Betty Crocker’s Butterscotch Pie
Cooking my way through my grandma’s 1950 cookbook.
There are some vintage recipes that don’t really hold up to the test of time, but there are others that are timeless. And this is definitely one of them. Pie is pretty much always great, no matter the kind of pie, but a butterscotch pie sounded absolutely dreamy.
This recipe comes from my copy of Betty Crocker’s Picture Cookbook, which was my grandma’s, and then my mom’s, and now mine. It’s one of my prized possessions and it holds an esteemed place of honor in my kitchen. (Highest shelf, top right, next to a portrait of Julia Child.) It’s the ninth printing of the 1950 edition and definitely shows some wear and tear but that’s just because it’s been well-loved and well-used — those tatters are well-earned. After years of only turning to the drop cookie page, I decided it was high time to start cooking my way through it.
There are so many vintage gems in this book — and so many that my grandmother probably loved — that I felt like I should probably take some time to discover them. So I’m taking you along with me for the great Betty Crocker Cookbook Cookthrough. And today we’re working on the Pie chapter!
This pie falls into the “Cream, Fluff” category, though it really is more of a custard. Semantics. The inscription describes it as “Glossy smooth… with the true butterscotchy flavor.” Sounds good to me!
I was a little confused by the instructions on this one, and honestly a little daunted by making a butterscotch custard from scratch. But usually the best thing to do when you’re unsure if you’ll succeed at something is just to try anyway, and that’s just what I did.
For this you want to blind bake your pie crust and then you’re basically cooking the filling on the stovetop and pouring it into the crust before chilling it to set. Easy enough, on the whole.
The instructions say to melt butter and brown sugar in a skillet and then boil it until foamy, but it wasn’t exactly clear to me if that meant to boil those two ingredients before adding the water OR to add the water and boil that until foamy. My butter and brown sugar never really got foamy, so eventually I opted to add the water anyway. That completes the first major step.
Then, the recipe asks you to combine cornstarch, flour, and milk in a separate saucepan and then you add the brown sugar/butter mixture to that. From there you temper some egg yolks before whisking them into the mixture and then set it back on the stove long enough for it to thicken. It’s not a complicated process, but the way it was written out made me second guess myself a few times.
There’s no other baking to do, just chill the pie, and top it with whipped cream!
And the result? A truly delicious pie. Soft and custardy with a true butterscotch flavor, just like Betty said. It got me thinking, we really don’t see enough butterscotch these days.
Betty Crocker's Butterscotch Pie
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 9-inch pie crust
Preparation
- Blind bake your pie crust.
- In a skillet over low heat, melt the butter. Once butter is golden brown, add brown sugar.
- Boil until foamy, stirring constantly, and stir in 1 cup boiling water. Remove from heat.
- In a saucepan, mix together cornstarch, flour, and salt. Gradually stir in milk. Stir in brown sugar mixture.
- Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is boiling. Let boil 1 minute.
- Remove from heat and stir a little of the mixture into the egg yolks. Whisk egg yolk mixture into brown sugar mixture.
- Boil 1 minute longer, then remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
- Cool, stirring occasionally, then pour into baked pie shell. Chill until set.
- Top with whipped cream or meringue and serve cold. Enjoy!
- If using meringue, pie doesn't need to be chilled. Just cool at room temperature for 2 hours instead.
Recipe from Betty Crocker's Picture Cookbook, 1950 Edition.