I was discussing cooking with some of my friends and brought up the idea of retiring from my day job and just staying at home and cook. (yah right.. roll eyes..)
My other "taste tester" volunteered to co finance a coffee/pastry shop in case I wanted to open one.~ hahahahaha (I don't want cooking to be WORK... so not yet considering this option)
I am still cooking from MARTHA STEWART PIES. This is the first recipe on the book. Maybe because its so easy to do. Just mash, mix and freeze.
FOR THE CRUST
25 chocolate wafers (6 ounces), or 1½ cups wafer-cookie crumbs (I used oreos)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
Pinch of salt
FOR THE FILLING
2½ cups milk 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate (preferably 61 percent cacao), chopped
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup cornstarch
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon unflavored powdered gelatin (optional)
2 tablespoons cold water (optional)
4 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
FOR THE TOPPING
1 cup heavy cream
¼ cup confectioners’ sugar
Chocolate curls, for garnish
* I used 1 cup of pour and whip instead of whipped cream+ powdered sugar (I find it holds better and easier to whip)
1. Make the crust: Preheat oven to 350°F. In a food processor, pulse wafers until fine crumbs form. Add butter, sugar, and salt, and process until combined. Press mixture firmly into bottom and up sides of a 9-inch pie dish. Refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes. Bake until crust is fragrant, about 10 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack.
*you can actually buy oreos w/o filling from CHOCOLATE LOVERS. - in case you were wondering how come my pie had no white bits.
2. Make the filling: In a medium saucepan, heat milk and chocolate over medium-high, whisking occasionally, until chocolate is melted. In a small bowl, whisk together granulated sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Add 1 cup of milk mixture and whisk until smooth. Return mixture to saucepan; whisk to combine. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until bubbling and thick, 4 to 5 minutes
(about 2 minutes after it comes to a boil).
pressed the crumbs using the back of the spoon
3. If using gelatin, sprinkle 1 teaspoon over the 2 tablespoons cold water in a small bowl; let stand until softened, about 5 minutes. In a medium bowl, whisk egg yolks. Slowly whisk hot milk mixture into yolks. Return mixture to saucepan, and continue cooking custard over medium heat, stirring constantly, until custard is thick and bubbles appear in center, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Add softened gelatin, if using, and whisk until dissolved. Stir in vanilla. Let cool about 10 minutes, whisking 2 or 3 times.
4. Pour custard into baked and cooled crust. Press a piece of plastic wrap directly on surface of custard. Refrigerate until filling is firm, 4 hours or up to 1 day.
5. Make the topping: With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, whisk cream just until soft peaks form. Add confectioners’ sugar and whisk until stiff peaks form. Spread whipped cream over custard. Garnish pie with chocolate curls just before serving. *** if using POUR AND WHIP, OMIT POWDERED SUGAR. just whip 1 cup till soft peaks and then pour over pie (pour and whip is already sweetened)
*I omitted using the gelatin to see how it goes. It came out a little soft for me. The pie itself looked great but was kind of hard to slice and keep it's shape. So I recommend using the gelatin if you plan to make this. Taste wise, it was very mousse like. something like the chocolate mousse of red ribbon bakeshop.
The hardest part I guess about this is waiting for the custard to set before you put the topping. Maybe you can watch TV or do some other chores as the custard is setting. (you can also do this in the morning and finish it at night if you want)...
top view
sliced cake....
My niece commented it tasted like ice cream cake. hmmm....
I'm prepping for the next pie... and just hinting... it would be a savory one!
enjoy!
1 cup heavy cream
¼ cup confectioners’ sugar
Chocolate curls, for garnish
* I used 1 cup of pour and whip instead of whipped cream+ powdered sugar (I find it holds better and easier to whip)
1. Make the crust: Preheat oven to 350°F. In a food processor, pulse wafers until fine crumbs form. Add butter, sugar, and salt, and process until combined. Press mixture firmly into bottom and up sides of a 9-inch pie dish. Refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes. Bake until crust is fragrant, about 10 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack.
*you can actually buy oreos w/o filling from CHOCOLATE LOVERS. - in case you were wondering how come my pie had no white bits.
2. Make the filling: In a medium saucepan, heat milk and chocolate over medium-high, whisking occasionally, until chocolate is melted. In a small bowl, whisk together granulated sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Add 1 cup of milk mixture and whisk until smooth. Return mixture to saucepan; whisk to combine. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until bubbling and thick, 4 to 5 minutes
(about 2 minutes after it comes to a boil).
pressed the crumbs using the back of the spoon
3. If using gelatin, sprinkle 1 teaspoon over the 2 tablespoons cold water in a small bowl; let stand until softened, about 5 minutes. In a medium bowl, whisk egg yolks. Slowly whisk hot milk mixture into yolks. Return mixture to saucepan, and continue cooking custard over medium heat, stirring constantly, until custard is thick and bubbles appear in center, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Add softened gelatin, if using, and whisk until dissolved. Stir in vanilla. Let cool about 10 minutes, whisking 2 or 3 times.
4. Pour custard into baked and cooled crust. Press a piece of plastic wrap directly on surface of custard. Refrigerate until filling is firm, 4 hours or up to 1 day.
5. Make the topping: With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, whisk cream just until soft peaks form. Add confectioners’ sugar and whisk until stiff peaks form. Spread whipped cream over custard. Garnish pie with chocolate curls just before serving. *** if using POUR AND WHIP, OMIT POWDERED SUGAR. just whip 1 cup till soft peaks and then pour over pie (pour and whip is already sweetened)
*I omitted using the gelatin to see how it goes. It came out a little soft for me. The pie itself looked great but was kind of hard to slice and keep it's shape. So I recommend using the gelatin if you plan to make this. Taste wise, it was very mousse like. something like the chocolate mousse of red ribbon bakeshop.
The hardest part I guess about this is waiting for the custard to set before you put the topping. Maybe you can watch TV or do some other chores as the custard is setting. (you can also do this in the morning and finish it at night if you want)...
sliced cake....
My niece commented it tasted like ice cream cake. hmmm....
I'm prepping for the next pie... and just hinting... it would be a savory one!
enjoy!
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