Martha Washington’s Chess Cake

MARTHA WASHINGTON’S CHESS CAKE

Unbaked pastry for 1 (9-inch) piecrust

1 cup butter, at room temperature 1 cup sugar, divided

6 egg yolks, lightly beaten

1/4 teaspoon salt

Grated zest of 1 lemon 1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/3 cup dry white wine

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9-inch pie plate with pastry. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and 1/2 cup sugar.

In another large bowl, using a whisk or electric mixer, beat egg yolks and salt until light and lemon-colored, at least 3 minutes. Gently beat in remaining 1/2 cup sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice and wine. Add creamed butter mixture to the yolks and beat gently until combined. The mixture will be yellow and may look lumpy or curdled; that’s OK.

Pour mixture into the piecrust. Crimp edges of the pastry and cover edges with strips of foil to keep them from burning. Bake 50 minutes, or until top is golden brown. The filling will be runny but will firm up as the pie cools. Place on a wire rack to cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.

Slice into wedges and serve plain or with whipped cream or cherry sauce (below), or both.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings

Recipe from “The First Ladies Cook Book” by Margaret Brown Klapthor and Helen Duprey Bullock (Parents’ Magazine Press, 1969)

CHERRY SAUCE

1 (14.5-ounce) can pitted tart cherries in water, undrained

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Pinch of salt

Place juice from the cherries, sugar and cornstarch in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until thick, stirring continually. Remove from heat and stir in cherries, lemon juice, extract and salt. Allow to cool to room temperature.

Yield: 2 cups, or enough for 1 pie