Cooking With Abandon: Mexican Chocolate Pie

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Mexican Chocolate Pie

I work in a very emotionally draining profession. Sometimes, you just need a little chocolate to soften the emotional blow. This pie was really good. Had a bit of a kick to it, due to the red pepper. And it wasn't all that bad for you!

Mexican Chocolate Pie, from Cooking Light

Crust:

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 10 cookie sheets), divided

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons egg white

2 tablespoons butter, melted

Cooking spray

Filling:

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa

1/4 teaspoon instant espresso powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper

1 large egg

1 large egg yolk

1 3/4 cups 2% milk

2 ounces dark chocolate, chopped

1 1/2 cups frozen reduced-calorie whipped topping, thawed

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 375°.

2. To prepare the crust, reserve 1 tablespoon crumbs for topping. Combine the remaining crumbs, 2 tablespoons sugar, cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a bowl, stirring well. Stir in egg white and butter. Press crumb mixture into bottom and up sides of a 9-inch pie plate coated with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 9 minutes or until lightly toasted; cool completely on a wire rack.

For filling, combine 1/2 cup sugar and the next 7 ingredients (through egg yolk) in a bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Place the milk in a medium, heavy saucepan over medium-high heat; cook until milk reaches 180° or until tiny bubbles form around edge (do not boil). Gradually add hot milk to egg mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk. Return milk mixture to pan; cook over medium heat 10 minutes or until thick and bubbly, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add chocolate; stir until smooth. Place pan in a large ice-filled bowl for 10 minutes or until mixture cools, stirring occasionally.