Aunt Julia’s Chocolate Pie

 Ingredients

• All-American Pie Crust, recipe below
  
• 1 cup granulated sugar
  
• 2 cups whole milk, divided
  
• 3 ½ tablespoons all-purpose flour
  
• ¼ cup cocoa powder
  
• 3 large eggs, separated
  
• ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  
• Pinch of kosher salt
  
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
  
• 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
  

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.
   
2. For the pie filling, in a medium sauce pan combine the 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of the milk. Stir and set aside.
   
3. In a medium bowl, combine the remaining 1 cup of milk, the flour, and the cocoa powder. Whisk vigorously until the mixture becomes frothy and set aside.
   
4. Over medium-high heat, heat the saucepan with the milk and sugar mixture until it begins to simmer. Then slowly add the milk and flour mixture and stir to combine. Bring the filling to a boil. Add the egg yolks, whisking constantly, until the filling returns to a boil. Once the filling comes to a boil, immediately add the vanilla and remove it from the heat. Pour the filling into the baked pie crust and set aside.
   
5. For the meringue topping, places the egg whites in a medium size bowl with a pinch of salt and the cream of tartar. Using a hand held mixer, beat the whites on high speed until foamy. Continue beating the whites and gradually add the confectioners' sugar. Whisk egg whites until glossy and stiff peaks form.
   
6. To finish the pie, spoon the meringue over the pie, making sure it touches the edges of the pie crust. Bake until golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes (keep a close eye on the oven because meringue burns quickly). Move to a rack to cool completely. Refrigerate overnight to allow pie to set. Yields one 9-inch pie. 
 

 All-American Pie Crust

Ingredients

• 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
  
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  
• 4 tablespoons margarine, chilled and cut into pieces
  
• 4 tablespoons butter, chilled and cut into pieces
  
• 3 to 8 tablespoons ice water
  

Directions

1. In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine the flour and salt. Then add the cubed margarine and butter and process until mixture resembles a coarse meal, 8 to 10 seconds.
   
2. With the processor on pulse, add enough of the ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough holds together without being sticky or crumbly. Shape the dough into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill about 30 minutes in refrigerator.
   
3. Flour a clean work surface and a rolling pin. Place dough disk in center of floured surface. Roll dough out slowly to 1/8-inch thickness. To transfer dough to pie plate, roll dough around rolling pin and slowly unroll in 9-inch pie plate. Fold any excess dough under itself along the rim of the plate. Chill until firm, about 30 minutes
   
4. To bake pie crust, preheat oven to 425 degrees.
   
5. Cut a piece of parchment paper to line bottom of pie crust. Crumble the parchment paper and then spread back out and line dough. Weight the paper down with pie weights, dried beans, or uncooked rice (this keeps dough from puffing up while baking). Bake the crust for 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Recipe adapted from Bon Appétit, Y'all

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