Someone asked for a recipe for French Silk Pie. This pie is
ubiquitous but seldom the real thing. It has gone the way of
Key Lime Pie I fear. I made this pie often as a youngster in
the late 1950s. The recipe was from one of my mother's
Pillsbury Bake-Off annual pamphlets. I do not have the
pamphlet, however, I have a copy of Pillsbury's Best 1000
Recipes (Barb Schaller also has a copy of this wonderful
book.) The book is a consolidation of the annual booklets
from 1949-1959.
French Silk Chocolate Pie was a Best of Class Winner by Mrs.
K. E. Cooper of Silver Springs, Maryland. I do not know in
what year she won. But here is the recipe:
"A magnificent chocolate pie--rich, creamy smooth and
luscious, and you don't cook the filling."
Bake at 450 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes Makes 8-inch pie
Prepare recipe for One-Crust Pastry, using 8-inch pie pan;
bake as directed
Cream 1.2 cup butter or margarine [editoral comment
here...this was the 1950s. Do not use margarine if you make
this pie. It must be real butter] Gradually add 3/4 cup
sugar, creaming well
Blend in 2 squares (2 oz.) unsweetened chocolate, melted and
thoroughly cooled, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Add 2 eggs, one at a time; beat 5 minutes after each. (With
mixer use medium speed.)
Turn into pie shell. Chill 2 hours. Top with whipped cream
and walnuts if desired.
The photograph in the book shows the pie with a rim of
whipped cream and whole walnuts placed about 3 inches apart
so that each piece of cut pie gets one walnut.
It is important to make your own pastry dough. Do not buy a
ready made shell unless you are absolutely afraid to tackle
pie dough...and I know that there are many who are terrified
of the thought of such an undertaking.
I will also confess to altering the recipe over the years. I
add a third square (oz.) of chocolate because I prefer a
more chocolate pie. I also add mint extract to the filling
when I add the vanilla. I frost the entire top of the pie
with whipped cream and decorate the top with chocolate
curls. And I happily skip the walnuts.
Now I wonder if Mrs. Cooper is still alive and if she
realizes that her recipe has become such a famous American
dessert standard?