Classic French Silk Pie Recipes

FRENCH SILK PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Brush beaten egg over all surfaces of pie crust, including edges. Prick holes into the bottom and sides of the crust using a fork.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• Combine sugar and 2 eggs in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir continuously, adjusting heat as needed to make sure mixture does not boil or bubble, until it coats the back of a spoon and an instant-read thermometer reads 160 degrees F (70 degrees C), about 10 minutes.
• Remove mixture from heat and stir in melted chocolate and vanilla extract; allow to cool to lukewarm temperature, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Beat butter in a separate large bowl using an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add chocolate mixture and continue to beat on high speed until thick and creamy, about 5 minutes.
• Beat cold heavy cream in a separate bowl until slightly thick. Add powdered sugar all at once and continue to beat on medium to medium-high speed until stiff peaks form. Fold into chocolate mixture, stirring very gently as to not decrease the volume by stirring too much. Pour into the prepared pie crust and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving.

FRENCH SILK PIE

Steps:

• Cut pie crust in half. Repackage and refrigerate 1 half for another use. On a lightly floured surface, roll out remaining half into an 8-in. circle. Transfer to a 7-in. pie plate; flute edge., Line shell with a double thickness of heavy-duty foil. Bake at 450° for 4 minutes. Remove foil; bake until crust is golden brown, about 2 minutes longer. Cool on a wire rack., In a small saucepan, combine sugar and eggs until well blended. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture reaches 160° and coats the back of a metal spoon. Remove from the heat. Stir in chocolate and vanilla until smooth. Cool to lukewarm (90°), stirring occasionally. , In a small bowl, cream butter until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Add cooled chocolate mixture; beat on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. , In another large bowl, beat cream until it begins to thicken. Add confectioners' sugar; beat until stiff peaks form. Fold into chocolate mixture. , Pour into crust. Chill for at least 6 hours before serving. Garnish with whipped cream and chocolate curls if desired. Refrigerate leftovers.

FRENCH SILK PIE

Steps:

• For the crust: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Crush the crackers in a food processor or resealable bag. Pour them into a bowl and stir in the melted butter and sugar. Press into a pie pan and bake until golden and set, 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool slightly.
• For the filling: In a small microwave-safe bowl, melt the baking chocolate until stirrable (about 45 seconds on high). Set aside to cool.
• It is important for the bowl and ingredients to be cold for the next stage of making the filling--to get the right texture and result. In a large chilled bowl with an electric mixer, beat the sugar and butter until fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes.
• When the melted chocolate is cooled, drizzle it over the butter/sugar mixture. Add the vanilla extract. Beat the mixture thoroughly until combined (on a stand mixer, you will be using the whisk attachment).
• Turn your mixer to a medium speed and over a period of 15 to 20 minutes, add in the 4 cold eggs, one at a time, leaving about 5 minutes between each egg addition. Once the pie filling is well mixed, pour it into the baked pie shell, scraping every last speck of it out of the bowl. Smooth out the pie filling and place the pie in the refrigerator to chill for at least 2 hours (preferably longer).
• For the topping: Add the heavy cream and sugar to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and whip until it is stiff. Cover the pies with a thick layer of cream. Grate the semisweet chocolate over the top.

CLASSIC FRENCH SILK PIE

Steps:

• First make the pie crust. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, and salt. Add cold, cubed butter and, using your fingers, work the butter into the flour mixture. Quickly break the butter down into the flour mixture, some butter pieces will be the size of oat flakes, some will be the size of peas. Create a well in the butter and flour mixture and pour in the cold buttermilk. Use a fork to bring to dough together. Try to moisten all of the flour bits. On a lightly floured work surface, dump out the dough mixture. It will be moist and shaggy. Add a teaspoons more buttermilk if the dough feels dry. Shape into a rough disk and refrigerate for at least an hour.
• We'll blind bake the crust for this pie. That means we'll cook it completely without filling. Roll the pie crust to a thick 1/4-inch thickness and transfer to 9-inch pie dish. Fold excess dough under and crimp the edges. Dock the bottom and sides of the crust (that means pierce it with the tines of a fork) and refrigerate.
• Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly grease a sheet of parchment paper with nonstick spray. Place spray side down into the prepared pie crust. Fill with dried beans or pie weights to the very top of the crust. Bake for 15-17 minutes until the edges of the crust begin to brown. Remove from the oven and carefully lift the parchment and all of the beans out of the pie and into a large bowl. Yea - this is dicey. Return the crust to the oven and bake for another 8-11 minutes until the crust is golden brown and baked through. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before filling.
• To make the filling, in a medium saucepan over low heat whisk together granulated sugar and eggs. Whisk near constantly until the mixture reaches 160 degrees on a candy or fry thermometer. This took me about 10 minutes. Whisk constantly to ensure the eggs don't cook. This will ensure that the raw eggs are safe to eat.
• Remove from heat and whisk in the melted chocolate and pinch of salt. The mixture will thicken and seize a bit. Just keep whisking until glossy and smooth. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
• In a medium bowl, use electric hand beaters to beat butter until fluffy. Add the cooled chocolate mixture and beat on medium speed until butter disappears and the mixture is thick and glossy. When mixture is absolutely cooled to room temperature fold in the whipped cream or Cool Whip in three batches being careful not to deflate the cream or whip too much with stirring.
• Transfer the chocolate whip to the cooled pie crust and smooth the top.
• To make the topping, whip heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract to soft peaks that hold their shape. Spoon over the prepared pie. Top with chocolate shavings. Allow the pie to set in the refrigerator for 2 hours before serving. Pie can be stored in the refrigerator overnight. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.