Mom’s Chocolate Pie

A special friend of my daughter’s called to check on her after a recent surgery. An immediate connection was made and we were old friends from way back. We talked about my daughter’s recovery – she’s doing better, thank you for asking – and about the food I brought her house as she rested and mended.

“Comfort food, that’s what they needed,” I told her. I had prepared chicken and dumplings and a chocolate pie.

“’What’s chocolate pie,’” she asked. “’Is it like Derby Pie?’”

I was in shock. Could someone really not know about chocolate pie? Apparently, yes.

Chocolate Pie is a sacred rite of passage in our family. I’ve already given my granddaughter, Lauren, her first three lessons on the art of chocolate pie making. There are many more to come. The women in our family love chocolate pie. It started with my grandmother, Ann Burns Jackson. Ann trained her girls Zada, Sadie, Rose and Bonnie to prepare chocolate pie. Aunt Sadie and my mom, Rose, honed their chocolate pie skills over the years. They are both in their 80’s now. In fact my mom is still making chocolate pie and doing hair in a small shop in Alabama — but that is a whole other story.

We all use the same recipe, however I still haven’t mastered the pie crust. For our clan a perfect shopping day starts with a piece of chocolate pie and a Coca Cola TM. Every holiday is celebrated with a pie of some type, whether pumpkin, lemon or apple, but, no matter what, there is always a chocolate pie in the house.

There’s a reason that pie is always on the table or being taken to a sick one’s home. When life is kicking you in the rear end chocolate pie make life all right. Oh yes, it does.

Almost everyone here in Louisiana will agree, when you have chocolate pie it just makes everything right in the world. When something is wrong or life just isn’t right we head for the nearest restaurant or home that promises us a slice of chocolate heaven.

I recently went home to Alabama to visit my mom, Rose, and my Aunt Sadie. Of course, I savored a piece of what I believe is the best chocolate pie in the world. It brought back memories and the love I feel for these women. I was teary as I left for the airplane to go home. As I headed back to Louisiana I found myself on a plane that sat on the tarmac because of mechanical problems . The stewardess sat beside and we started chatting about Louisiana food. She asked the same question. “What is chocolate Pie”

Well, I’ve decided it’s a Southern delicacy and should get the Nobel Peace Prize. Because it does make everything all right with world — even if it’s just for a few bites. So, I’m leaving you with the recipe. Make it with love and then let me know what problems it solved.

Mom’s Chocolate Pie

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar

3 tbsp. flour

3 tbsp. cocoa

3 eggs (beaten)

2 1/2 cups evaporated milk

1 tsp. vanilla

3 tbsp. butter

Whipped cream (small container heavy cream and a few tablespoons of sugar whipped until stiff.)

1 baked pie shell

Method:

Prebake the pie shell. Mix dry ingredients: sugar, flour and cocoa. Add beaten eggs and milk. Mix well, cook over medium heat and stir until thick. Remove from heat; add vanilla and butter. Pour into baked pie shell and cool before topping with whipped cream. Add coconut on top if you want.  Makes one 9 inch pie.

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Denise Dubé, globalfoodie’s creator and editor, is a food writer who travels – or a traveling foodie who writes. Foods preparation, its origin, smell and presentation are a passion (and obsession) and she enjoys tasting and writing about its cultural nuances. globalfoodie is her baby and food is her muse. It’s also the main reason she needs to lose a few extra pounds. Her work has appeared in Intermezzo, travelgirl, MSNBC.com, National Geographic Traveler and the Boston Globe.  Reach Denise at: Denise@globalfoodie.com.

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Richard Frisbie is a food, wine, and travel writer; a bookseller and publisher of New York centric books; and a professional baker who resides in New York’s Hudson Valley. Online, his articles appear here, on Gather.com, GoNomad.com, travellady.com and the many websites of EDGE Publications. He also writes for regional New York magazines such as Life in the Finger Lakes, and Kaatskill Life.  Richard can be reached at Richard@globalfoodie.com

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Emilie  C. Harting’s articles on culture and ecotourism have appeared in a number of major magazines and newspapers, most recently www.forbestraveler.com,  The Philadelphia Inquirer, and MSNBC. When she’s not walking around the streets of various cities or hiking in the countryside, she can often be found in her kitchen.

Kaye Hurst is a Louisiana southern woman who loves all things food-related — it nourishes her soul and her tastebuds. Cooking is her favorite part of life and she is compelled to share her passion for all things sauteed, braised, boiled or basted. In fact Kaye has more palpations over a recipe-laden cookbook than a steamy romance novel. Celebrations at home always involve good food marinated in comfort and seasoned with love. Kaye can be reached at: Kaye@globalfoodie.com.

Shannon Hurst Lane travels the world in search of inspiring destinations and adventurous moments. She enjoys family travel, romantic escapes, girlfriend getaways, and those all important soul-oh trips. She’s an unofficial ambassador for her home state, Louisiana, where the people don’t eat to live, they live to eat. Contact her at: Shannon@globalfoodie.com.

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Wine and the good life are the focus of the Sip & Savor column by Denise Reynolds.  Awarded the grand prize by Wines of France for her writing on French wines, Denise holds an Advanced Sommelier certification. Recently, she garnered another award when she was recognized for her unsurpassed knowledge and contribution on food and wine by Indagare, the premier resource for the world’s most discerning travelers.  “Denise” means Goddess of Wine and so it’s fitting that she can be reached at: Goddessofwine@globalfoodie.com.

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