How can you not make a pie called Crack Pie. Having never tried crack itself it seemed like an exciting pie to eat. I pulled and saved this recipe from the September issue of Bon Appetit – featuring The Milk Bar’s desserts. I knew our friend Jason would be a terrific taster since he does not really eat chocolate (so sad). Well, he loved it. Of course he did – with all its oat-mealiness and brown sugar and butter. We all loved it. Especially me! I’m slowly realizing that I truly like all desserts, not just chocolate or lemon or ice cream. Exciting. My mom was here visiting and she suggested that I cut a piece out for the photo insisting that it will be a much better picture. It was her sneaky way of making sure she got a good taste of it too! Yummy she said 🙂 The taste is hard to describe – but it is rich and tasty and somewhat butterscotch-y with a crunchy oatmeal crust. I managed to make this with my injured hand (well, really with out it) so anyone can do this! The crust is press in – no rolling, so don’t be scared. Serve with freshly whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. Enjoy-
Oh, make this the day before you plan to serve. It chills overnight and is great served cold.
crack pie (from Bon Appetit Magazine featuring the Milk Bar’s desserts):
oat cookie crust-
9 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick plus one tablespoon), room temp
5 1/2 tablespoons light brown sugar, packed
2 tablespoons sugar
1 large egg
3/4’s cup plus 2 tablespoons old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 teaspoon kosher salt
filling–
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoon nonfat dry milk powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
6 1/2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
4 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Oat cookie crust – Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a sheet-pan with parchment or foil. Beat 6 (just 6) tablespoons of the butter with 4 (just 4) tablespoons brown sugar and 2 tablespoons of the sugar with the paddle attachment of your mixer – or with hand held beaters.
Beat until light and fluffy and scrape bowl here and there. This should take about 4-5 minutes.
Add the egg, and beat until pale and fluffy. Add the oats, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and beat until well blended. Transfer mixture to cookie sheet and press dough with hands to make a nice thin layer- about 1/2 inch thick or so. Bake until nicely golden – about 17-20 minutes. Transfer to a rack and let cool completely.
Transfer cooled oat cookie crust to a food processor (you can also do this all by hand – but my hand is hurt) and add 3 tablespoons butter and 1 1/2 tablespoons of the brown sugar. Pulse until dough comes together.
Press into a 9 inch pie plate and make sure you push the crust up the sides of the pan. Place the dish on a rimmed baking sheet and preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place oven rack in center of oven.
For the filling – Whisk together the sugar, brown sugar, milk powder and salt in a medium bowl. Add the melted butter and mix until incorporated. Add the cream, then the egg yolks and vanilla and whisk until well blended.
Pour the filling into the pie crust and place in oven with sheet-pan. Bake for about 30 minutes – and then reduce the heat to 325 degrees and bake another 20-24 minutes – until the pie only jiggles slightly when jiggled. It should look set around the edges and may have a few dark spots.
Place on cooling rack for 2 hours. Then place in fridge uncovered and overnight. Serve chilled with powdered sugar, and ice cream. Good crack. Enjoy –
