Classic Southern Desserts

There are probably as many different recipes for Chocolate Silk Pie as there are Southern cooks. Well, maybe not that many. But any good church cookbook from the South will give you several different versions. Here’s one for you to try. It’s very easy, yet smacks of gourmet with that smooth, silky taste.

Chocolate Silk Pie

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup butter (don’t substitute margarine)

3 oz. of unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

3 large eggs at room temperature

baked pie shell

Cream the sugar and butter for about 4 minutes until it is light and fluffy. Blend in the cooled chocolate and vanilla. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating on medium for about two minutes per egg. Turn into the baked pie shell. Chill in frig for at least three hours or overnight. Serve with whipped cream.

If you’re afraid of uncooked eggs, this is not the pie for you.

Pecan Tassies

Bake these miniature pecan pies for your holiday party. They’re very rich, but very good. If you can get fresh pecans, all to the better. Nuts left in the shell will last much longer than the ones already shelled. But you can keep shelled pecans fresh close to nine months in the frig and about two years if frozen.

Pecan Tassies

½ cup butter or margarine, softened

3 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 cup flour

1 ½ cups brown sugar (you can use light or dark)

2 tbs. butter or margarine, melted

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 tsp. vanilla

2/3 cup chopped pecans

To make the dough, beat the softened butter and cream cheese until cream. Add the flour gradually, beating well. Cover and chill in the frig for about two hours.

Shape the dough into 1-inch balls. You should get about 30. Press the balls into miniature muffin pans you have sprayed with cooking spray.

Combine the brown sugar, melted butter, eggs and vanilla. Stir in the pecans. Spoon about 1 tbsp. of the pecan mixture into each pastry shell.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 to 25 minutes. When tassies are done, remove them from the pans immediately, and cool on racks

In the South, our lives revolve around food. Cornbread, black-eyed peas, BBQ, tomato sandwiches and anything sweet.  When I was growing up in rural Alabama everybody was a good cook, and every event had food. My Mama used to say Methodists couldn’t get together for 30 minutes without serving refreshements.

I come from a long line of fabulous Southern cooks, and our speciality has always been desserts. You’ll never find better sweet endings to your meals than those old-fashioned dessert recipes from born and bred Southern cooks. So put on your apron, pull out the Crisco, eggs, flour and plenty of sugar. Let’s start baking!