Lemon Chess Hand Pies
Chef Brandon Carter shares his mom's lemon chess hand pie recipe.
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By
Annie Reeves
Brandon Carter
FARM, Bluffton, South Carolina
Lemon Chess Hand Pies
Chef Brandon Carter of beloved FARM in Bluffton keeps one of his mom’s recipes on his menu. He says, “My mom is famous for her pies. We do a fried pie that’s always on the menu and we use my mom’s pie dough recipe.”
Lemon Chess Hand Pies
These classic lemon chess hand pies are tart, sweet, and delicious. The perfect treat for lemon lovers!
Ingredients
Lemon Curd
- 2 cups sugar
- 4 ea eggs
- 1 ⁄4 cup butter melted
- 1 ⁄4 cup milk
- 1 TB lemon zest
- 1 ⁄4 cup lemon juice
- 1 TB all-purpose flour
- 1 TB cornmeal
- 1 ⁄4 tsp salt
Pie Dough
- 1 ⁄2 pound unsalted butter
- 8 TB shortening
- 5 1 ⁄2 C all purpose flour
- 1 ⁄2 C ice water
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- Powdered sugar as needed
- Whipped cream
Instructions
Lemon Curd
- Whisk all ingredients together and bake in a pyrex dish at 350f until the mixture is
- set (think creme brulee jiggle).
- Cool curd to room temperature and then refrigerate.
Pie Dough
- Place the butter in the freezer for about an hour.
- Combine the shortening, flour and salt. Using your hands, distribute the shortening through the flour until it resembles coarse cornmeal.
- Grate the butter into the flour mixture using the largest side of a box grater.
- Gently “fluff” the grated butter into the flour mixture.
- Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Strain the ice out of the water and pour into the well.
- Gently mix the dough by hand until a ball forms, adding more water as needed to hydrate the dough.
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
To Finish
- Divide the pie dough into 6 pieces. Work with one piece of dough at a time and keep the remaining dough in the refrigerate until ready to form.
- Place dough a lightly floured work surface and roll into a circle, about 8 inches in diameter. Spoon 1⁄3 to 1⁄2 cup of the lemon filling in the center. Brush edges of circle with egg wash. Fold dough over filling to make a half moon shape and crimp the edges with a fork to seal. Continue with the remaining five dough balls.
- Store finished pies in the refrigerator until ready to cook.
- When ready, fry pies at 350° until golden brown. Dust with powdered sugar and serve with whipped cream.
Nutrition
Calories: 643kcalCarbohydrates: 105gProtein: 1gFat: 27gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 7gMonounsaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 3gCholesterol: 1mgSodium: 1169mgPotassium: 17mgFiber: 0.5gSugar: 101gVitamin A: 16IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 7mgIron: 0.3mg
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Annie Reeves
When she isn't scoping out the South's newest hangs, you can find her teaching CycleBar classes or eating queso at her neighborhood Mexican spot.