Brownie Pie

If there is a recipe to try from my blog and you love chocolate, this is the one.  I have served this multiple times and it's always a big hit.  It's always everyones "new favourite dessert" and "Can I have the recipe?".

This is an adaptation of a recipe of Christina Tosi's desserts from Momofuku Milk Bar Cookbook. 

I had made the Graham crust that was in the original recipe but I wasn't really happy with how it turned out and didn't think it added anything extra to the pie.  Plus it was a lot more work and ingredients than a regular graham crust.  So I'm including a standard Graham crust recipe. If you want to save time and make it easier for yourself, you can buy one.  It's really the brownie filling that's the show stopper.

For my over the top presentation, on each cut piece I dolloped whip cream and drizzled with caramel sauce and/or chocolate ganache.

Brownie Pie

Graham Crust:

1¾ cups graham cracker crumbs

1 Tbsp. sugar

6 Tbsp melted butter

Brownie Pie Filling:

4½ ounces (125g.) dark chocolate*

6 Tbsp. (85 g.) Butter (room temperature)

2 eggs (room temperature)

¾ c. (150 g.) Sugar

¼ c. (40 g.) All purpose Flour

3 Tbsp. (25 g.) Cocoa powder

¼ tsp. Table salt

½ c. (110 g.) Heavy cream

1. Graham Crust:  Toss all ingredients in a medium bowl until well coated.  If the mixture doesn't hold together when squeezed, add another teaspoon of melted butter.  Measure out ¼ cup of graham crumbs and set aside.  Pour the rest of the mixture into a 9 inch pie plate.  Pat down firmly all around the sides and across the bottom.  Let it set.  You can refrigerate (at least a week in advance) or freeze longer.
2. Filling:  Combine chocolate and butter in a microwave safe bowl and gently melt them together until smooth.  Microwave for 30 seconds then smaller increments until melted and stirring after each time.
3. In a stand mixer, whisk the butter and sugar together on high until fluffy and pale yellow and has reached the "ribbon" state.  This is when after you dunk the beater into the batter and wave it back and forth in the bowl, it forms a silky ribbon that falls and disappears into the batter.  It will take 3 to 4 minutes.
4. Change the whisk to a paddle attachment or by hand put the cooled chocolate into bowl and beat until incorporated fully.  About a minute.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
5. Add flour, cocoa powder and salt (if your flour or cocoa is lumpy, I suggest you sift it) and mix on low until everything is incorporated fully. About a minute.
6. With the mixer going, pour in the heavy cream.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
7. Remove bowl and fold in ¼ c graham crackers that you set aside (This adds a nice textural element to the batter but can be omitted).
8. Scrape the batter into the graham crust and bake for about 25 minutes at 350℉.  It should puff slightly on the sides and develop a sugary crust on top. (My oven on convection only takes 22 minutes).
9. Let cool on a rack.  Once cooled and wrapped, it can be kept up to a week in the fridge or longer in the freezer.
10. When serving cut small pieces as this is very rich. Garnish with whip cream, ice cream, caramel sauce and/or fudge sauce or serve as is.

*The recipe calls for 72% bittersweet chocolate which I've used and is great for dark chocolate lovers but I've also used just semi-sweet, and a combination of semi-sweet and unsweetened.  However, I have not tried Chipits in any of the combinations.