Old Ebbitt Grill is not a good first date spot for me. I've been there twice now on a first date, and it didn't work out either time. The first first date was with a guy who ended up taking my roommate to a concert a couple months later (they were friends) and then kissed her and tried to rip her bra off. A narrow miss. The other was with a man who would only communicate with me via text messages and wanted to introduce me to his mother.
After one date.
What Old Ebbitt does have, however, is one of the most magnificent desserts I have ever tasted: a bourbon-chocolate-walnut pie that is out of this world. I've been wanting to replicate it for quite some time now, and I finally came up with my own version. To make the pie, I tweaked a Mississippi Pecan Pie recipe from the 1000 Best Recipes cookbook, adding walnuts and chocolate chips instead of the pecans. I was a little nervous as to adding bourbon to it, so i just added it to whipped cream and topped it with that. Also, the pie crust may seem like a bit of work (versus buying pre-made), but it's worth it.
Walnut Chocolate-Chip Pie with Bourbon Whipped Cream
Pie recipe adapted from the 1000 Best Recipes Cookbook
Serves 4-6
For the crust:
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. powdered sugar
1 egg yolk
For the filling:
5 Tbsp. light corn syrup
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
4 Tbsp. butter
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup semi-sweet mini morsels
For the whipped cream:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. bourbon
1. Dump the flour in a bowl. Dice the butter into the flour, then mix with your hands until the mixture looks like bread crumbs. Stir in the sugar, egg yolk, and two tablespoons of very cold water. Mix and knead with your hands until the dough is smooth. (Add a bit more water if the dough seems really dry.)
2. Roll out the pastry dough on a lightly floured surface until it is large enough to line an 8-inch pie dish. Line the dish with the pastry and prick the bottom with a fork a couple times, then line the crust with foil filled with beans or pie weights (this will weigh the pie crust down so it doesn't bubble up when baking.) Chill for 30 minutes and preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
3. Bake the pie shell blind (alone) for 10 minutes. Remove the foil and beans/weights and continue to bake the crust for 5 more minutes.
4. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees.
5. To make the filling, heat the corn syrup, brown sugar, and butter in a saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat and cool slightly. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla extract. Stir in the walnuts and chocolate chips (but you don't have to stir until the chocolate melts - it's better if it doesn't.)
6. Freak out because the filling looks very liquidy, but pour it in to the crust anyway, and trust that everything will work out better than my first dates. Bake for 35-40 minutes until the filling is set.
7. While that's baking, whip together the cream, sugar, and bourbon with an electric mixer until peaks form and it resembles, well, whipped cream. Feel free to add a bit more whiskey, if you'd like. Serve with the pie.
What Old Ebbitt does have, however, is one of the most magnificent desserts I have ever tasted: a bourbon-chocolate-walnut pie that is out of this world. I've been wanting to replicate it for quite some time now, and I finally came up with my own version. To make the pie, I tweaked a Mississippi Pecan Pie recipe from the 1000 Best Recipes cookbook, adding walnuts and chocolate chips instead of the pecans. I was a little nervous as to adding bourbon to it, so i just added it to whipped cream and topped it with that. Also, the pie crust may seem like a bit of work (versus buying pre-made), but it's worth it.
Walnut Chocolate-Chip Pie with Bourbon Whipped Cream
Pie recipe adapted from the 1000 Best Recipes Cookbook
Serves 4-6
For the crust:
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. powdered sugar
1 egg yolk
For the filling:
5 Tbsp. light corn syrup
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
4 Tbsp. butter
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup semi-sweet mini morsels
For the whipped cream:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. bourbon
1. Dump the flour in a bowl. Dice the butter into the flour, then mix with your hands until the mixture looks like bread crumbs. Stir in the sugar, egg yolk, and two tablespoons of very cold water. Mix and knead with your hands until the dough is smooth. (Add a bit more water if the dough seems really dry.)
2. Roll out the pastry dough on a lightly floured surface until it is large enough to line an 8-inch pie dish. Line the dish with the pastry and prick the bottom with a fork a couple times, then line the crust with foil filled with beans or pie weights (this will weigh the pie crust down so it doesn't bubble up when baking.) Chill for 30 minutes and preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
3. Bake the pie shell blind (alone) for 10 minutes. Remove the foil and beans/weights and continue to bake the crust for 5 more minutes.
4. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees.
5. To make the filling, heat the corn syrup, brown sugar, and butter in a saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat and cool slightly. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla extract. Stir in the walnuts and chocolate chips (but you don't have to stir until the chocolate melts - it's better if it doesn't.)
6. Freak out because the filling looks very liquidy, but pour it in to the crust anyway, and trust that everything will work out better than my first dates. Bake for 35-40 minutes until the filling is set.
7. While that's baking, whip together the cream, sugar, and bourbon with an electric mixer until peaks form and it resembles, well, whipped cream. Feel free to add a bit more whiskey, if you'd like. Serve with the pie.
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