History

Walter and Leaudra Kern, with their son George, developed the chocolate-and-walnut pie at the Melrose Inn in Prospect, Kentucky in 1954 as the restaurant's signature dessert. The family pulled the name out of a hat: Derby-Pie won. After leaving the Melrose Inn in 1960 the Kerns continued making the pie and registered Derby-Pie as a federal trademark in 1969, defending it with more than 25 lawsuits over the years. The pie is now made only by Kern's Kitchen with the secret recipe known to a small group of family members. Louisville bakeries sell look-alike chocolate-walnut pies as 'May Day Pie' or 'Triple Crown Pie'; Plehn's Bakery on Shelbyville Road runs a Triple Crown Pie each Derby season.

Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy, Egg, Tree nuts

Make it at home

Yield Serves 8 (chocolate-walnut pie, not trademarked Derby-Pie)Hands-on 25 minTotal 1 hr 30 minDifficulty Intermediate

Ingredients

  • 1 store-bought or homemade 23cm pie crust, unbaked
  • 100g unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
  • 180g granulated sugar
  • 60g plain flour
  • 2 large eggs, beaten
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 150g chopped English walnuts
  • 150g semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 30ml Kentucky bourbon (optional)

Method

  1. Heat oven to 175C. Place the unbaked pie crust in a 23cm pie dish.
  2. Whisk melted butter, sugar and flour together until smooth.
  3. Whisk in the beaten eggs, vanilla and bourbon if using.
  4. Stir in the walnuts and chocolate chips.
  5. Pour the filling into the pie crust, spreading the walnuts and chocolate evenly.
  6. Bake 50 to 55 minutes until the top is golden brown and the centre is set.
  7. Cool completely, at least 1 hour, before slicing. The pie sets fully as it cools.

Tip from the editors. Use English walnuts (not pecans) and semi-sweet chocolate chips. Don't trademark-call this Derby-Pie; the Kern family has been litigious. Locals call it 'chocolate-walnut pie'.

This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.

Where to eat derby pie

Derby Pie in Louisville

Lobby Bar at the Brown Hotel ★ 4.4

Hotel bar, bourbon

Lobby Bar at the Brown Hotel in Louisville pours mint juleps and bourbon flights inside the lobby where the Hot Brown sandwich was invented in 1926, the city's hotel-bar classic.

Signature drink: Mint Julep, bourbon flights

Food: Hot Brown and small plates

Tip: Walk-in. The bar serves the Hot Brown in the evening alongside the bourbon list.

335 West Broadway, Louisville, KY 40202

More cities are in research. Want derby pie covered somewhere specific? Tell us where you want to eat.

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