Recipe: 00108 Title : Chocolate Pecan Chunk Pie Author: Date : May 1995 _________________________________________________________________________ From: Death By Chocolate Tart Shell Dough 1 1/4 cup flour 6 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 tablespoon sugar 1 pinch salt 1/4 cup ice water Whisk together flour, sugar and salt. Cut in butter until mixture looks like cornmeal. Add ice water and stir until dough comes together. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours to relax the gluten. Transfer dough to a clean, floured surface. Using up to 1/2 cup of flour to prevent sticking, roll the dough out to a circle about 15" in diameter and 1/8" thick. Line a 9" X 1.5" false bottom pan (**note -- I use a 10" pie plate with success -- a 9" pie plate is too small) with the dough. Trim and crimp the edge. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Filling 1/4 pound unsalted butter 1/2 cup sugar 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, coped into 1/4" pieces, and divided in half 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped into 1/4" pieces 1 1/2 cups dark corn syrup 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract 1/4 teaspoon salt 8 eggs 3 cups pecan halves Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Heat the butter and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir constantly while bringing mixture to a boil. Allow the mixture to boil for 1.5 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer to the bowl of an electric mixer. Use a rubber spatula to stir in half the semi-sweet chocolate and the unsweetened chocolate. Continue to stir until the chocolate has melted. Add the corn syrup, extract, and salt. Add the eggs and place the mixer bowl on a electric mixer fitted with a paddle (read: Kitchen Aide). Combine on medium until the eggs are incorporated and the mixture is smooth. Remove the bowl from the mixer, and finish combining with a spatula. Remove the pie shell from the refrigerator and place on a baking sheet. Evenly disperse the pecan halves on the bottom of the shell. Spread the remaining semi-sweet chocolate on the pecan halves. S-L-O-W-L-Y pour chocolate mixture over nuts and chocolate. Leaving it on the baking sheet, bake the pie on the middle shelf of the preheated oven for 1 hour. Reduce the temperature to 300 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for an additional 45 to 55 minutes, until the internal temperature of the pie filling reaches 170 degrees Fahrenheit. Let cool at room temperature for 1 hour. Refrigerate the pie for at least 2 hours. Best after 24 hours of refrigeration. May be kept for 2-3 days in refrigerator. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _________________________________________________________________________