Tis the season for pies, pies … and more pies. At Buttermilk Sky Pie Shop, you can enjoy all the luscious, buttery goodness without lifting a finger in the kitchen. We caught up with Kimberly Murray, owner of the Colleyville location, to talk about the season's favorite sweet just before you start planning your holiday gatherings.
How did the bakery get its name?
Buttermilk Sky derived its name from an old Southern expression for a sky that has the appearance of clabbered buttermilk. Since we use buttermilk in our recipes and are known for being the taste of Southern tradition, our founders thought it was fitting.
What's the secret to the pies at Buttermilk Sky? Our pies are baked from family recipes that we hope evoke memories of special times spent with friends and family. We bake our made-from-scratch pies fresh every day and strive to make our guests feel as though they are entering the home of a friend or family member.
What selections are you excited to roll out for the holidays? For Thanksgiving, we’re excited to offer our Spiced Pumpkin Pie. We start with our buttery shortbread crust, add our pumpkin filling, top with brown sugar crumble and scatter a few shortbread leaves on top to make the pie as pretty as it is delicious. We’re also eager for our December Pie It Forward flavor, Peppermint Brownie—a rich, fudgy brownie recipe garnished with a sprinkle of crumbled candy canes. Each month, we partner with a local organization and offer a special pie flavor, our Pie It Forward, to help raise money and awareness for organizations that make a difference in our communities.
Where do you get inspiration for new pie recipes? We love to hear what flavors our guests are interested in! And we look forward to sharing one of our newest daring combinations—Maple Chess Pie with brown sugar bacon topping—on Fridays and Saturdays in November and December.
Have you tried any flavor combinations that just didn't work?There was a peppermint eggnog pie that wasn’t a great seller and was put to rest in the flavor graveyard.
Do you take custom requests for pies?
For special events, we can bake off-season flavors if the minimum quantity is met and the ingredients are available. Our first wedding order included our cherry pie that was off-season at the time, but we were thrilled to fulfill that request.
Give us an idea of pie sales on a typical week and your projections for Thanksgiving week.
During a typical week, we sell 2,000 to 3,000 of our four-inch and nine-inch pies. During Thanksgiving week, we expect to double this amount.
Who makes your pies?
In addition to our super-strong pie-crust-pressing crew, we have fabulous bakers who come in before sunrise to bake the pies every morning and prepare the fillings for the next day. As we expect Thanksgiving week to be extremely busy, all four owners will be helping out in the shop that week. We'll also welcome back several college students who will be returning to the area for the holidays.
Which part of the pie is most complicated to make? Each step in the process has its own challenges. The crust is physically challenging because each crust is pressed by hand and requires a lot of strength along with the ability to sculpt a pretty crimp along the edge of the crust. Many of our fillings are challenging due to constant stirring on the cooktop for long periods of time so there aren’t any lumps and the filling doesn’t burn. An artistic and delicate hand is required for the toppings because we eat with our eyes first!
What's your personal favorite pie flavor?
Our signature flavor, the I-40 Pie. Named after a highway in Tennessee, it's a pecan pie with chocolate chips and coconut in our shortbread crust. Warm it up a bit so the chocolate chips are gooey, add a cup of hot coffee, and I'm a happy camper.
Are you a filling or a crust person? Or both?
Crust. All day, every day, crust! Our Thumbprint Cookies are made with our shortbread crust dough, and it takes incredible willpower for me keep from popping one in my mouth every time I walk by.
What do you love about making pies and special treats?It is such a joy to provide sweet treats that make so many people happy. There is no place I would rather be.