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By Jennie Guido

I’m not much of a baker, but I love to bake this particular pie. It’s simple, yummy, and comes out perfect 90% of the time.

So what happens in that 10% of non-perfect pie baking? Oh, a sampling of baking snafus. One of the first times I made this pie, I wasn’t much for tempering the eggs and instantly scrambled them with my hot chocolate and butter.

Another time, I thought I had it almost ready to take out of the oven only to find the middle was not quite set yet. A break took off down the middle of the pie, circled the edges, and oozed molten chocolate.

I’ve also burned a couple, but I’ll blame my 1950s oven on those disasters.

However, during the week of Christmas, I set aside an entire day to bake pies for my neighbors. While it doesn’t take long to mix them all up, they can only bake one at a time. (I also tried baking two at a time and quickly learned that’s a no no.)

So, neighbors, know that while it just looks like a chocolate pie, each is a labor of love to get right.

 

Chocolate Chess Pie

1 graham cracker crust

1 stick unsalted butter

1 ounce square semi-sweetened chocolate

1 cup sugar

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Melt the butter and chocolate together. Pour into a bowl and whisk together with the sugar, eggs, vanilla, and salt. Make sure to temper your egg mixture. Pour the filling into the crust, and bake in a 325-degree oven for about 40 minutes or until the top is set. (It’s best served warm!)