And, oh. my. gawd. It was (and notice I said "was") so, so, strange - and wonderful. It's almost impossible to describe because it tastes like pumpkin pie, and it tastes like chocolate, and your brain may rebel against that idea. And, it's almost like the flavors are separate, which is weird and doesn't make any sense. Since you are using unsweetened cocoa, the chocolate is a "pure" flavor, and almost like an aftertaste. I can't describe it any better than that except to say that I thought it was absolutely delicious. Even my boyfriend, who is not a fan of chocolate, said, "This is the best pie you've ever made."
Naturally, I mucked with the recipe a tiny bit. But, I didn't change it just to change it - there was some actual reasoning behind my method. I used both white and brown sugar because I didn't want the cocoa to have to work so hard against the sugar (and I tend to use a very dark brown sugar). I also dispensed with the clove (not a fan in pumpkin pie) and used ginger and nutmeg, as I like their flavor profiles with chocolate. I also used a traditional pie crust, simply because I had one hand and I prefer it to graham crusts (unless it's under s cheese cake!). In the end the result probably isn't very different - and I was very happy with the result!
The consistency was a touch lighter than my traditional pumpkin pie, probably because I didn't bake the hell out of it, it called for one additional egg than I usually use, and I used lowfat milk rather than condensed. The consistency was great. I also recommend eating this at room temp or cold rather than warm (but that's just me). And, yeah, whipped cream. Below is the non-glamour shot of the pie remains.
Ingredients - makes one pie (mine was deep dish).
Preheat oven to 425.
- One pie crust - pastry, graham, or even - gasp! - store bought! Have it in the dish and ready to go.
- 1 can (15 oz) of pumpkin pie filling
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 ground allspice (optional)
- 1/4 - 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg (I'll be honest, I love nutmeg, so... Also, I grate mine right into the bowl, so I have no idea how much I used. Bad baker!)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 eggs
- 2/3 to 1 cup milk (I used 1% which was fine)
Directions
- In a large mixing bowl (high-sided, if possible), using a sturdy whisk, mix up pumkin and add the sugars. Mix well. Add the spices and salt. Mix well. Add the cocoa. Mix well. Add vanilla. Mix well. Add eggs. Mix well. Add milk (2/3 cup for regular 9 in pie, or 1 cup for 10 in deep dish). Mix well.
- Pour mixture into pie crust. Don't overfill.
- Bake at 425 for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 and then bake for 30-40 minutes (I like my pie more "done" than some people. It should jiggle just slightly (or not at all if you like it dense) and knife inserted in center should come out clean.
- Cool on a wire rack. Refrigerate leftovers, if there are any.
Comment posted by s.j.simon
at 11/23/2007 1:35:00 PM
lol. did you know that chocolate was banned in switzerland for many years. read this
Comment posted by Jessica
at 11/17/2007 12:37:00 PM
I asked my mom what she thought about it, and she said it was "OK" (but I noticed that her plate was clean).
Even if you don't love it, you'll probably like it well enough to finish!
Comment posted by Tartelette
at 11/17/2007 12:26:00 PM
Sounds delicious and why not..although I would have passed it at first, now you got me intrigued! I love that shot in the fridge...looks like the cheesecake I have in there right now!
Comment posted by Kris
at 11/13/2007 8:07:00 PM
Yum. Yum. Yum. I love fall/winter baking.
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