Pumpkin Chess Pie Tart

Chess pie is similar to vinegar, sugar or custard pies with the addition of a little cornmeal to give it texture. Stories range on why it’s called chess pie. Some say it’s a bastardization of the age old question “What sort of pie is that?” The response of “it’s just pie” slowly morphing into “it’s chess pie.” Other people say it’s an evolution of storing the warm pies in a pie chest, a specific piece of furniture popular in the south that is used to cool pies (man I wish I lived in a culture where there were specific pieces of furniture designed just to cool cakes and pies!). The resulting cooling pie was a “chest pie”, or “chess pie” as the phrase evolved. Either way though, the simple and easy to variation of pumpkin pie is a familiar but slightly different dessert, perfect for Thanksgiving.