Triple-Layer Pumpkin-Chocolate Pie
If you never imagined chocolate and pumpkin as great pie partners, this pie will surprise and delight you.
Triple-Layer Pumpkin-Chocolate Pie has a “plain” pumpkin pie layer, a chocolate-pumpkin layer, and a sweetened sour cream layer on top. It’s the one pie my wife, Bev, must have every fall. You may feel the same once you’ve tried it. The recipe makes 8–10 servings, depending on how generous you are.
Crust
Use your choice of single-crust pie dough (there are several recipe options available in Pie Academy).
Filling Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
- 12 ounces full-fat or reduced-fat cream cheese, softened
- 1½ cups sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup pumpkin purée, canned or fresh
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup full-fat sour cream
Directions
- Prepare and refrigerate the pie dough. Roll the dough into a 12 ½- to 13-inch circle and line a 9 to 9 ½-inch deep-dish pie pan with it, shaping the edge into an upstanding ridge. Flute or crimp the edge, chill the shell, and partially prebake at 375°F (190°C) for 25 minutes using the blind baking method.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Place the butter in the top insert of a double boiler set over, not in, barely simmering water. (Alternatively, use a heatproof bowl, suspended by the sides of a saucepan, over barely simmering water.) When the butter is partially melted, add the chocolate. Heat until the chocolate has melted, then whisk to smooth. Remove the insert. Let the chocolate partially cool.
- Using an electric mixer (handheld is fine), cream the cream cheese on medium-high speed in a large bowl, gradually adding 1 ¼ cups of the sugar. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the pumpkin, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt, and blend until evenly combined. Pour slightly less than half of the filling into a separate bowl and stir in the melted chocolate until evenly blended. Pour the chocolate filling into the cooled pie shell and gently shake the pan to settle the filling.
- Place the pie on the center oven rack and bake for 20 minutes. Transfer the pie to a rack and cool for 15 minutes.
- Carefully ladle the remaining plain pumpkin filling over the chocolate layer. Shake the pan gently to settle the filling. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the pumpkin layer is set. When done, the perimeter of the filling will have puffed somewhat but not so much that it develops large cracks.
- Transfer the pie to a rack and cool until the filling settles and flattens out, 30 to 45 minutes.
- Combine the sour cream and the remaining ¼ cup sugar in a small saucepan over very low heat. Warm the mixture, stirring often, for 2 or 3 minutes. When the sour cream has thinned and is slightly warmer than body temperature, slowly pour it over the top of the pie. Immediately shake and tilt the pie so the topping spreads and fully covers the layer underneath. Cool thoroughly, then cover with loosely tented aluminum foil and refrigerate for at least 3 to 4 hours before serving. Cover and refrigerate leftovers right away.
Excerpted from Pie Academy © Ken Haedrich. Photo © Emulsion Studio.
“An excellent resource for home bakers looking to up their pie game." – Publishers Weekly, starred review
"The wide-ranging, well-curated mix of classic and contemporary recipes and expert advice make this an essential primer for avid home bakers." – Library Journal, starred review
"Readers will find everything they'd ever want to know about making pie, and even the dough-fearful will feel ready to measure, roll, and cut." – Booklist, starred review
“Fear of pie? Ken Haedrich to the rescue. Pie Academy takes you through everything pie related — perfect crusts, fillings, crimping techniques, blind baking, lattice toppings and more.” — Kathy Gunst, coauthor of Rage Baking and resident chef for NPR’s Here and Now
“A true baker’s delight.”— Amy Traverso, Yankee magazine food editor and author of The Apple Lover’s Cookbook
Trusted cookbook author and pie expert Ken Haedrich delivers the only pie cookbook you’ll ever need: Pie Academy. Novice and experienced bakers will discover the secrets to baking a pie from scratch, with recipes, crust savvy, tips and tutorials, advice about tools and ingredients, and more. Foolproof step-by-step photos give you the confidence you need to choose and prepare the best crust for different types of fillings. Learn how to make pie dough using butter, lard, or both; how to work with all-purpose, whole-wheat, or gluten-free flour; how to roll out dough; which pie pan to use; and how to add flawless finishing details like fluting and lattice tops. Next are 255 recipes for every kind and style of pie, from classic apple pie and pumpkin pie to summer berry, fruit, nut, custard, chiffon, and cream pies, freezer pies, slab pies, hand pies, turnovers, and much more. This beast of a collection, with gorgeous color photos throughout, weighs in at nearly four pounds and serves up forty years of pie wisdom in a single, satisfying package.
"The wide-ranging, well-curated mix of classic and contemporary recipes and expert advice make this an essential primer for avid home bakers." – Library Journal, starred review
"Readers will find everything they'd ever want to know about making pie, and even the dough-fearful will feel ready to measure, roll, and cut." – Booklist, starred review
“Fear of pie? Ken Haedrich to the rescue. Pie Academy takes you through everything pie related — perfect crusts, fillings, crimping techniques, blind baking, lattice toppings and more.” — Kathy Gunst, coauthor of Rage Baking and resident chef for NPR’s Here and Now
“A true baker’s delight.”— Amy Traverso, Yankee magazine food editor and author of The Apple Lover’s Cookbook
Trusted cookbook author and pie expert Ken Haedrich delivers the only pie cookbook you’ll ever need: Pie Academy. Novice and experienced bakers will discover the secrets to baking a pie from scratch, with recipes, crust savvy, tips and tutorials, advice about tools and ingredients, and more. Foolproof step-by-step photos give you the confidence you need to choose and prepare the best crust for different types of fillings. Learn how to make pie dough using butter, lard, or both; how to work with all-purpose, whole-wheat, or gluten-free flour; how to roll out dough; which pie pan to use; and how to add flawless finishing details like fluting and lattice tops. Next are 255 recipes for every kind and style of pie, from classic apple pie and pumpkin pie to summer berry, fruit, nut, custard, chiffon, and cream pies, freezer pies, slab pies, hand pies, turnovers, and much more. This beast of a collection, with gorgeous color photos throughout, weighs in at nearly four pounds and serves up forty years of pie wisdom in a single, satisfying package.
Related Books
-
The Harvest Baker
-
Blueberry Love
-
Strawberry Love
-
Cookie Craft
-
Cookie Craft Christmas
