Lisa Donovan is the head pastry chef at Husk in Nashville. We noticed her making buttermilk chess pies on Season 2 of Mind of a Chef. She says that chess pie is great on its own, but also a perfect canvas for flavors.
A recipe for Lisa’s Buttermilk Chess Pie is on the Good Food Blog.
Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell, aka The Beekman Boys, suggest adding fresh sweet corn to a custard pie. Depending on how much sugar you add, you can serve it as a sidedish or as dessert.