french silk chocolate pie

this is the best chocolate dessert i've ever had. ever. next time you need a chocolate fix - and i mean a real fix, like you broke a glass jar of snapple on your kitchen floor right before leaving for work, it's really tuesday and all day you thought it was thursday, or something else miserably awful happened - skip the cookies and the cakes and head straight for this pie.

i can't comment much on the making of the pie, since y mom tackled it. all day she mentioned how hard she worked making it, how long it took, and how many dirty dishes resulted from making it. and how she'd never make it again. ever. i must have heard it six times. fast forward to dessert. with her first mouthful of pie, she was already planning when to make it again.

french silk chocolate pie
adapted from cook's illustrated entertaining, spring 2011

pie crust:
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons vegetable shortening, cut into 1/2 inch squares and chilled
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch squares and chilled
4 to 6 tablespoons ice water

custard:
1 cup heavy cream
3 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons water
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and room temperature

1. make the crust. in a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. add the chilled shortening and pulse until small pieces remain. add the butter and process until the mixture is a coarse meal. transfer the mixture to a large bowl and sprinkle four tablespoons of the ice water over the mixture. use a rubber spatula and mix until dough forms. form the dough into a disc, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for an hour.
2. remove the dough disc from the refrigerator and place between two sheets of parchment paper. use a rolling pin to roll out to a 12 inch circle. transfer to a pie plate and trim, fold, and crimp the edges.
3. cover the pie shell in plastic wrap, refrigerate about 40 minutes, and freeze an additional 20. preheat your oven to 375F. line the pie shell with parchment paper, top with pie weights, and bake until set, about 20 to 25 minutes. remove the pie weights and parchment and bake an additional 10 minutes, or until lightly brown. set aside while you make the filling.
4. whip the cream into stiff peaks in a medium bowl with a mixer. refrigerate.
5. combine the eggs, sugar, and water in a large metal bowl set over a saucepan with an inch or so of simmering water. use an electric mixer to beat the mixture until thick and registers 160F, about 10 minutes. remove the bowl from the pan of simmering water and continue to beat until fluffy and room temperature, about 10 minutes more.
6. add the chocolate and vanilla to the egg mixture. beat in the butter, a few pieces at a time, until it is well combined. use a spatula to fold in the whipped cream until evenly combined. spoon the chocolate filling into the pie shell and refrigerate until set, about three hours.

check out more sweet treats at sweet tooth friday, sweets for a saturday and sweet indulgences sunday!

2014.02.02 this was cupcake muffin's pick for the secret recipe club!