Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Uncle Meek's Chocolate Pie


My family comes from a rich tradition of cooking. My grandfather loves to bake especially, and has just recently opened up his stash of recipes to me. But the Beethoven's 9th of our family's recipes is my Uncle Meek's chocolate pie.

My Uncle Meek is actually my grandmother's brother (which would actually make him my great uncle, I think). His name is really Mike, but when I was little I mispronounced it Meek and it just stuck. Uncle Meek lives in Texas and every time I would visit him and my Aunt Carolyn, they would have a plethora of pies on standby, just waiting for me to eat.

He made a great pecan pie, a wonderful chess, but the best of the best was his chocolate pie. Lots of people had his recipe, but nobody made it quite as good as he could. That pie made the thirteen hours it took us to drive to Texas worth it.

I finally got my hands on Uncle Meek's Chocolate Pie recipe and just had to try it out. It's rather an unorthodox pie. You make the filling in the microwave. I was very skeptical of the method and was sure it wouldn't work and that Uncle Meek had been tricking us all these years. But, lo and behold, it was the most delicious pie I think I've ever made.

So, without further ado, the cherished Uncle Meek's Chocolate Pie.

Uncle Meek's Chocolate Pie
Yield: 1 9" pie

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup flour
1 can evaporated milk
Dash of salt
1 1/2 cups water
6 egg yolks, beaten
1 (12-oz.) bag semisweet chocolate chips
1 9" pie shell, pre-baked

Directions
1. In the bowl of an electric mixer, mix together flour and sugar.
2. Mix in evaporated milk, salt, water, and egg yolks.
3. Microwave on high for 9 minutes, stirring at 8 minutes left, 7 minutes left, 6 minutes left, and 3 minutes left.
4. Strain the mixture over a bowl.
5. Mix in the chocolate chips until fully incorporated.
6. Pour into the prepared pie crust and refrigerate at least 8 hours, or until ready to serve.