CHOCOLATE PIE 1929

Chocolate Pie 1929 image

Mom was 19 when she received this recipe. It just says "chocolate pie" but it also has meringue -- I remember my mother's meringue being heavenly. You don't have to do the meringue, you could substitute whipped cream, but meringue is wonderful -- you really should try it at least once. This recipe is all about the filling --...

Provided by Marcia McCance

Number Of Ingredients 13

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Ingredients

THE CHOCOLATE PART
3 squares of baker's chocolate
2 1/2 c milk
1 1/3 c sugar
1/2 c corn starch
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp butter, room temperature
3 egg yolks, reserve whites for the meringue
1 tsp vanilla extract
prepared pie crust (pastry or graham cracker, anything, really)
THE MERINGUE PART
3 egg whites (reserved from above)
6 Tbsp sugar

Steps:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (for the meringue)
2. THE CHOCOLATE PART: Heat the milk and the chocolate in a double boiler on the stove top. (You can make it without a double boiler but you will have to be extra careful, stirring constantly, not to scorch the milk and chocolate.)
3. When the chocolate is melted, beat with an egg beater one minute. (You could surely use your mixer, instead, LOL).
4. In a separate bowl sift the sugar, corn starch and salt
5. Add a 1/2 cup of the heated chocolate to the sifted ingredients and stir until smooth (mixer can be used for this step, also)
6. Add the smoothed mixture back into the double boiler, add the butter and stir constantly until thickened -- then cook it for 10 minutes longer, stirring occasionally
7. In a separate bowl, gently beat the egg yolks, then quickly pour 1/4 cup of the cooked mixture over the egg yolks and stir vigorously (these are "by hand" instructions, your mixer will make it much easier to do.)
8. Once the egg yolks are incorporated into the small amount of chocolate, then put this back into the chocolate in the double boiler, stirring and cooking until thickened.
9. Add the vanilla, stir to incorporate. Cool slightly then pour into pie shell and let cool completely.
10. THE MERINGUE PART: Beat egg whites until stiff.
11. Slowly sprinkle the sugar over the stiff egg whites and continue beating until all the sugar is added -- then beat some more until it again makes stiff peaks when the beater is stopped and lifted out.
12. Pile it on the pie (her exact words!!) quickly and gently making a random swirl pattern on top. Don't let it sit, or play in it too long, or the meringue will get "weepy."
13. Immediately place pie in a 400 degree oven for 5 minutes or until the meringue is lightly browned. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
14. NOTE: I remember using an egg beater. When we got a brand new mixer in the mid fifties, we never used it again. I used to think it was lonely in the drawer and would sometimes get it out just to crank it up and listen to it whirling around in the air. Ha!