Chocolate Chess Pie

Ingredients

• 1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust (store-bought or homemade)
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 3 large eggs
• 1/4 cup evaporated milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Fit the crust into a 9-inch pie dish and crimp the edges.
2. Whisk the filling ingredients together in a large bowl until smooth.
3. Pour the filling into the crust.
4. Bake for 45–55 minutes, until the edges are set and the center jiggles only slightly when the pan is nudged.
5. Cool completely on a wire rack, then refrigerate at least 2 hours before slicing.

The Tale of Chocolate Chess Pie

Story updated September 19, 2026

Chocolate chess pie is a variation on the older, plainer chess pie, a Southern favorite with nineteenth-century printed roots. As cocoa became a common household ingredient, bakers began stirring it into the classic sugar, butter and egg base. No single inventor or date is documented. The pie spread through Southern kitchens and community cookbooks, prized for being easy to make from ingredients most households already kept on hand, and it remains a fixture of potlucks and holiday tables across the South.