Minny’s Chocolate Pie

Last night was one of my favorite of the year.  It was Oscar night, or as my husband refers to it, “the super bowl for women”.  He isn’t much interested in all the Red Carpet interviews with the stars and the clothes and jewelry, some of the things I LOVE about this event, but he participates because he enjoys movies almost as much as I do, and besides, he knows there will be food involved.  Every year there is a small group of us who watch the Oscars together and the entree is themed around one of the Best Picture nominees.

This year we had several choices for themes.  Either Hugo or The Artist could have influenced some French cuisine for the evening.  The Decendants could have had us dining on some roasted pork and pineapple.  But given my Southern heritage, it wasn’t a hard choice when it came to planning the evening’s menu.  Fried Chicken (more on that later this week), macaroni and cheese, cabbage salad, and fresh hot biscuits,all washed down with sweet tea, the “house wine” of the South, were just the ticket.  And to round off this Southern food fete, what else but chocolate pie…Minny’s Chocolate Pie.

Whether you saw the movie version of The Help or read the book, you have probably heard about “the chocolate pie” that the book’s character, Minny made.  Minny is the role that earned Octavia Spencer the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress last night.

As I was growing up, we ate a lot of chocolate pie in our home.  Apple, pecan, banana cream, coconut cream, custard, peach and boysenberry pies were plentiful and occasionally a chocolate cream pie, but I must confess, chocolate pie of the sort that has been made famous as a result of The Help, was not something my mother had in her recipe repertoire. So, I went looking through the myriad of cook books in my pantry bookcases in search of, what looked to me in the movie, to be a sort of chocolate ‘chess pie’.  Chess pie is a very southern, sugary, custard affair that, according to one theory, was originally called “just pie” because it was so simple and plain, but over time, slang, or accent, morphed it into being called “chess pie”.

I figured if I was going to find an authentic version of this chocolate pie, I had better start with my southern cookbooks.  After searching through no less than eleven of these, and finding only one that even came close to what I thought might be the kind of pie Minny made, (minus her secret ingredient addition, of course),  I turned to the modern miracle for anyone seeking any kind of information about any topic no matter how random…I “googled” it.  And there it was…Minny’s Chocolate Pie.  On Food and Wine’s website I found a write up about newspaper columnist Lee Ann Flemming, who as luck would have it, is one of the best bakers in Greenwood, Mississippi where The Help was filmed.  Ms. Flemming made some 53 chocolate pies that were used in the filming of the movie.  Her recipe was published on the website, so I was good to go!  I made my pie crust dough, the one I always use…(thank you Martha Stewart), ~ you may have seen it in our post about Classic Quiche ~ and then whipped up the chocolate custard filling.  It really couldn’t have been easier or more delicious.

Minny’s Chocolate Pie

1 recipe pie crust dough
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs, beaten
3/4 cup evaporated milk (or half and half)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt

Whipped cream, for serving

Preheat the oven to 350°.  Ease the pie crust into a 9-inch pie plate and crimp the edges decoratively.

Prick the crust lightly with a fork. Line the crust with foil or parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans.   (I use pinto beans.   They can be re-used again and again.  Just cool them completely after using and store them in a ziplock bag.)

Bake for 15 minutes or until set.  Remove the foil and weights and bake for about 5 minutes longer, just until the crust is dry but not browned.

Meanwhile, in a bowl, whisk the sugar with the cocoa powder, butter, eggs, evaporated milk, vanilla and salt until smooth.

Pour the filling into the pie shell and bake for about 45 minutes, until the filling is set around the edges but a little jiggly in the center.  Cover the crust with strips of foil halfway through baking.  Transfer the pie to a rack and let cool completely before cutting into wedges.  Serve with whipped cream.

If made ahead, the chocolate pie can be refrigerated overnight.

Turns out, that Minny really knows her way around pie!  And now you will too:)