Old Fashioned Molasses Pie

Old Fashioned Molasses Pie – a simple PA Dutch pie.  Similar to a shoofly pie – but different.  Chewy, sweet, unique – delicious!  Vegan friendly, too!

Just to prevent any confusion – I will start this off by letting everyone know that this is not a shoofly pie.  Though the ingredients are very similar, the process is a bit different.

With this Molasses Pie, you will mix up all the filling ingredients.  A shoofly pie is simply- yet cleverly – layered.  Doesn’t sound like it would make a big difference but it absolutely does.

Which gets me thinking – how in the world have I not shared my shoofly pie recipe yet?  Coming straight outta Lancaster, you’d think it was one of the first recipes I would have shared.  Guess I know what’s on my baking to do list.

So I’m on a bit of a molasses kick.  I started off by baking this Pumpkin Molasses Bread and got into a feeding frenzy for the stuff.  I almost forgot how much I enjoy the flavor of molasses – it’s sweet, complex, almost earthy flavor.  The key to achieving the best results with molasses is using it in moderation.  Too much molasses is not a good thing – it’s very overpowering and will absolutely ruin your baked goods.  Folks in my neck of the woods have a tendency to get a bit heavy handed with it.

Funny enough, this recipe came from a box of junk I bought at a local auction for 50 cents.  In the box was a tea pot, a bunch of over used take out containers, a ziploc bag full of yard sale price stickers, a few cool antique bottles and an assortment of random books – mostly romance and 80’s cookbooks.  Anyhow, I went thru this box a few weeks ago.  Besides the antique bottles – everything was getting trashed or donated. I skimmed thru the horrific 80’s “health food” cookbooks, and out dropped a few handwritten recipe cards.  Molasses pie was the gem.

Molasses pie.  I couldn’t even member the last time I had a piece of it.  10, maybe 15 years.  Wow.  This recipe made me remember how much I love Molasses pie, the pie that could have gotten lost forever from me.

This is a ridiculously quick and simple pie to make.  Use any butter substitute and it’s vegan.  How’s that for impressive!?

This pie turns out a bit fluffy cake like yet chewy.  My daughter described it as a chewy cake inside a pie crust.  The flavor can be best described as similar to a shoofly pie.  If you’ve never had a shoofly pie, then I’ll have to say it’s in a flavor profile all of it’s own.  You definitely taste the molasses, but it’s not in your face molasses.  Perfect amount of chewy sweet goodness.  Consider it a must try.  As simple as it is to make, it’s a must try asap.

I hope you enjoy this Old Fashioned Molasses Pie.  It’s unique and delicious and very well could become a new family favorite.

Thanks for stopping by and Happy Baking!

-Amanda-

Old Fashioned Molasses Pie

Amanda

Molasses Pie - a not as well known PA Dutch pie. Chewy, sweet, unique - delicious!

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Prep Time 15 mins

Cook Time 25 mins

Total Time 40 mins

Course baked goods

Cuisine American, PA Dutch, Pennsylvania Dutch

Servings 6 -8 slices

Ingredients

  

• 1 prepared 9" pie crust
• 3/4 cup flour heaping
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoon butter or butter substitute for vegans
• 1/4 cup molasses unsulphured
• 1/4 cup boiling water
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350°
• Combine flour and sugar in a mixing bowl.
• Using a pastry blender, cut in butter/butter substitute until mixture is fine crumbed.
• Pour molasses in a separate mixing bowl.
• In a small saucepan, bring water to a boil.
• Add 1/4 cup boiling water and baking soda to molasses.
• Stir until mixture is foamy/frothy and rises.
• Pour molasses mixture into pie crust/tin.
• Sprinkle the flour mixture over molasses, stirring it in until combined.
• Even out top of pie.
• Just to prevent a mess - place pie tin on a cookie sheet - this pie can bake/spill over.
• Bake for about 25 minutes. Pie will rise and then start to settle.
• Cool on wire rack. We enjoy this perfectly plain, but some walnuts or pecans would compliment this nicely. Enjoy 🙂

Keyword molasses, molasses desserts, molasses pie, shoofly pie