CHOCOLATE FRENCH SILK PIE

Is a ‘French Silk Pie’ actually French? Definitely not. As far as I can tell, this is a recipe developed in the U.S. in 1951 for a Pillsbury Bake-off...which is about the time my maternal grandmother started making it and our family started requesting it at holidays. (The ‘French’ of the title refers to the silky texture of the filling, which is reminiscent of France’s popular mousse au chocolat.) My family is also not French; but claims German, Austrian and Dutch ancestry, traceable back to one of the passengers on the Mayflower on one side. So perhaps it’s fitting that this sorta Euro-influenced all-American 1950s dessert is beloved to us. My late grandmother as well as my late mother made this pie with me, many times, for Thanksgiving and Christmas gatherings especially. It’s been shared with dozens of friends and in-laws over the years. It’s one of the few recipes I have memorized. And I even still have my late grandmother’s oil-stained hand-written recipe card, which calls for ‘oleo,’ ‘ie, margarine, rather than butter (note: butter tastes wayyy better!). My sole other adjustment to her recipe is that I’ll often top this pie with a dash of sea salt flakes rather than, say, the chocolate shavings or whipped cream that similar twists on this dessert call for. Even sans any topping, it’s decadent. And I’m so pleased to share it with you.

-Kelly Phillips Badal

Ingredients

GRAHAM CRACKER CRUST

1 1/2 cups crushed graham crackers

3 tablespoons sugar

1/3 cup butter, melted

Directions

Stir ingredients together until well blended, then press into 9” pie pan

Chill 1 hour OR bake for 8 minutes; then cool completely before filling

Ingredients

PIE FILLING

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

2 squares baking chocolate OR 6 tablespoons cocoa + 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vanilla

Optional: sea salt flakes, whipped cream or chocolate shavings, as toppings

Directions

Beat butter and sugar until fluffy

Add 1 egg and beat 2 minutes. Add second egg and beat 2 minutes

Blend in chocolate and vanilla

Pour into crust, add any desired toppings and chill at least 2 hours before serving