Simple butterscotch pie

I have a whole stack of recipes acquired a parties and other gatherings, scribbled on cocktail napkins, crumpled receipts from my purse or monogrammed note paper from host houses. Because any comment on food always leads to a discussion of favorites and how they are made. And I don’t just idly nod. I ask questions and take notes. Some of my favorite recipes have come home in that way, though sometimes I can’t read my handwriting or have to reconstruct my shorthand when I get in the kitchen.

Here’s another one of these recipes. I took my crazy simple Blender Lemon Pie to a party and was happy to tell everyone how easy it was to make. Then other people started sharing their easy pie recipes, and I jotted this one down. The sweet girl who shared it told me it was her grandmother’s recipe, but her mom started making it in the blender. Her grandmother topped it with meringue, but not her mom, and she doesn’t either. I like a little whipped cream on the top – why clutter such a simple recipe with a complicated topping?

Simple butterscotch pie
Serves 6 

Pastry for 1 9-inch pie (homemade or store bought ready-roll)

1-1/4 cup whole milk

2 eggs

1 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled

1-1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Line a pie dish with the pastry. Cover the crust with waxed paper and weight down with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 10 minutes. Cool and remove the waxed paper and weights. Cool completely.

3. Place the remaining ingredients in the carafe of a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a saucepan and cook over medium heat until thick and pudding like, about 3 minutes. Scrape the mixture into the cooled pie crust and smooth the top. Bake for 10 minutes until the filling is set and just jiggly. Cool completely, then refrigerate for several hours.

4. Serve with dollops of whipped cream.