Catskill's Chocolate Mousse Pie

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...The pie I'm featuring tonight served as a trial run for one that was sold at a pie auction yesterday. If you are curious to know what it sold for, stop by my Facebook page. The Silver Fox, who at his best, was never a candidate for the diplomatic corp, took one look at it and promptly dubbed my lovely creation, Borscht Belt Chocolate Pie. For those unfamiliar with that reference, the Borscht Belt was a resort area in the Catskill Mountains that was frequented by predominately Jewish guests who came from the NYC area to escape the heat and vacation in the crisp mountain air. In their hay day, the resorts were famous for entertainment and the copious quantities of food they provided for their guests. It is a virtual certainty that creamy pies, similar to this one, were found on dessert tables in the hotel dining rooms. While it is, admittedly, a study in wretched excess, this rich pie is delicious and I think that most of you will enjoy it, especially if you have the discipline to regulate your portion size. It consists of a pie crust that is covered with chocolate wafer crumbs and then filled with a truly delicious mousse that is topped with a mountain of whipped cream fraiche and chocolate curls. The whipped topping is unsweetened and it adds a lovely nutty tang that helps balance the richness of the mousse and cream. I found the recipe for this creation last summer in Bon Appetit magazine. The recipe that appears below is theirs and does not reflect the changes I made to the auctioned pie. To make the pie a bit more attractive, I baked the final version in a high-sided tart pan that was lined with a chocolate crumb crust rather than short pastry. I also added plain gelatin and a bit of white creme de cocoa to the topping to stabilize it and add a bit more flavor. This pie needs to sit for at least 24 hours before it is sliced. As a matter of fact, I recommend freezing it and slicing it while frozen if you want clean slices. This is not a hard dessert to make if you break it into segments, but do be forewarned, it is time consuming. If you like rich creamy desserts I think you'll love this pie. Here is how it is made.



Chocolate Mousse Pie...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Bon Appetit magazine

Ingredients:
1 pie crust, homemade or store-bought
4 large egg whites
3/4 cup + 3 tablespoons sugar
10 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate (do not exceed 71% cacao), chopped, plus more shaved with a vegetable peeler for garnish
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 cups heavy cream, divided
1 cup coarsely crushed chocolate wafer cookies (such as Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers), divided
1/2 cup crème fraîche
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line pie dish with crust; crimp edges decoratively. Fully bake pie crust according to recipe or box instructions. Let cool completely.
2) Whisk egg whites and sugar in a medium heatproof bowl set over a medium saucepan of simmering water until sugar dissolves and egg whites are warm but not hot, 3–4 minutes. Remove from heat. Using an electric mixer, beat on medium-high speed until cool, tripled in volume, and stiff peaks form (the tips of the peaks won't fall over when beaters are lifted from bowl and turned upright), about 6 minutes.
3) Stir chopped chocolate and butter in a large bowl set over same saucepan of simmering water until melted and smooth, 4–5 minutes; set aside.
4) Beat 2 cups cream in another medium bowl until medium peaks form (cream should be soft and pillowy), 5–6 minutes.
5) Gently fold egg whites into warm chocolate mixture until fully incorporated (work quickly to prevent chocolate from turning gritty). Gently fold in whipped cream just until no white streaks remain; do not overmix or mixture will deflate. Spoon 1/2 cup chocolate mousse into bottom of prepared pie crust; spread evenly over bottom of crust. Sprinkle 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons crushed chocolate wafers over mousse. Top with remaining mousse, mounding in the center to create a dome. (The point is to add height, not to spread out evenly to edges.) Chill pie.
6) Beat remaining 2 cups cream, crème fraîche, and salt until medium-stiff peaks form (when the beaters are lifted from the cream, the peaks will hold their shape but the tips will fall over). Top chocolate mousse with whipped-cream mixture, following the same rounded dome shape. Chill pie for at least 4 hours or, covered, for up to 3 days. (It will slice best if chilled overnight, allowing mousse to set properly.)
7) Garnish pie with 2 tablespoons chocolate wafers and chocolate shavings. Slice pie using a clean, dry knife; wipe between slices to ensure clean, elegant pieces. Yield: 10 servings.









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Milk Chocolate and Caramel Mousse Pie

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I received a bottle of a, new to me, liqueur for Christmas this year. It was Bailey's, but this version had hints of caramel added to the base and that gave the familiar liqueur an entirely new taste. To be honest, I had absolutely no idea what to do with it until last night. This obviously is not going to be a sponsored post. Late yesterday, I was asked to step in and make desserts for a pot luck supper. I quickly bounced ideas against the contents of my pantry and refrigerator and came up with the pie I'm featuring today. As it happens Monday, January 23rd is National Pie Day and that special request is going to make me seem a more informed and better blogger than I actually am. I, quite by chance, have a pie for National Pie Day to share with you this year. I've been holding on to a recipe for a mousse-style pie for a while now. It had been published in the Providence Food Examiner and I had never gotten around to testing it. I had to make a few substitutions because I had no white chocolate in the house, but I thought I could create a milk chocolate version that would be as tasty. It is that. The pie is extraordinarily easy to make, though it requires considerable time to set. It contains no gelatin, so I'd advise it be made a day before you plan to serve it. The pie contains uncooked egg whites. If there are any in your home with compromised immune system, you should use pasteurized eggs when you make this. I think those of you who try this recipe will enjoy the pie and the ease with which it comes together. Here's the recipe.


Milk Chocolate and Caramel Mousse Pie...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite inspired by Donna Diegel of the Providence Food Examiner

Ingredients:
1 chocolate cookie pie crust
Milk Chocolate Mousse:
1-1/3 cups milk chocolate baking chips
1/3 cup Baileys with a Hint of Caramel
1/2 cup egg whites (about 4 eggs)
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup heavy whipping cream
Sweetened Whipped Cream Topping:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/3 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Chocolate curls or cookie crumbs for garnish, optional

Directions:
1) Melt chocolate and Baileys spirits in top of a double boiler set over hot water. Use a spatula to blend well and keep from burning. Remove from heat.
2) Using an electric mixer, whip egg whites until soft peaks form. Add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, and beat until stiff peaks hold their shape. Set aside.
3) Whip 1 cup heavy cream until stiff.
4) Gently fold egg and whipped cream together.
5) With a large spatula, fold milk chocolate into egg white mixture. Do not over mix.
6) Spoon into cooked pie crust and chill while preparing whipped cream topping.
7) To make topping: Whip heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add powdered sugar and vanilla and continue beating until stiff peaks form. Spoon or pipe onto top of mousse. Decorate with chocolate curls or cookie crumbs. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving. Yield: 6 to 8 servings.








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Frozen Key Lime and White Chocolate Pie

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...It's embarrassing to admit that a dessert this easy to make helped build my reputation as a cook and is an often requested favorite of family and friends. Its initial creation was borne of harried necessity and I never dreamt that this combination of ingredients could possibly make a memorable dessert. It came about when I was in the middle of my "only from scratch" phase of cooking and had lost a race with time. That meant that dessert would have to come from outside my kitchen or be assembled with semi-homemade ingredients from the grocer's shelves. Refusing to bring a stranger's food into my home, I ran to the store to grab the ingredients I needed to make the creation that was forming in my head. I grabbed key lime juice, a couple of limes and heavy cream from the "real" food aisles. My cart also contained several not so real items, such as a ready-made graham cracker crust, sweetened condensed milk and a container of whipped topping. My plan was to create a key lime pie that would be made my own with the addition of a topping made from a mixture of heavy cream and white chocolate. I decided to make a frozen pie because I had no time to work with eggs and I'm not a big fan of gelatin desserts. That made my pie filling simple in the extreme. I mixed bottled lime juice with sweetened condensed milk and whipped topping and added some lime zest for extra flavor. I poured that layer of filling into the graham cracker crust and put the pie in the freezer. I then began to work on the next layer. I melted white chocolate in a bit of cream and brought it to body temperature before folding it into lightly beaten whipped cream. Be forewarned, that the cream will collapse if the chocolate is too warm or you attempt to beat it into the heavy cream. Folding is the prime directive here. I then spread the cream over the lime base and let the pie sit in the freezer while I went to work. About 8 hours later, I cut the pie into serving pieces before transferring it to the refrigerator where it sat for an hour or so before dessert was served. I cut the pie while frozen to assure clean slices. I refrigerated it to allow the filling to soften slightly before my guests had a go at it. Lovers of citrus desserts will adore this, though pipe and horn players should be warned that this is incapacitating and attempts to pucker-up may actually be painful. I do hope that, despite its humble ingredients, you'll give this pie a try. It takes all of 30 minutes to prepare and it is pure ambrosia for tired palates. Here is the recipe.

Frozen Key Lime and White Chocolate Pie...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
1 graham cracker pie crust
Filling
1 (14-oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
6 ounces whipped topping
Zest of 2 limes
1/2 cup bottled key lime juice
Lime slices for garnish
Topping
4 ounces white chocolate
1-1/4 cup chilled whipping cream, divided use

Directions:
1) To make filling: Mix condensed milk with whipped topping and beat until well-blended. Add lime zest and juice and blend well. Pour into crust and freeze.
2) To make topping: Combine white chocolate and 1/4 cup cream in a small bowl. Set over simmering water and stir until chocolate melts and is smooth. Remove bowl and allow chocolate to cool to body temperature. Beat reserved 1 cup cream until soft peaks form. Fold in chocolate mixture. Spread over top of lime filling. Return pie to freezer. Freeze for 8 hours.
3) To serve: About 1 hour before serving, remove pie from freezer and cut into serving slices. Place pie in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Garnish with lime slices if desired. Yield: 8 servings.

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Lightened Up Lemon Bars - Half Baked