Pies
If you've followed this for a while, you're probably aware that I love pies. If you do, too, today's post is sure to please. Check out the Harvest Walnut Pumpkin Pie, the Chocolate Chess Pie, and the rest of today's yumminess. Enjoy!
CRANBERRY PIE
My dad loved to cook, and usually came up with decent recipes. He sent this one in a letter dated “18 No 79”. He wrote, “Here is a recipe for a pie. 1st the way it was in the paper and the way I made it.” (It can be found in my e-cookbook Off the Wall Cooking.)
Note: The pie can be made with either one crust (lower photo) or two (top photo). My dad's original recipe was with one crust, but either way is great. If you make it with two crusts, place foil over the top for the first 10 - 15 minutes, then remove.
Ingredients
2 T cornstarch
1 C sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1-1/4 C hot water
1 C raisins
1 T butter
2 C cranberries
Pie crust
Directions
Blend 1st four ingredients & cook in double boiler until thick. Add next 3 ingredients & cook 10 minutes. Put in pie shell & bake at 450 degrees for 20-30 minutes, covering pie with foil for the first 10-15 minutes. (Crust can be any kind you want, whether double crust or simply a bottom crust.)
VARIATION
Ingredients
2 Tbls cornstarch
3/4 C honey + 1/4 C molasses
1/4 tsp. salt
1-1/4 C hot water
1 C raisins
1 T margarine
1-1/2 C cranberries + 1 C canned cranberries (kind with berries in sauce)
Pie crust
Directions
Make as above.
CRANBERRY-LIME PIE
This is from Ann Redding & Matt Danzer from the November 2016 issue of Bon Appetit. The recipe begins, "The spirit of a Key lime pie in the guise of a luscious cranberry curd. The contrast between the snappy press-in crust and the tart filling in this recipe is pure genius." Makes 8 servings.
To view this online, go to https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/cranberry-lime-pie.
Ingredients
Crust
4 ounces gingersnap cookies (about 16 if using Nabisco)
1 cup pecans
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
Filling and Assembly
1 12-ounce package fresh (or frozen, thawed) cranberries, plus 4 ounces (about 1-1/4 cups) for serving
2-1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided
3 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest, divided
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
Pinch of kosher salt
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into pieces
Whipped cream (for serving)
Preparation
Crust
Preheat oven to 350°. Pulse cookies in a food processor until very finely ground (you should have about 1 cup). Add pecans; pulse until finely ground. Add butter and brown sugar; pulse to combine. Transfer to a deep 9" pie dish. Using a measuring cup, press firmly onto bottom and up sides of dish. Bake until firm and slightly darkened in color, 10–15 minutes. If crust slides down sides, gently press back up. Let cool.
Do Ahead: Crust can be baked 1 day ahead. Store tightly wrapped at room temperature.
Filling and Assembly
Bring 12 oz. cranberries, 1 cup granulated sugar, and 1/4 cup water to a boil in a large saucepan over medium-high. Reduce heat; simmer until cranberries burst and most of the liquid evaporates, 12–15 minutes. Let cool. Purée in a blender until very smooth.
Cook purée, eggs, egg yolks, lemon zest, lime juice, salt, 1/2 cup sugar, and 1 tsp. lime zest in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (bowl should not touch water), stirring with a rubber spatula and scraping down sides of bowl often, until curd thickens and coats spatula, 8–10 minutes. Let cool until just warm.
Using an electric mixer on medium-high, beat curd, adding butter a piece at a time and incorporating after each addition, until curd looks lighter in color and texture, about 5 minutes. Scrape into crust and chill until firm, about 2 hours.
Bring 1/2 cup granulated sugar and 1/2 cup water to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add remaining 4 oz. cranberries and cook until barely starting to soften, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer cranberries to a wire rack set inside a rimmed baking sheet. Chill until no longer sticky, 20–30 minutes.
Toss remaining 1/2 cup granulated sugar and 1 tsp. lime zest in a small bowl. Toss cranberries in lime sugar. Top pie with cranberries; serve with whipped cream.
Do Ahead: Pie (without topping) can be made 2 days ahead. Cover once filling is firm and keep chilled. Let sit at room temperature 2 hours before serving.
BA'S BEST KEY LIME PIE
This is from Alison Roman on the Bon Appetit site. The recipe begins, "A standout Key lime pie recipe is all about striking balance: The crunch of the homemade graham cracker crust should play off a creamy custard pie filling that’s both sweet and tangy. This recipe delivers just that.
"It comes down to a few ingredients and techniques: To ensure it stays crisp, the crust is blind baked, meaning it’s popped in the oven for a bit before the Key lime filling is added. You can complete this step up to two days in advance or use the baking time to make the custard. Using coconut oil in place of some of the melted butter in the pie crust offers hints of the tropics. Fresh Key limes, which are named for the Florida Keys, can be hard to track down, but they are worth seeking out for their floral finish. If they’re not available in your local market, you can snag a bag online via sites like Etsy and Wee!, or opt for Persian limes (the variety available at most grocery stores), which are larger and more tart. Just make sure to stick with fresh lime juice—shelf-stable, bottled versions aren’t reliable. Sweetened condensed milk supplies the sugar in the filling and also gives this pie its concentrated creaminess.
"For the finish, we eschewed meringue—which can sometimes be a little too cloying—in favor of whipped cream cut with yogurt for one last hit of tang."
Makes one 9" pie
To view this online, go to https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/bas-best-key-lime-pie.
Editor’s note: This recipe was originally published in April 2015.
Ingredients
Crust
14 graham crackers (about 1-1/2 sleeves)
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
4 tablespoons virgin coconut oil, melted
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Filling and assembly
4 large egg yolks
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest, plus more for garnish
3/4 cup fresh key lime (or regular lime) juice
Pinch of kosher salt
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup full-fat Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon dark rum (optional)
Preparation
Crust
Preheat oven to 325°. Using your hands, crush graham crackers in a large bowl until coarsely ground (you could do this in a food processor if you’d like, just be sure not to process too finely; you want some texture in the larger pieces). Add butter, coconut oil, sugar, and salt and mix until well blended (mixture will resemble wet sand). Transfer to a 9" pie dish. Using your fingers and the underside of a flat measuring cup, press mixture evenly into bottom and up sides of dish. Bake crust, rotating once halfway through, until golden brown on top and crumbs are set, 12–15 minutes. Let cool.
Filling and Assembly
Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat egg yolks and condensed milk in a large bowl until paler and almost doubled in volume, about 5 minutes. Whisk in 2 tsp. lime zest, lime juice, and salt. Pour into cooled crust. Bake pie until filling is starting to slightly puff around the edges and center jiggles slightly, 15–20 minutes. Let cool completely.
Whip cream and powdered sugar in a large bowl until stiff peaks form. Gently whisk in yogurt and rum, if using. Dollop onto cooled pie, creating dramatic peaks and valleys with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Garnish with lime zest.
Do Ahead: Crust can be baked 2 days ahead; pie without whipped topping can be made 2 days ahead; pie can be assembled (with topping) 4 hours ahead.
APPLE PIE
I got the original recipe for this from an old Betty Crocker Cookbook, years ago. I've tweaked the recipe a bit; the original called for butter, which mine doesn't, while I add apple cider or apple juice, which isn't in the original. I've also added a few things here and there. Here's my weaked version apple pie.
Ingredients
Crust for a 9-inch two-crust pie
3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour (do not use self-rising flour, but if you must use it, omit salt)
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch of ground cloves
dash salt
6 to 7 cups apples (6 to 8 apples), peeled and thinly sliced
1/4 cup apple cider or apple juice
Directions
Heat oven to 425 degrees. Prepare crust and line pie pan with bottom crust.
Placed cut up apples in large bowl. Add sugar, flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt and (lastly) apple cider or juice. Mix apples and additions with hands, then pour apples and additions into crust-lined pie pan.
Cover with top crust, cut slits into top crust, then seal edges of crusts. (Note: You can replace top crust with a lattice crust.) Cover top of pie with aluminum foil to prevent excess browning; remove foil last 15 minutes of baking.
Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until crust is brown and juice begins to bubble through slits in crust.
CHOCOLATE CHESS PIE
This is from Vaughn Vreeland in The New York Times cooking enewsletter. For this yumminess, Vaughn wrote, "Classic buttermilk chess pie is quintessential in many Southern homes and its chocolate counterpart is all the more decadent. You can use store-bought pie dough or take the homemade route because the true star of this dessert is its luxurious chocolate filling, slightly firmer than custard but fudgier than a brownie. With just a few staple ingredients, this supremely easy filling requires less than 10 minutes of active time and minimal effort, but yields big-time flavor. It’s also highly adaptable: try adding a tablespoon of bourbon or a couple teaspoons of espresso powder with the cocoa powder. A velvety slice of this chocolate chess pie goes best with a dollop of whipped cream on top, and some bourbon, neat, alongside."
Prep Time: 10 minutes; Cook Time: About 2 hours, plus about 1 hour cooling; Total Time: 3 hours; Yield: 1 (9-inch) pie
To view this online, go to https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1024822-chocolate-chess-pie. Also, check out Melissa Clark's wonderful guide, "How to Make a Pie Crust". I reread it (yes, I've read this before), and learned a couple of things to make pie crusts just a tad better. (Thanks, Melissa!)
Ingredients
1 store-bought pie crust or 1 disk foolproof pie dough (1/2 batch)
All-purpose flour, if needed for rolling out dough
1/2 cup unsalted butter
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
Whipped cream (optional), for serving
Preparation
Step 1
If using store-bought pie crust, skip ahead to Step 2. If using homemade dough, let sit at room temperature for a couple minutes before rolling. On a lightly floured work surface, using a lightly floured rolling pin, beat the dough evenly across the surface, rotating it occasionally, to work it into a slightly flatter round. Add more flour to the surface, lightly flour the dough and roll it out, starting in the center and working outward, occasionally lifting it, giving it quarter-turns and adding more flour as needed to prevent sticking, until it forms an 11-inch circle. (If your dough cracks, just use your fingertips to adhere it together.)
Step 2
Fit the dough into a 9-inch pie plate, letting the dough slump into the plate, taking care not to stretch it further. Trim the overhang, if needed, so that you’re left with about 1/2-inch on all sides. Fold the overhang under itself, creating a thick ridge on the sides with two layers of pie dough, and crimp the ridge. Use a fork to poke holes on the bottom of the crust, and freeze for about 15 minutes, until firm.
Step 3
Meanwhile, arrange an oven rack in the center position and heat the oven to 425 degrees. Line the dough with aluminum foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes.
Step 4
Remove the foil and pie weights, lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue baking the crust until golden, 10 to 15 minutes.
Step 5
Cool completely on the baking sheet, at least 30 minutes.
Step 6
While the crust cools, melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Off heat, add the chocolate and whisk until combined, letting the residual heat melt it completely.
Step 7
In a medium bowl, whisk the sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt until pale yellow and considerably thicker, about 1 minute. Pour in the melted chocolate mixture and continue to whisk until no streaks remain. Add the cocoa powder and whisk until combined.
Step 8
Pour the chocolate mixture into the cooled crust and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the filling is slightly puffed and the center is set. Cool completely at room temperature, about 1 hour. (It may be tempting to cut into it warm, but the filling needs time to set up.) Serve with whipped cream, if desired.
HARVEST WALNUT PUMPKIN PIE
This comes from Allrecipes, and begins, "A walnut topping adds lovely crunch to this quick and easy spiced pumpkin pie with a hint of maple flavoring. Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator."
Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 45 minutes; Total Time: 1 hour; Servings: 8; Yield: 1 9-inch pie
To view this online, go to https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/268384/harvest-walnut-pumpkin-pie/.
Ingredients
1 (15 ounce) can plain pumpkin puree
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon maple-flavored extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust
Walnut Topping
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons butter, cubed
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
Combine pumpkin, condensed milk, eggs, maple extract, cinnamon, salt, ginger, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Mix well and pour into the graham cracker crust. Smooth the top with a spatula.
Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Continue baking until filling is set, about 30 minutes.
Prepare walnut topping while pie is baking. Mix brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon together in a bowl. Cut in butter with a fork until coarse crumbs form. Stir in walnuts.
Remove pie from the oven and cover evenly with the topping. Continue baking until topping is golden brown, about 10 minutes. Cool completely before slicing.
Cook's Note
Substitute an unbaked pie shell for the graham cracker crust if preferred.
CRANBERRY PIE
My dad loved to cook, and usually came up with decent recipes. He sent this one in a letter dated “18 No 79”. He wrote, “Here is a recipe for a pie. 1st the way it was in the paper and the way I made it.” (It can be found in my e-cookbook Off the Wall Cooking.)
Note: The pie can be made with either one crust (lower photo) or two (top photo). My dad's original recipe was with one crust, but either way is great. If you make it with two crusts, place foil over the top for the first 10 - 15 minutes, then remove.
Ingredients
2 T cornstarch
1 C sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1-1/4 C hot water
1 C raisins
1 T butter
2 C cranberries
Pie crust
Directions
Blend 1st four ingredients & cook in double boiler until thick. Add next 3 ingredients & cook 10 minutes. Put in pie shell & bake at 450 degrees for 20-30 minutes, covering pie with foil for the first 10-15 minutes. (Crust can be any kind you want, whether double crust or simply a bottom crust.)
VARIATION
Ingredients
2 Tbls cornstarch
3/4 C honey + 1/4 C molasses
1/4 tsp. salt
1-1/4 C hot water
1 C raisins
1 T margarine
1-1/2 C cranberries + 1 C canned cranberries (kind with berries in sauce)
Pie crust
Directions
Make as above.
CRANBERRY-LIME PIE
This is from Ann Redding & Matt Danzer from the November 2016 issue of Bon Appetit. The recipe begins, "The spirit of a Key lime pie in the guise of a luscious cranberry curd. The contrast between the snappy press-in crust and the tart filling in this recipe is pure genius." Makes 8 servings.
To view this online, go to https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/cranberry-lime-pie.
Ingredients
Crust
4 ounces gingersnap cookies (about 16 if using Nabisco)
1 cup pecans
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
Filling and Assembly
1 12-ounce package fresh (or frozen, thawed) cranberries, plus 4 ounces (about 1-1/4 cups) for serving
2-1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided
3 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest, divided
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
Pinch of kosher salt
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into pieces
Whipped cream (for serving)
Preparation
Crust
Preheat oven to 350°. Pulse cookies in a food processor until very finely ground (you should have about 1 cup). Add pecans; pulse until finely ground. Add butter and brown sugar; pulse to combine. Transfer to a deep 9" pie dish. Using a measuring cup, press firmly onto bottom and up sides of dish. Bake until firm and slightly darkened in color, 10–15 minutes. If crust slides down sides, gently press back up. Let cool.
Do Ahead: Crust can be baked 1 day ahead. Store tightly wrapped at room temperature.
Filling and Assembly
Bring 12 oz. cranberries, 1 cup granulated sugar, and 1/4 cup water to a boil in a large saucepan over medium-high. Reduce heat; simmer until cranberries burst and most of the liquid evaporates, 12–15 minutes. Let cool. Purée in a blender until very smooth.
Cook purée, eggs, egg yolks, lemon zest, lime juice, salt, 1/2 cup sugar, and 1 tsp. lime zest in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (bowl should not touch water), stirring with a rubber spatula and scraping down sides of bowl often, until curd thickens and coats spatula, 8–10 minutes. Let cool until just warm.
Using an electric mixer on medium-high, beat curd, adding butter a piece at a time and incorporating after each addition, until curd looks lighter in color and texture, about 5 minutes. Scrape into crust and chill until firm, about 2 hours.
Bring 1/2 cup granulated sugar and 1/2 cup water to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add remaining 4 oz. cranberries and cook until barely starting to soften, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer cranberries to a wire rack set inside a rimmed baking sheet. Chill until no longer sticky, 20–30 minutes.
Toss remaining 1/2 cup granulated sugar and 1 tsp. lime zest in a small bowl. Toss cranberries in lime sugar. Top pie with cranberries; serve with whipped cream.
Do Ahead: Pie (without topping) can be made 2 days ahead. Cover once filling is firm and keep chilled. Let sit at room temperature 2 hours before serving.
BA'S BEST KEY LIME PIE
This is from Alison Roman on the Bon Appetit site. The recipe begins, "A standout Key lime pie recipe is all about striking balance: The crunch of the homemade graham cracker crust should play off a creamy custard pie filling that’s both sweet and tangy. This recipe delivers just that.
"It comes down to a few ingredients and techniques: To ensure it stays crisp, the crust is blind baked, meaning it’s popped in the oven for a bit before the Key lime filling is added. You can complete this step up to two days in advance or use the baking time to make the custard. Using coconut oil in place of some of the melted butter in the pie crust offers hints of the tropics. Fresh Key limes, which are named for the Florida Keys, can be hard to track down, but they are worth seeking out for their floral finish. If they’re not available in your local market, you can snag a bag online via sites like Etsy and Wee!, or opt for Persian limes (the variety available at most grocery stores), which are larger and more tart. Just make sure to stick with fresh lime juice—shelf-stable, bottled versions aren’t reliable. Sweetened condensed milk supplies the sugar in the filling and also gives this pie its concentrated creaminess.
"For the finish, we eschewed meringue—which can sometimes be a little too cloying—in favor of whipped cream cut with yogurt for one last hit of tang."
Makes one 9" pie
To view this online, go to https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/bas-best-key-lime-pie.
Editor’s note: This recipe was originally published in April 2015.
Ingredients
Crust
14 graham crackers (about 1-1/2 sleeves)
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
4 tablespoons virgin coconut oil, melted
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Filling and assembly
4 large egg yolks
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest, plus more for garnish
3/4 cup fresh key lime (or regular lime) juice
Pinch of kosher salt
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup full-fat Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon dark rum (optional)
Preparation
Crust
Preheat oven to 325°. Using your hands, crush graham crackers in a large bowl until coarsely ground (you could do this in a food processor if you’d like, just be sure not to process too finely; you want some texture in the larger pieces). Add butter, coconut oil, sugar, and salt and mix until well blended (mixture will resemble wet sand). Transfer to a 9" pie dish. Using your fingers and the underside of a flat measuring cup, press mixture evenly into bottom and up sides of dish. Bake crust, rotating once halfway through, until golden brown on top and crumbs are set, 12–15 minutes. Let cool.
Filling and Assembly
Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat egg yolks and condensed milk in a large bowl until paler and almost doubled in volume, about 5 minutes. Whisk in 2 tsp. lime zest, lime juice, and salt. Pour into cooled crust. Bake pie until filling is starting to slightly puff around the edges and center jiggles slightly, 15–20 minutes. Let cool completely.
Whip cream and powdered sugar in a large bowl until stiff peaks form. Gently whisk in yogurt and rum, if using. Dollop onto cooled pie, creating dramatic peaks and valleys with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Garnish with lime zest.
Do Ahead: Crust can be baked 2 days ahead; pie without whipped topping can be made 2 days ahead; pie can be assembled (with topping) 4 hours ahead.
APPLE PIE
I got the original recipe for this from an old Betty Crocker Cookbook, years ago. I've tweaked the recipe a bit; the original called for butter, which mine doesn't, while I add apple cider or apple juice, which isn't in the original. I've also added a few things here and there. Here's my weaked version apple pie.
Ingredients
Crust for a 9-inch two-crust pie
3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour (do not use self-rising flour, but if you must use it, omit salt)
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch of ground cloves
dash salt
6 to 7 cups apples (6 to 8 apples), peeled and thinly sliced
1/4 cup apple cider or apple juice
Directions
Heat oven to 425 degrees. Prepare crust and line pie pan with bottom crust.
Placed cut up apples in large bowl. Add sugar, flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt and (lastly) apple cider or juice. Mix apples and additions with hands, then pour apples and additions into crust-lined pie pan.
Cover with top crust, cut slits into top crust, then seal edges of crusts. (Note: You can replace top crust with a lattice crust.) Cover top of pie with aluminum foil to prevent excess browning; remove foil last 15 minutes of baking.
Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until crust is brown and juice begins to bubble through slits in crust.
CHOCOLATE CHESS PIE
This is from Vaughn Vreeland in The New York Times cooking enewsletter. For this yumminess, Vaughn wrote, "Classic buttermilk chess pie is quintessential in many Southern homes and its chocolate counterpart is all the more decadent. You can use store-bought pie dough or take the homemade route because the true star of this dessert is its luxurious chocolate filling, slightly firmer than custard but fudgier than a brownie. With just a few staple ingredients, this supremely easy filling requires less than 10 minutes of active time and minimal effort, but yields big-time flavor. It’s also highly adaptable: try adding a tablespoon of bourbon or a couple teaspoons of espresso powder with the cocoa powder. A velvety slice of this chocolate chess pie goes best with a dollop of whipped cream on top, and some bourbon, neat, alongside."
Prep Time: 10 minutes; Cook Time: About 2 hours, plus about 1 hour cooling; Total Time: 3 hours; Yield: 1 (9-inch) pie
To view this online, go to https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1024822-chocolate-chess-pie. Also, check out Melissa Clark's wonderful guide, "How to Make a Pie Crust". I reread it (yes, I've read this before), and learned a couple of things to make pie crusts just a tad better. (Thanks, Melissa!)
Ingredients
1 store-bought pie crust or 1 disk foolproof pie dough (1/2 batch)
All-purpose flour, if needed for rolling out dough
1/2 cup unsalted butter
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
Whipped cream (optional), for serving
Preparation
Step 1
If using store-bought pie crust, skip ahead to Step 2. If using homemade dough, let sit at room temperature for a couple minutes before rolling. On a lightly floured work surface, using a lightly floured rolling pin, beat the dough evenly across the surface, rotating it occasionally, to work it into a slightly flatter round. Add more flour to the surface, lightly flour the dough and roll it out, starting in the center and working outward, occasionally lifting it, giving it quarter-turns and adding more flour as needed to prevent sticking, until it forms an 11-inch circle. (If your dough cracks, just use your fingertips to adhere it together.)
Step 2
Fit the dough into a 9-inch pie plate, letting the dough slump into the plate, taking care not to stretch it further. Trim the overhang, if needed, so that you’re left with about 1/2-inch on all sides. Fold the overhang under itself, creating a thick ridge on the sides with two layers of pie dough, and crimp the ridge. Use a fork to poke holes on the bottom of the crust, and freeze for about 15 minutes, until firm.
Step 3
Meanwhile, arrange an oven rack in the center position and heat the oven to 425 degrees. Line the dough with aluminum foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes.
Step 4
Remove the foil and pie weights, lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue baking the crust until golden, 10 to 15 minutes.
Step 5
Cool completely on the baking sheet, at least 30 minutes.
Step 6
While the crust cools, melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Off heat, add the chocolate and whisk until combined, letting the residual heat melt it completely.
Step 7
In a medium bowl, whisk the sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt until pale yellow and considerably thicker, about 1 minute. Pour in the melted chocolate mixture and continue to whisk until no streaks remain. Add the cocoa powder and whisk until combined.
Step 8
Pour the chocolate mixture into the cooled crust and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the filling is slightly puffed and the center is set. Cool completely at room temperature, about 1 hour. (It may be tempting to cut into it warm, but the filling needs time to set up.) Serve with whipped cream, if desired.
HARVEST WALNUT PUMPKIN PIE
This comes from Allrecipes, and begins, "A walnut topping adds lovely crunch to this quick and easy spiced pumpkin pie with a hint of maple flavoring. Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator."
Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 45 minutes; Total Time: 1 hour; Servings: 8; Yield: 1 9-inch pie
To view this online, go to https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/268384/harvest-walnut-pumpkin-pie/.
Ingredients
1 (15 ounce) can plain pumpkin puree
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon maple-flavored extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust
Walnut Topping
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons butter, cubed
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
Combine pumpkin, condensed milk, eggs, maple extract, cinnamon, salt, ginger, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Mix well and pour into the graham cracker crust. Smooth the top with a spatula.
Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Continue baking until filling is set, about 30 minutes.
Prepare walnut topping while pie is baking. Mix brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon together in a bowl. Cut in butter with a fork until coarse crumbs form. Stir in walnuts.
Remove pie from the oven and cover evenly with the topping. Continue baking until topping is golden brown, about 10 minutes. Cool completely before slicing.
Cook's Note
Substitute an unbaked pie shell for the graham cracker crust if preferred.
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