Fudge Pecan Pie à la Mode

Happy Happy Monday AND Cinco de Mayo...two great reasons to throw a party right?! I am bummed that I never got around to posting some of my favorite ideas for this fun celebration...a lot of green, red and white pinatas, cookies, food and crafts. So to make up for that here's a dreamy, chocolatey (and very rich) fudge pie that my sweet mom brought over yesterday to enjoy with the family.

Josh described it perfect, "it's like chocolate mousse met up with brownie and had a baby" haha. It really does have a consistency between a dense brownie and a cup of airy dark chocolate mousse. Than you add a homemade crust and oh baby, baby (my favorite part of any dessert is the crust...yes I am that person who eats all the leftover crust that people for some reason leave behind?!). My mom use to take the scraps of her pie dough and bake them with cinnamon and sugar on them...it's like eating my childhood in one bite :-).

Lastly, and most importanty, this pie is to be served with icecream. Josh was pretty happy about that since he thinks all things are better with icecream. :-)

 ^^^lightly stir to lift the pecans off the bottom---make sure you don't cut the pie crust though^^^

 ^^^I never got a good shot of a slice with ice cream...but ya know when it's being devoured at lightening speed some things get put on the back burner :-)

FUDGE PIE à la Mode

2/3 cup evaporated milk

1/2 pkg. semi sweet chocolate morsels

2 TBS butter

1 cup sugar 

2 TBS flour

2 large eggs

2 sp. vanilla extract

3/4 tsp kosher salt

1 cup chopped pecans

1 baked pie crust (recipe below)

1. Preheat oven to 375. Microwave first 2 ingredients in a large bowl at high 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until melted and smooth, whisking at 30 second intervals

2. Whisk sugar and flour into chocolate mixture. Add eggs, 1 at a time, whisking just until blended after each one. Whisk in vanilla and salt. Stir in pecans. Pour mixture into uncooked pie shell.

3. Bake at 375 for about 35 minutes (don't overcook!). Let cool for 10 minutes and serve with ice cream.

Mama Lisa's Pie Crust

2 cups flour

1 tsp salt

1 cup shortening

water large amount: 1/3 cup 

water small amount: 1 TBS

Mix flour and salt. Cut in shortening. Make a well in the center. First, add larger amount of water. Stir with fork until flour is absorbed and ball forms. Then add smaller amount of water, only as necessary to get moist dough (barely sitcky). Store in airtight container and refrigerate for up to eight days.

To roll out crust:

Flour board and rolling pin. Mold dough into a ball. Flatten with hand. Roll out from center to about 1/8 thick. Fold in half. Lift into pan. Crip edges with fingers. Cut off excess dough.