Snowbird Mountain Lodge

Robbinsville, North Carolina

Heritage Recipe

Mocha Pecan Pie

One of my favorite menu items during Thanksgiving is the pecan pie! This recipe is a new twist on an old Southern standard that we serve at the Lodge frequently, and we always run out of servings before the end of the evening! Slices of warm pie with a little chocolate sauce and freshly whipped cream and you'll have a fabulous dessert to share with friends and family.

Ingredients for Crust:

Follow your favorite pie crust recipe, but add 2 Tablespoons orange zest to the dough and substitute 1 Tablespoon orange juice for some of the water called for in the recipe. This particular pie is a single-crust pie, so you'll have enough dough for 2 pies if you want to prepare more than one.

Filling:

3 Tablespoons sweet, unsalted butter

3 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1 Tablespoon heavy cream

2 teaspoons instant espresso powder or instant coffee powder

1 cup light corn syrup

1 cup sugar

3 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoons salt

1-1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut the dough in two equal parts. Roll one section of pie dough on a lightly floured surface to a 12-inch round. Place the round into a 9-inch glass pie plate and form the crust. Trim the edges and pinch them decoratively to form the crust edges. Place the prepared crust in the refrigerator for 10 minutes. Refrigerate the leftover dough wrapped in plastic wrap.

Remove the prepared crust from the refrigerator and line the inside with aluminum foil. Pour some dried beans into the foil-lined shell (the beans will weight the crust and keep it from rising) and place in the oven for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, remove the foil and beans and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Remove from the oven to cool.

In a mixing bowl, combine the melted butter, cocoa powder, heavy cream, coffee powder, corn syrup, sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt and whisk well to blend all ingredients. Stir in the pecans. Pour the filling into the cooled crust and transfer to the preheated oven to bake for about 1 hour. The pie should be set and slightly puffed. Cool completely before slicing.

To serve, warm sliced wedges of pie in the microwave briefly and top with chocolate sauce and a large dollop of freshly whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

• You found this recipe on 1st Traveler's Choice Internet Cookbook. (www.virtualcities.com)

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