Chris Taylor and Paul Arguin wrote the book on pie—literally. The Atlanta-based scientists-turned-bakers’ 2019 cookbook The New Pie: Modern Techniques for the Classic American Dessert spins traditional Southern desserts into innovative iterations such as a Thanksgiving pumpkin pie topped with pecan pie gravy and a strawberry margarita pie.
Two years after the publication of their book, the duo hasn’t slowed down. This chess pie, shared exclusively with Garden & Gun, is a showstopper. Taking the flavor combination from a cookie recipe (the couple is working on their next book, which focuses on cookies, due out next spring), they tweaked and tasted until hitting the right note. “The combination of maple and chipotle peppers is an unexpected blend, but they really do work so well together,” Arguin says. “The peppers are not fiery hot—more like smoking embers providing just a late tingle on the tongue after the warm flavors of brown butter and maple in this rich corn custard.”
After finalizing the pie recipe to share with us, the couple cut into a slice. “We forgot how good it was,” Arguin says. “To be honest, we had a brief discussion about quickly making a different pie and saving this recipe for a competition. But we’re happy to share with you the pie that could have been used to win our second National Pie Championship!”
