Butter Scotch Pie (Leslie Fox.)

History

"Butter Scotch Pie" is one of the recipes Martha McCulloch-Williams credits to a named contributor — the 1913 book heads it "(Leslie Fox.)" Two egg yolks are beaten light with a scant cup of dark brown sugar, a tablespoonful of creamed butter and two tablespoonfuls of flour, mixed smooth, then a cup of rich milk is added gradually and the whole cooked thick in a double boiler. Cooled and flavoured with vanilla, it is poured into rich crusts already well baked, covered with a meringue made from the whites, and set in the oven to harden.

The historical record does not document a specific earlier origin for this particular pie.

The book credits many of its recipes to named women — Leslie Fox appears twice, alongside Betsy Vaughn, Aunt Polly Rives and Dorothy Dix. That makes a contrast worth noting: the Black cook who taught the author her kitchen is credited with five recipes and is never named, appearing only by a household role-title.

McCulloch-Williams was a white writer born near Clarksville, Tennessee, who grew up on a plantation before the Civil War; the book's dedication is "to our Mammys," and its affection for that world goes unexamined in it.

Ingredients

• 2 egg yolks
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 tablespoonful butter
• 2 tablespoonfuls flour
• 1 cup milk
• vanilla
• pie crust
• 2 egg whites

Instructions

1. Beat light two egg-yolks with one scant cup dark brown sugar, one tablespoonful creamed butter, and two tablespoonfuls flour.
2. Mix smooth, then add gradually one cup rich milk.
3. Put in a double boiler and cook until thick.
4. Let cool, then flavor with vanilla.
5. Pour into rich crusts, previously well-baked.
6. Cover with meringue made from the egg-whites, set in the oven to harden, and serve hot or cold.