Shoofly Pie
By Emily Carter ·
Published
Quick answer
Line a pie plate with crust, stir molasses with hot water and baking soda, pour it in, then cover with a buttery flour and brown sugar crumb. Bake until the filling is just set with a slight jiggle, cool completely, and slice. Makes 1 pie serving 8.
Shoofly Pie is Pennsylvania Dutch baking at its sweetest and simplest. Dark molasses, hot water and egg poured into a flaky crust, covered with buttery brown sugar crumbs, baked until the bottom stays gooey and the top turns crunchy. It is the pie that came from pantry staples and stayed because nothing else tastes quite like it.
Why you’ll love it
- Pantry pie: molasses, flour, sugar and butter are the whole list.
- Gooey bottom, crunchy crumb top, two textures in every bite.
- Deep, sticky, spiced flavor that is unlike any other pie.
- Made ahead friendly, it slices best the day after baking.
- Perfect with coffee, or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Ingredient notes
Dark molasses: the soul of the pie. It must be dark, not light, for the deep sticky flavor and dark color. Light molasses makes a pale pie that tastes like syrup.
Baking soda and boiling water: dissolved together, they foam and lighten the molasses so the filling stays gooey instead of dense. Do not skip this step.
Brown sugar crumbs: flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and cold butter, cut into big chunks. Big crumbs stay crunchy on top, while fine crumbs melt away.
Pie crust: flaky and sturdy enough to hold a wet filling. A store bought crust works fine here, since the filling and crumbs are the stars.
Egg: just one, beaten into the filling. It helps the molasses set into a sliceable layer without turning the pie cakey.
The big crumbs and slight jiggle rule that makes or breaks it
Two rules decide shoofly pie, and both are about texture. First, the crumbs must be big. Pea sized chunks and larger stay distinct and crunchy on top, while fine sandy crumbs dissolve into the filling and disappear. Second, pull the pie while the center still jiggles slightly. A pie that looks fully firm in the oven will be dry on the plate, while a slightly jiggly pie sets into a gooey wet bottom layer as it cools. Big crumbs, slight jiggle, full cool, and the pie is perfect.
Variations
- Dry bottom shoofly pie: stir half the crumbs into the filling instead of layering them, for a more cake like pie all the way through.
- Ginger shoofly pie: add 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger to the crumbs for a warm spiced note.
- Walnut shoofly pie: scatter 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts over the crumb topping before baking for extra crunch.
- Shoofly pie with ice cream: serve warm slices with vanilla ice cream, letting the cold cream melt into the gooey molasses layer.
What we learned testing it
- Dark molasses beat light molasses clearly. The light batch tasted like sweet syrup, while the dark batch tasted deep, sticky and unmistakably like shoofly pie.
- Big crumbs beat fine crumbs in the side by side test. The fine crumb batch melted into the filling, while the big crumb batch stayed crunchy on top.
- Cooling completely beat slicing warm. The warm slices collapsed and ran, while the cooled slices held clean edges with a gooey center.
Read how we test recipes.
Shoofly Pie
Makes 1 9 inch pie · 2 hr 5 min total · Medium
Ingredients
Equipment
9 inch pie plate · Large mixing bowl · Small saucepan · Whisk · Pastry cutter or fork
Instructions
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Make the buttery crumbs
Whisk the flour, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon in a bowl. Cut in the cold butter with a pastry cutter or fork until you have pea sized crumbs and larger chunks. Set aside 1 cup of crumbs for layering, and keep the rest for the top.
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Mix the molasses filling
Stir the baking soda into the boiling water until dissolved and foamy. Whisk in the molasses and the beaten egg until smooth. The mixture will look thin and dark, which is exactly right for a gooey wet bottom layer.
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Layer crumbs and filling in the crust
Fit the pie crust into the pie plate and crimp the edge. Sprinkle the reserved 1 cup of crumbs over the bottom of the crust, pour in the molasses filling, then scatter the remaining crumbs generously over the top.
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Bake until just set and cool completely
Bake at 375 F for 40 to 45 minutes, until the top is golden and the center jiggles only slightly. Cool completely on a rack, at least 1 hour, so the filling sets, then slice into wedges and serve at room temperature.
Notes
- Use dark molasses, not light. Light molasses makes a pale, mild pie, while dark molasses gives the deep sticky flavor this pie is known for.
- Dissolve the baking soda in the hot water first. It foams up and lightens the filling, which is what keeps a molasses pie from turning into a brick.
- Make big crumbs, not sand. Pea sized and larger crumbs stay distinct on top instead of melting into the filling.
- Pull the pie when the center still jiggles slightly. It sets as it cools, and a fully firm pie in the oven turns dry on the plate.
- Cool completely before slicing. Warm shoofly pie runs everywhere, while cooled pie slices into clean sticky wedges.
Nutrition per serving
Nutrition information is being calculated.
Substitutions
- Dark molasses
- Use a mix of half dark molasses and half maple syrup if dark molasses is hard to find. The flavor turns lighter but stays rich.
- Unbaked pie crust
- Use a store bought refrigerated crust, fitted into the pie plate and crimped at the edge, for a faster version.
- Brown sugar
- Use granulated sugar with a tablespoon of molasses mixed in, for crumbs that taste almost the same.
Storage and make-ahead
Store shoofly pie covered at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the fridge for up to 5 days. Serve fridge cold slices at room temperature by letting them sit out for 30 minutes. Warm slices gently in a 300 F oven for 10 minutes if you like.
Frequently asked questions
What is shoofly pie?
Shoofly pie is a Pennsylvania Dutch classic made from molasses, hot water, baking soda and egg in a pie crust, topped with buttery crumbs. It is sweet, sticky and deeply flavored, with a gooey bottom layer and a crunchy crumb top.
What is the difference between wet bottom and dry bottom shoofly pie?
Wet bottom shoofly pie has a gooey molasses layer at the bottom with crumbs on top, while dry bottom pie has the crumbs mixed through so the whole filling is more cake like. This recipe makes a wet bottom pie, the most popular version.
Why is it called shoofly pie?
The name comes from the flies that were said to hover over the sweet molasses filling as it cooled on windowsills. Shoo fly was the cook's answer, and the name stuck to the pie.
Why is my shoofly pie filling runny?
It was probably sliced warm, or pulled from the oven too soon. Let the pie cool completely so the filling sets, and bake until the center jiggles only slightly, not like liquid.
Can I make shoofly pie ahead of time?
Yes, it keeps beautifully. Bake it a day ahead, cool it completely, and keep it covered at room temperature. Serve it the next day at room temperature with coffee or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
