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Maple Buttermilk Pie

A maple buttermilk pie.
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4.3 from 4 reviews

This Maple Buttermilk Pie has a creamy, smooth filling that is the perfect combination of tangy and sweet. Bake it up in a hearty Spelt Pie Crust with decorative maple leaves for a festive look. It’s crucial to bake the pastry fully before pouring in the filling, and to brush it with a whisked egg white while it is still hot.  Custards are baked at a low temperature so it would be impossible for the crust to actually bake with the filling inside, so be sure to follow the instructions for blind baking the crust. The brushed on egg white helps create a barrier between the filling and the crust. This helps keep the pie crust crisp after the custard has been baked.

Ingredients

For Pastry:

For Maple Buttermilk Custard:

  • 1/3 cup (52 grams) maple sugar or light brown sugar (see note)
  • 2 tablespoons (15 grams) cornstarch (or 3 tablespoons flour)
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 4 eggs, (plus 1 egg yolk reserved from crust)
  • ½ cup (115 grams) heavy cream
  • 1/2 cup (156 grams) pure maple syrup
  • 1/2 teaspoon maple extract
  • 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1-1/2 cups (340 grams) buttermilk

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375ºF and place one oven rack in the second to lowest spot and one in the middle.
  2. Prepare pastry: Roll out the pie dough to an 11″ circle and line a 9” pie plate, crimp the edges as desired. Place in the freezer to firm up for 10-20 minutes.
  3. Whisk together the egg white and water and set aside.
  4. Line the pie dough with a parchment round piece of paper and then add pie weights to fill (dry rice/ beans/lentils work great), pushing pie weights to the edges. Bake for 20 minutes on the lower rack, then remove from oven and remove the parchment and pie weights. Return to oven and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes until the pastry is fully baked through.
  5. Brush the whisked egg white on the hot pie crust. The residual heat should set the egg white. If it does not, place it back into the oven for a minute at a time until the egg white is cooked through. Set aside the prepared crust until ready to use.
  6. Lower the heat to 350º.
  7. To make the filling: Whisk together the maple sugar (or brown sugar), cornstarch and salt in a bowl. Add in the 4 eggs and leftover egg yolk (leftover from egg white used to brush the crust), cream, maple syrup, and extracts. Strain the mixture twice. Then, whisk in the buttermilk at the very end to prevent any curdling.
  8. Next, pre-cook the custard mixture: Pour the buttermilk custard into a medium pot and turn the heat to medium-low. Cook the mixture for 5-7 minutes, stirring with a rubber spatula constantly, until the mixture has just slighty thickened, about 160ºF. To double-check the custard has formed, take a wooden spoon and coat it with the custard. Draw a horizontal line on the back of the spoon with your finger. If the line “holds” then your custard is set. If the line collapses right away, the custard needs another minute or so. Do not bring the mixture to a boil, this will overcook the custard.
  9. Slowly pour the thickened filling into the baked crust.
  10. Place the pie onto your oven’s middle rack and bake it for 40-45 minutes, or until the custard has puffed about 2” from the edge but still slightly wobbly (not watery) in the middle. The pie should have a temperature of 180º.
  11. Remove the pie from the oven, and place it on a rack to cool. When it’s completely cool, if needed, refrigerate until you’re ready to serve, up to 1 day ahead of time.
  12. Decorate as desired with whipped cream or baked crust cookies (see section titled "Decorative Pie Crust Tips" for instructions).

Notes

See post for more information for how to make decorative cut-out pie pieces.

Granulated Maple Sugar is a fun and delicious addition to this pie. However, it's not make-or-break, so if you don't already have maple sugar or have a cheap easy source to get it, it can be skipped in place of light brown sugar.

Maple extract or Maple flavor is common enough in grocery stores and really helps amp up the maple flavor in this pie, so unlike the maple sugar, I do recommend including this in the recipe. I've purchased it at Whole Foods, Shaws, Stop and Shop and on Amazon. Just be sure to be all natural, and not imitation maple extract.

Recipe inspired by one from Gourmet Magazine (April 2002)

Find it online: https://everydaypie.com/maple-buttermilk-pie/