Chocolate Silk Pie {smitten kitchen}

For Valentine's Day, I wanted to make a special dessert for my valentine, combining his two favorite things - chocolate and pie.  Flipping through The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook, I knew I hit the jackpot when I stumbled upon her Chocolate Silk Pie.  The recipe, though a bit time consuming with the chilling and mixing (if you're using a hand mixer like me, I'd suggest keeping a magazine nearby to flip thru), was incredibly simple to put together, even for a novice baker like myself.  I assembled the pie the night before so it could chill all day, and quickly made the whip cream after dinner so it was fresh and fluffy for dessert (is there anything better than homemade whip cream???).  Though incredibly rich and decadent, the dessert was a huge success, and the perfect way to end a great day :)

Chocolate Silk Pie

Ingredients
Chocolate Crust
1 1/2 cups chocolate wafer crumbs
2 tblsp sugar
Pinch of salt
5 tblsp unsalted butter, melted

Filling
12 tblsp (1 1/2 sticks) butter at room temperature
1 cup sugar
3 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Garnish
1 cup heavy or whipping cream
1 tblsp sugar
Chocolate curls shaved from a bittersweet bar with peeler (optional)

Instructions
Crust
1. Preheat oven to 350.  In medium bowl, stir together cookie crumbs, sugar, and salt.  Stir in melted butter until evenly dispersed.  
2. Press crumbs evenly across bottom and up sides of 9 inch pie dish.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes, then let cool completely before using.

Filling
1. In large stand mixer (or large bowl with hand mixer), whip butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy.
2. While mixer is running, drizzle in melted chocolate.
3. Add eggs one at a time, beating mixture at medium speed for 5 minutes after each addition, scraping down bowl.
4. Add vanilla and blend well.
5. Spread chocolate filling in prepared crust, and smooth top.  Refrigerate until fully chilled, at least 6 hours, or overnight.

Garnish
1. Just before serving, beat cream with sugar until it just holds soft peaks.
2. Spoon onto pie and garnish with chocolate shavings (optional).

adapted from the smitten kitchen cookbook

xoxo,
stephanie marie