Aug 17 2009
Chocolate pecan pie
serves 6
ingredients
For the pastry
275g/10oz plain flour
50g/2oz cocoa powder
100g/4oz icing sugar pinch of salt
200g/7oz butter, diced
1 egg yolk
For the filling
350g/12oz shelled pecan nuts
75g/3oz butter
175g/6oz Demerara sugar
3 eggs
2 tablespoons double cream
2 tablespoons plain flour
75g/3oz dark chocolate (at least
70% cocoa solids)
1 tablespoon icing sugar, to dust
• Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas mark 4.
• To make the pastry, sift the flour, cocoa, sugar and salt into a bowl and make a well in the centre. Put the butter and egg yolk in the well, and mix together, then gradually mix in the dry ingredients. Knead lightly into a ball. Cover with cling film and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
• Unwrap the pastry and roll out on a lightly floured work surface. Use to line a 25cm/10in non-stick springform pie tin, and prick the base with a fork. Line the pastry shell with foil and fill with baking beans. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, discard the beans and foil, and allow to cool. Leave the oven on.
• To make the filling, roughly chop 225g/8oz of the pecan nuts. Mix the butter with 50g/2oz of the Demerara sugar. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then add the remaining Demerara sugar and mix.
• Stir in the double cream, flour and chopped pecan nuts. Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, then add to the mixture.
• Spoon the filling into the pastry shell, and smooth the surface. Cut the remaining pecan nuts in half, and arrange over the pie.
• Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, then cover the top of the pie with foil to prevent it burning and bake for a further 25 minutes. Remove the pie from the oven and let it cool slightly before removing from the tin and transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with the icing sugar.
