French Silk Pie

I wanted to make a French Silk Pie for Thanksgiving this year, but all the traditional recipes call for a lot of raw eggs.  I didn't think it was wise to serve something like that to all the nieces, nephews and a pregnant sister in law, so I went searching for a recipe that would be safe.  Leave it to the wonderful test kitchen at Taste of Home to have it all figured out!  In this recipe the eggs are pasteurized by heat before adding the chocolate.  You will need a thermometer and patience, but the end results are worth it.  The recipe I made is a double batch of the one found here.  It filled my big Pampered Chef pie plate just perfectly, but even if you don't have a big pie plate, you might consider making a bigger batch, as all the comments on this pie report it to be low on filling.  You could always refrigerate any remaining filling for a midnight snacking mom emergency.  This is really rich.  Slice it thin.

French Silk Pie (with Almond)

1 1/2 c. sugar

6 eggs

Combine in a sauce pan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly until mixture coats the back of a metal spoon and reaches 160 degrees. Remove from heat.  Stir in:

6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/4 tsp. almond extract

Stir until smooth.  Cool to lukewarm, stirring occasionally.

In a large bowl, beat

1 c. butter

until light and fluffy.  Add cooled (90 degrees) egg mixture and beat on high for 5 min.  Pour into a cooked and cooled pie shell (I used this one.)  Refrigerate at least 6 hours before serving. 

Notes:  It takes a while to heat the eggs.  Use low heat and patience.  I have used chocolate chips instead of the chopped chocolate called for in the original.  I would do it again without hesitation, but the chopped chocolate might be darker/richer in appearance.  This is usually topped with whipped cream.  You can also replace the almond extract with 2 tsp. of vanilla extract.

Jenny