Fall

Sorghum Molasses Pie

by:
September 12, 2010
4.5
4 Ratings
Sorghum Molasses Pie
  • Serves 8
Author Notes

The aforementioned farm on which I grew up was in Benton County, Tennessee, at that time the largest producer of sorghum molasses in the nation. The production of "new sorghum" from the mills each October or November was the cause for a frenzy of gluttony that involved sorghum, biscuits and butter (and bacon and, for some reason, home-canned tomatoes), gingerbread, and all manner of desserts. This particular one is a recipe one of the ladies in the nearby Mennonite community gave my mother, and we made it every year during "new sorghum" season. Sorghum molasses, to me, is the quintessential taste of fall. - Kayb —Kayb

Test Kitchen Notes

It was really interesting to work with sorghum, having read about it in Edna Lewis' books and other Southern recipe books, but never having searched it out. I finally found Bourbon Vanilla Sorghum at Whole Foods and thought that neither Bourbon nor vanilla was a bad addition to a pie! The pie tastes something like pecan pie, without the nuts, or a maple sugar pie I remember from my childhood. Sweet, slightly chewy, caramelish, it screams for a side of vanilla ice cream. – MrsWheelbarrow —The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1 pie crust, your favorite recipe
  • 3/4 cup flour
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup sorghum molasses
  • 1/4 cup boiling water
  • 1/3 teaspoon baking soda
Directions
  1. Line a pie plate with the crust. Fill with pie weights and bake for about 10 minutes at 350. Remove from oven and lower heat to 325.
  2. Crumble together flour, sugar and butter until mixture resembles a coarse cornmeal. Set aside.
  3. Combine molasses, water and soda and beat with a mixer until mixture becomes fluffy. Add flour mixture and fold into molasses. Pour into pie shell. Bake at 325 for 30 minutes.
  4. If desired, use powdered sugar and a stencil and dust top of pie.
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  • Kayb
    Kayb
  • Homemadecornbread
    Homemadecornbread
  • thirschfeld
    thirschfeld
  • MrsWheelbarrow
    MrsWheelbarrow
Kayb
I'm a business professional who learned to cook early on, and have expanded my tastes and my skills as I've traveled and been exposed to new cuisines and new dishes. I love fresh vegetables, any kind of protein on the grill, and breakfasts that involve fried eggs with runny yolks. My recipes tend toward the simple and the Southern, with bits of Asia or the Mediterranean or Mexico thrown in here and there. And a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on a float in the lake, as pictured, is a pretty fine lunch!

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5 Reviews

Kayb
Kayb October 1, 2010
Mrs. Wheelbarrow, thanks for testing this one! I agree, the bourbon and vanilla would be good additions. Oh, and by the way, I heard you on NPR the other day as I was driving down the work, and thought, "Oh! I "know" her!" Great interview!
 
MrsWheelbarrow
MrsWheelbarrow October 4, 2010
It was a tasty pie! I actually made small pies (in a muffin tin) for a women's group meeting I was hosting. Out of ice cream, we enjoyed a big dollop of creme fraiche on the top. Glad you heard the NPR piece. It was great fun to do.
 
Kayb
Kayb September 29, 2010
CoolFoodie, I'm not sure what happened there. Did you use sorghum that had some kind of additive? I don't understand the not foaming; you do have to beat for a bit, but it's always worked for me. I'm puzzled! And very sorry it turned out poorly for you.
 
Homemadecornbread
Homemadecornbread September 28, 2010
I was really looking forward to this. Tried it tonight and it didn't turn out. Perhaps something is missing from the recipe. The sorghum, water and soda didn't turn fluffy. I added it to the flour mixture anyway and there was no volume, so I added a beaten egg. Baked it, and it was like a pie with cake for filling! Strange and pretty much flavorless.
 
thirschfeld
thirschfeld September 15, 2010
I love sorghum, unfortunately the small sorghum mill near my house burned down and I haven't been able to get good sorghum any more. Funny this is what we would call Shoefly pie, and although I know most people would use molasses for that we don't, sort of like calling a green or red pepper a mango. Yes, in Indiana lots of people call peppers mangos. Go figure.