I’m a sucker for sweets in general. If it has sugar, give me a plate and a fork and I’ll dig in to whatever is on the table. Fruity, chocolate, vanilla, brown sugar, cookies, cake, ice cream, pie and so on, I don’t discriminate. I love all my desserts, but there’s one thing that is my ultimate weakness. What’s that you ask? Well, a good ol’ simple fudgy brownie.
The type of brownie that has a slightly crispy top, but then once you penetrate that barrier it’s fudgy and almost sticks to your teeth. Oh, you know what I’m talking about. I’d be lying if I said my mouth wasn’t watering just thinking about that pure perfection.
I’ve tried a few brownie pies and they’ve all been incredibly amazing. But, you know my theory, I’m always looking for new recipes to try and fall in love with. So when I saw this fudgy tar heel pie on Pinterest I was immediately drawn in by the name alone. I honestly could have stopped at the word fudgy, everything else was just a bonus. And, if the name wasn’t enough…which it totally was, the picture had me entranced. It was a picture of a perfectly cut piece of pie; the top had a slight sheen, the center was a deep dark brown color and the texture looked perfectly fudgy, oh and it had a big ol’ scoop of vanilla ice cream that was dripping off in all the right places. I wanted to dive through my computer screen to say the least.
This pie lived up to every single expectation I had for it, and then some. The pie crust was buttery and flaky, which served as the perfect base to hold that rich, fudgy, chocolatey brownie. The velvety brownie mixture was poured over toasted pecans and then baked to gooey perfection. In one word, it was AMAZING. Pure perfection in a slice of pie.
Fudgy Tar Heel Pie
Ingredients:
1 (9 in) pie crust, homemade or store bought
1 Cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
4 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/4 Cup vegetable oil
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 Cup packed brown sugar
2 Eggs
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
3/4 Tsp salt
1/4 Cup all-purpose flour
1 1/4 Cup pecans, toasted and roughly chopped
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375.
On a lightly floured work surface, roll the dough into a 12-inch circle. Place in a 9-inch pie place, letting the excess dough hang over the edges. Trim the dough, leaving a 1/2 inch overhang. Fold and crimp the dough so it’s flush with the edges of the pie plate. Loosely cover the dough-lined pie plate with plastic wrap and place in the freezer until it’s fully chilled and firm, about 15 minutes.
Line the pie shell with parchment paper and place pie weights in the shell. Bake until golden brown, about 18-25 minutes. Remove from oven and carefully remove weights and parchment paper. Return the pie shell to the oven and bake an additional 3-6 minutes, until the center begins to look opaque. Allow shell to cool completely.
Reduce oven temperature to 325.
Place 2/3 cup of the chocolate chips and the butter in a microwave safe dish and heat in 20 second intervals, stirring after each, until completely melted. Add oil and cocoa powder and whisk until smooth.
In a separate bowl combine sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt and whisk until smooth. Add the chocolate mixture to the sugar mixture and whisk until incorporated. Add the flour and remaining chocolate chips and gently stir until just combined.
Spread the pecans, in an even layer over the bottom of the pie shell. Pour the batter over the pecans and spread in an even layer. Place in the preheated oven and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a thin coating of batter attached, about 30-35 minutes. Place the pie on a cooling rack and allow to cool until barely warm, about 1 1/2 hours. Serve.
Recipe source: Cook’s Country
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