For nine decades, Our State has made its way into homes across North Carolina, the United States, and the world. To celebrate, every month this year, we’re paying tribute to the readers who inspire us, offering a taste of our earliest recipes, and revisiting old stories with new insights. Follow along to find out how our past has shaped our present.
photograph by Matt Hulsman
January 1989 • According to The State, nuts became a dessert star at the 1988 North Carolina State Fair, where the annual pie competition included categories for peanut and peanut butter pies. This recipe from Mrs. Robert H. Tobin of Thomasville won first place.
Yield: 6 servings.
1½ cups granulated sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 large eggs, beaten
3½ tablespoons creamy peanut butter
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
½ cup evaporated milk
1 unbaked deep-dish pie shell
Whipped topping (optional)
Peanuts, chopped (optional)
Preheat oven to 350°.
In a large bowl, mix sugar, butter, eggs, peanut butter, vanilla, and milk until well blended. Pour mixture into pie shell and bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Remove pie from oven and set on a cooling rack for at least 1 hour before serving. Serve with whipped topping and peanuts (optional).
— Recipe adapted by Lynn Wells
photograph by Matt Hulsman
December 18, 1937 • The mark of a traditional pecan pie is a hefty helping of Karo syrup in its filling. The sweetener, first sold in 1902 and likely named for the developer’s wife, Caroline, was invented in the North, but it was bakers from the South who first used it to create a perfect pecan pie.
Yield: 6 servings.
¾ cup light brown sugar
¾ cup Karo dark corn syrup
3 large eggs
¼ cup salted butter, melted and cooled
2½ cups pecans, chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
1 unbaked pie shell
Vanilla ice cream (optional)
Preheat oven to 350°.
In a large bowl, mix sugar, syrup, eggs, butter, pecans, vanilla, and salt until well combined. Pour mixture into pie shell. Place pie onto a baking sheet and bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until filling is set and crust is golden brown. Serve with vanilla ice cream (optional).
— Recipe adapted by Lynn Wells
photograph by Matt Hulsman
December 17, 1949 • Before refrigerators, the pie safe or chest was a freestanding kitchen cabinet with perforated metal paneling on its doors to allow adequate airflow to the dishes inside. Although no one can definitively say where the name “chess pie” came from, some speculate that because of the Southern accent, the “t” got lost over the years.
Yield: 6 servings.
1 cup light brown sugar
4 large eggs
4 tablespoons salted butter, melted
3 tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons cornmeal
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 unbaked pie shell
Preheat oven to 350°.
In a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat sugar, eggs, butter, cream, and vanilla for 2 to 3 minutes. Add cornmeal, flour, and apple cider vinegar; mix well. Pour mixture into the pie shell. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes or until the center jiggles slightly. Let pie cool on a wire rack for 1 hour before serving.
— Recipe adapted by Lynn Wells
photograph by Matt Hulsman
June 15, 1966 • Although a log cabin is not required to make this pie, the recipe was likely developed by its author, Candor resident Betty Lou Bruton, using a wood-fueled cookstove. These stoves, popular in 1930s catalog kit cabins, have a lifespan of about 25 years, so few working models remain.
Yield: 6 servings.
For the crust:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
⅔ cup shortening
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 to 3 tablespoons whole milk
For the filling:
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
¼ cup water
1½ cups chicken stock
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
3 cups chicken, cooked and diced
For the topping:
8 slices white bread, toasted
1 medium yellow onion, grated
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon poultry seasoning
1 cup chicken stock, heated
Preheat oven to 425°.
For the crust: In a large mixing bowl, sift together flour and salt. Cut in shortening with 2 forks or a pastry cutter.
In a separate bowl, mix together the egg and vinegar. Add egg mixture to flour mixture and toss lightly.
Gradually add milk until the crust is moist enough to hold together. Form dough into a ball and place on floured cutting board. Roll dough into a 12-inch circle. Place dough into a 10-inch pie pan. Fold edge of dough to form a standing rim.
For the filling: Whisk together flour and water. Add to a skillet over medium heat. Add chicken stock, salt, and pepper, stirring until sauce thickens. Add chicken and stir. Pour filling into unbaked piecrust.
For the topping: Tear toast into pieces and place in a food processor. Pulse until it resembles sand with some larger pieces. Place crumbs into a mixing bowl. Add onion, salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning, and toss until well combined.
Add hot chicken stock to bread crumb mixture and toss with a fork. Spread topping evenly over filling.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until topping is golden brown. Let pie rest for 10 minutes before serving.
— Recipe adapted by Lynn Wells
North Carolina is known for many things, but nothing more important this week than the qualities of endurance, resilience, and hope.
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