Butter Pie

Recipe from Butter Love Bakeshop

Adapted by The New York Times

Butter Pie
Drew Kelly for The New York Times
Total Time
2 hours
Rating
4(283)
Notes
Read community notes

Here is a recipe that Julia Moskin brought to The Times in 2010, from Esa Yonn-Brown at the Butter Love Bakeshop in San Francisco, with a crust so lumpy with butter that it would never pass inspection in a professional kitchen. With its caramelized filling of butter and brown sugar, her butter pie belongs to the same gooey tradition as sugar pie, chess pie, shoofly pie and, in recent years, the Milk Bar Pie served by Christina Tosi of the Momofuku restaurant empire. —The New York Times

Featured in: Pie to Cupcake: Time’s Up

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Ingredients

Yield:8 to 10 servings

    For the Crust

    • 1¼cups all-purpose flour
    • ½teaspoon kosher salt
    • 1½teaspoons sugar
    • 8tablespoons (one stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into dice
    • ¼cup ice water
    • Dried beans or rice, for baking

    For the Filling

    • 6tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
    • 2cups light brown sugar
    • 1teaspoon kosher salt
    • 1teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 2large eggs
    • ½cup cranberries (optional)
    • Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)

336 calories; 18 grams fat; 11 grams saturated fat; 1 gram trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 42 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 29 grams sugars; 3 grams protein; 208 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Make the crust: In a bowl, mix the flour, salt and sugar. Add butter and gently toss with the dry ingredients until evenly coated. Using fingertips and thumbs, press each cube of butter into a thin leaf, and continue tossing in flour. When all butter is coated, add ice water one tablespoon at a time. Continue tossing gently until mixture starts to look ragged and just holds together when squeezed. Wrap loosely in plastic, waxed paper or parchment. Press dough down firmly into a disk. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes, or up to one day, before rolling. (Dough will keep frozen for up to a month).

  2. Step 2

    Heat oven to 350 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll chilled dough into a circle 12 inches in diameter and ¼-inch thick. Transfer to a deep-dish 9-inch pie pan, lifting dough to let it settle into corners of pan; do not stretch it. Turn edges under to make a thick rim; flute the rim, pinching it into a zigzag pattern.

  3. Step 3

    Line crust with parchment or foil and cover bottom with pie weights, dried beans or raw rice. Bake in lower half of oven for 15 to 20 minutes, then remove weights and bake in upper half of oven 5 to 10 minutes, until just golden on edges.

  4. Step 4

    Meanwhile, make the filling: In a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter and brown sugar together at medium speed until sugar looks like wet sand. Add salt and vanilla extract. With mixer running, add eggs one at a time and beat until creamy and light, about a minute. Mix in cranberries, if using.

  5. Step 5

    Scrape filling into parbaked crust. Place pie on a sheet pan and bake in center of oven for 25 to 35 minutes, until top looks dry and browned. The filling will form a skin and puff slightly, then deflate as it cools and sets. Let cool at least one hour, then wrap and refrigerate until serving, at least one hour or overnight. Serve cold with very lightly sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Ratings

4 out of 5
283 user ratings
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Private Notes

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Cooking Notes

Over filled freezer

A relative made this and it was overly sweet with no flavors. Tasted more like a kid's idea of dessert.

Jake

Did not come out right at all unfortunately, extremely sweet and sticky, not in a good way

bonnie

I’m surprised to see so many negative comments! I’ve been making this recipe every winter for several years and think it’s wonderful! I often let it cook a bit longer than the recipe calls for, to make sure that the sugar completely caramelizes and the filling sets.

LJK

I took note of the comments about sweetness and put chopped 70% dark chocolate on bottom of crust, and served with barely sweetened whipped cream. It was still too sweet for one or two people but the rest thought it was terrific. Will make again.

sundevilpeg

Thanks for the warning. The recipe looked suspect - sort of themeless.

cameron

I worried this would be tooth achingly sweet or one note but actually found it lovely - the crust is like shortbread, the filling crackly and gooey. Did not use a deep dish however, and could see that being a thicker ratio of filling to crust that might be unpleasant. Serve with some bitter or tart flavors - a glass of Grand Marnier and some red currants along with whipped cream were divine, though a spicy ginger tea was terrific too - and it’s really a delicious dessert

Jeremy M

Yuck..this turned into a soupy mess. I envisioned this tasting more like a crème brûlée or maybe a light, airy, treat like cotton candy. This was definitely not the outcome I obtained. I even tried cooking this longer as one of the reviewers suggested…it didn’t help. Skip this and stick to more traditional or more interesting pies.

J M

Sounded so good but Tooth-achingly sweet.

Monika L.

This was simple and incredibly delicious. Although I could see how the filling could possibly bake the wrong way and into a sugary mess.

Alex L.

I love this pie! I made some alterations to the filling recipe that made it turn out better for me. I added 1 1/2 tbsp flour, doubled the vanilla, and added a tsp of salt. I also lowered the oven to 300 instead of 350 and baked for an extra ten minutes. It came out gooey in the middle with a lovely cookie like crust formed on top. It's really a great pie, especially with some ice cream.

bonnie

I’m surprised to see so many negative comments! I’ve been making this recipe every winter for several years and think it’s wonderful! I often let it cook a bit longer than the recipe calls for, to make sure that the sugar completely caramelizes and the filling sets.

Munashik

If you enjoy "Crack Pie" from Milk Bar, then you will love this pie. It's delicious and easy to make and beautiful.

LJK

I took note of the comments about sweetness and put chopped 70% dark chocolate on bottom of crust, and served with barely sweetened whipped cream. It was still too sweet for one or two people but the rest thought it was terrific. Will make again.

Ben

I made this last Thanksgiving to rave reviews. Making again this year.

Mintas Lanxor

I thought butter pie was a savory pie from Lancashire with potatoes and onions filling.

ann

Given your comments, I wonder why it is rated 4 stars? Not doubting the comments at all.

daniel

the crust ok but the filling doesn't kill it

Jake

Did not come out right at all unfortunately, extremely sweet and sticky, not in a good way

Over filled freezer

A relative made this and it was overly sweet with no flavors. Tasted more like a kid's idea of dessert.

sundevilpeg

Thanks for the warning. The recipe looked suspect - sort of themeless.

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Credits

Adapted from Butter Love Bakeshop, San Francisco

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