A super popular traditional Amish and Pennsylvania Dutch dish is lovingly named shoefly pie. It's a dense, sugary treat that has been compared to cake baked inside a pie shell because of how sweet it is. But there's a reason this magnificence, heavy on the molasses, is frequently a source of pride: Once you taste it, you'll see why this decadent pie has been a favorite since it was first created in the 1880s.

Shoofly piePhoto byRichelleg

Shoofly pie: what is it?

Shoeofly pie is what many would call pecan pie without the nuts. There are conjectures that the name originates from actually "shooing" flies away from the sticky ingredients of the pie. However, it's more likely that Shoofly the Boxing Mule, a well-known circus animal from the 19th century, inspired the pie's name. The mule's notoriety gave rise to what are now known as brand collabs: two of the ingredients, Shoofly flour and Shoofly molasses, bore the mule's name. The star of the pie's original recipe was the Shoofly molasses.

Ingredients List:

• Single-crust pie dough: We use an Amish traditional crust made of flour, salt, and the coldest butter possible to ensure flakiness, along with a small amount of ice water to bring everything together. You can also just buy one.
• Packed brown sugar: Compared to regular white sugar, the deep color of brown sugar adds richness to the pie's gooey center.
• Molasses: This is the part of the pie where you can get really fancy. Pick a molasses with personality, such as sulfured, light, or black strap molasses.

Crust Hints

• Unroll/roll out your pie crust. To fit a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate, lay out the pie dough on a floured surface to form a 13- or 14-inch circle.
• The dough should be gently laid into the pie dish; be cautious not to strain it, or it will shrink back. Cut and round the edge, and crimp. Put in the refrigerator for a minimum of half an hour.
• Editor's Tip: Gently and loosely shape your dough around a floured rolling pin to fit it into the pie dish. Raise your hand above the pie plate, then slowly and gently glide your hand across the pie plate to release the dough from the pin.

Shoofly piePhoto byRichelleg

Filling

Editor's Tip: Having two individuals is useful for this step; one may hold the mixture and stir while the other carefully drizzles in the boiling water. If you are not with anybody else, you can alternatively temper the egg separately by beating it in another basin and slowly pouring in boiling water.

Bake the pie crust beforehand

Take the crust out of the fridge. Make a long piece of foil and wrap it around the pie's edge. We refer to this as a pie shield.

Add dry beans, or pie weights to the inside of the pie. Bake for fifteen minutes on the lower rack of the oven, so set the crust up for success.

Glaze the pie crust

Glaze the pie crust with egg yolk before filling. A light covering is what you want, but make sure to get into all the nooks and crannies.

Bake for five more minutes.

Place the crust on a wire rack to cool.

Lower the oven's temperature to 350°.

Prepare the topping

For the topping, combine the flour, baking soda, brown sugar, and salt in a bowl. Add the chilled butter and cut until crumbly.

Editor's Tip: The topping mixture should just hold together when squeezed

Add filling

Fill the crust with the filling. Once the crust has cooled, pour the filling into it and equally distribute the topping over it.

Cookin it

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the filling is firm and browned. Place on a wire rack to cool. Keep refrigerated.

Shoofly Pie Variations

Make the pie into cupcakes: These shoofly cupcakes are a great way to share the love because they're simple to transport and share, allowing everyone to indulge in a little sweetness.

Use store-bought crust: Using store-bought crust in a pinch is perfectly acceptable. Our Test Kitchen has selected the top ready-made pie crusts for you to try.

Striped shoofly piePhoto byRichelleg

What distinguishes a dry-bottom pie from a wet-bottom Shoofly pie?

This is our recipe for a shoofly pie with a wet bottom. The crust keeps the syrupy consistency cohesive. However, the crumbly, dry pie filling becomes more cake-like in texture and can be prepared without a crust. By incorporating the crumb tops into the filling prior to baking, you can prevent a dry-bottom pie.

What flavor is Shoofly Pie?

Shoofly pie is extremely sweet, as one might assume from the presence of brown sugar, molasses, and butter in the ingredient list. Even though the straightforward crust will lessen the sweetness in every bite, one pie slice should be more than enough to satisfy your sweet desire for several days. It has a unique flavor that you may taste at Christmastime in traditional gingerbread cake and gingerbread cookies because of the molasses.

Shoofly Pie Recipe

Ingredients

• Pie dough for a single crust
• Half a cup of brown sugar
• Half a cup of molasses
• One big egg
• One and a half- teaspoons of regular flour
• One-half teaspoon baking soda
• One cup of boiling water
• One large egg yolk, gently whisked

TOPPING

• 1/2 cup of flour for all purposes
• 3/4 cup of brown sugar
• 3/4 teaspoons of baking soda
• Pinch of salt
• Six tablespoons of cold, diced butter

Amish shoofly piePhoto byRichelleg

Directions:

• Roll out the dough on a floured board to fit a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate. Trim and make a fluted edge. For at least half an hour, refrigerate.
• In the meantime, heat the oven to 425°. Combine brown sugar, molasses, egg, flour, and baking soda to make the filling. Stir in boiling water gradually and let cool fully. Stir in the boiling water very slowly, so as not to cause curdling of the egg. Let this mixture cool.
• Put a crust shield of tin foil around the edge of your crust. Stuff with dry beans or pie weights. Bake for fifteen minutes on a lower oven rack. Remove beans or weights, and brush egg yolk over the crust.
• Bake for five minutes.
• On a wire rack, cool.
• Drop the oven temperature to 350°.
• Mix the first four topping ingredients together in a separate bowl. Add butter and cut until crumbly.
• Fill the crust with filling; top with topping.
• Again, wrap the pie's edge in foil.
• Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until filling is firm and golden brown. On a wire rack, cool. Keep the leftovers refrigerated.