Awesome any way you slice it!

"Any time of the day is a good time for pie." ~ Fabienne, played by Maria de Medeiros in Pulp Fiction. 

Wow, I really know that movie too well. 

But the truth of the matter is, people like pie. The making of the crust is envisioned as such a hassle, even though it really isn't so bad. However, piecrust is one of the only things left that I let myself cheat on. Just go to the store and buy it. For this recipe you'll want to bake the crust ahead of time. Roll it out into your pan and follow the instructions in the back. To keep the middle from puffing up (since the fillings are cooked when you put them in the crust), put a piece of foil in the crust and dump some dry beans or rice on top of it. Cook the crust about half the time directed on the package. Then remove the foil and finish cooking it. The beans or rice will be unusable, so set them aside to use as a weight some other time.

But let's not dwell on faults when we could be talking about chocolate pie. The looks you get when you whip one of these out of the 'fridge is one of the things people who love cooking live for. One of my neighbours was hanging out on his porch one day. I offered him a piece of the French Silk pie, and he ate it out of his hand right there on the porch. Pie all alone is viewed with a kind of apprehensive reverence: "I could never do that. What a mess it must be. That's got to be so hard..." 

In the French Silk pie recipe, you'll see it calls for uncooked Egg Beaters. Don't panic! Liquid eggs are Pasteurized, which means they've been heat-treated to kill anything that could make you sick if you went and ate a shell egg straight-up without cooking it. On another note, liquid egg whites won't work for this recipe. 

This pie should rest in the 'fridge for at least 2-6 hours to firm up before you serve it. It'll be worth it! 

French Silk Pie   Serves 6-10     Difficulty (Scale of 1-5): 2 1/2

One cooked 9 inch pie shell   3 ounces (squares) of unsweetened chocolate   1 C Butter (2 sticks), soft but not warm   1 C Sugar   1/2 t Vanilla   1 C Egg Beaters

With an electric mixer, beat the butter until it's fluffy. This may take a few minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl at least once. Slowly add the sugar and beat until it's mixed in well. Add the vanilla and chocolate. Add the Egg Beaters, 1/4 cup at a time. Beat mixture for 2 minutes between additions. This is a really important step! Don't cheat or the pie won't be worth eating. Scrape it down at least twice. Spoon your filling into the pie crust (it will be very full) and refrigerate at least 2 hours so it'll be nice and firm.