bit when shook. Remove pie from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature. Serve pie room temperature or chilled. Store leftovers in the fridge. Some like to top with whipped cream, but as rich as this is, it doesn't really need it.