Buttermilk Pie

I know here in Hoosier country sugar cream pie reigns supreme, but this buttermilk pie sure gives it a run for its money.  Smooth, rich, creamy, a little tart, and not too sweet, buttermilk pie does not disappoint.  My Grandma Ruth made this pie when I was a child, though I do not remember it.  The recipe has been in the family for years, and I am so glad to have it now.

My grandma gave it too me when I asked her if she had a good sugar cream pie recipe.  When I asked her, she scoffed a little and told me about her buttermilk pie.  Intrigued, I asked her if I could have it.  She gladly wrote it down, and I soon discovered a new favorite pie.

This pie is super easy to make.  I have modified the ingredient amounts a little to to account for one pie.  Other than that, I haven't changed a thing; nor do I need to. 

Buttermilk Pie

Printable Recipe

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 stick melted butter

1/4 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup buttermilk

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Mix everything above real good with electric mixer.  Pour filling into an unbaked 9.5 inch pie shell.  Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes, them 300 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes.  Cool completely before serving.

Marbled Squares

Mmm.  Mmm.  Good.  As soon as I saw this recipe, I knew I had to make it.  Chocolate chip cookies are a favorite in our house, and this variation sounded too good to pass up.  It apparently was an old family favorite, too, since Nonna submitted it to the Saint Joan of Arc recipe book.

Unfortunately, I was unable to find the date the book was published.  I did find a newspaper clipping taped into the book from 1966, and all the advertisers still used "GL" in their phone numbers. 

I found a few different versions of this recipe.  The recipe book submission (above) had a number of annotations and double amounts of the ingredients written in pencil (notice the dash next to the salt - omitted!). 

I also found a typed recipe card with the doubled ingredients and baking in two eight inch and nine inch square pans instead of nine by thirteen.

Seeing these different versions, I began to wonder where this recipe originated.  Flipping through the Saint Joan of Arc recipe book, taped to the very last page was a Nestle chocolate chip package.

As I examined the package, I saw 'Toll House Marble Squares" in the bottom right corner.  The instructions are as follows:

Prepare dough for 1/2 of Original Toll House Cookies but do not add chocolate morsels.  Spread dough in a greased 13" x 9" x 2" pan.  Sprinkle 1/2 a 12-oz. Jumbo pkg. (1 c.) NESTLE'S SEMI-SWEET CHOCOLATE MORSELS over top.  Place in 375 degree F. oven for 1 min.  Remove from oven and run knife through batter to marbleize.  Return to oven and continue to bake.  BAKE at 375 degrees F. 

TIME:  12 to 14 mins.  Cool.  Cut in 2" squares.

It was fun to track down the origin of this recipe, and they are delicious, indeed.  The middle pieces are much like a whole cookie make out of the gooey chewy middle of a traditional chocolate chip cookie.  Yum!

Marbled Squares

Printable Recipe

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup light brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon water

1 egg

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour, sifted

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup chopped nuts

1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Sift together flour, baking soda, salt; set aside.  Blend butter, sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, and water until creamy.  Beat in eggs.  Add flour mixture; mix well.  Spread dough in a greased 13 x 9. pan.  Sprinkle chocolate chips over top.  Place in oven for 1 min.  Remove from oven and run knife through batter to marbleize.  Return to oven and continue to bake.  Bake for 12 to 14 mins.  Cool.  Cut into 24 squares.

On the omission of salt...

Thanks to my wonderful family, I have amassed a large number of handwritten recipes passed down from generation to generation.  I requested these recipes so I could scan them into my computer in order to preserve their image and share with any and all who may want them.  Three hundred scans later, my project is now complete (until I get more recipes) and I look forward to trying these recipes and sharing the results with you; along with an image of the recipe card, of course. 

In collecting these recipes, there were, in some instances, many versions of the same recipe.  Be it in card form, book form, newspaper clipping, or direct from a package label, it was fun to see the origin and evolution of a recipe as it was transcribed time and time again.  Some recipes were doubled, some had an ingredient tweaked here and there, some were modified drastically, but there was one constant throughout all recipes that were transcribed by Nonna from the original source.  All were written with the omission of salt or with the annotation of "(optional)" after the ingredient.

This was quite intriguing to me, as I often wondered why salt was not included in the ingredients list in most of the family recipes I already had.  More often than not, I found myself adding a little salt to round out the flavor, since that is how I am used to cooking.  I was curious to know if most sweets did not call for salt back when these recipes were printed or if Nonna made a conscious effort to exclude the ingredient when she copied the recipe to the card.  I now have my answer.

I am now curious to know why she excluded salt.  If anyone has any insights, please post away in the comment section.  Stay tuned for more recipes!