CHOCOLATE PIE 1929

Steps:

• 1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (for the meringue)
• 2. THE CHOCOLATE PART: Heat the milk and the chocolate in a double boiler on the stove top. (You can make it without a double boiler but you will have to be extra careful, stirring constantly, not to scorch the milk and chocolate.)
• 3. When the chocolate is melted, beat with an egg beater one minute. (You could surely use your mixer, instead, LOL).
• 4. In a separate bowl sift the sugar, corn starch and salt
• 5. Add a 1/2 cup of the heated chocolate to the sifted ingredients and stir until smooth (mixer can be used for this step, also)
• 6. Add the smoothed mixture back into the double boiler, add the butter and stir constantly until thickened -- then cook it for 10 minutes longer, stirring occasionally
• 7. In a separate bowl, gently beat the egg yolks, then quickly pour 1/4 cup of the cooked mixture over the egg yolks and stir vigorously (these are "by hand" instructions, your mixer will make it much easier to do.)
• 8. Once the egg yolks are incorporated into the small amount of chocolate, then put this back into the chocolate in the double boiler, stirring and cooking until thickened.
• 9. Add the vanilla, stir to incorporate. Cool slightly then pour into pie shell and let cool completely.
• 10. THE MERINGUE PART: Beat egg whites until stiff.
• 11. Slowly sprinkle the sugar over the stiff egg whites and continue beating until all the sugar is added -- then beat some more until it again makes stiff peaks when the beater is stopped and lifted out.
• 12. Pile it on the pie (her exact words!!) quickly and gently making a random swirl pattern on top. Don't let it sit, or play in it too long, or the meringue will get "weepy."
• 13. Immediately place pie in a 400 degree oven for 5 minutes or until the meringue is lightly browned. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• 14. NOTE: I remember using an egg beater. When we got a brand new mixer in the mid fifties, we never used it again. I used to think it was lonely in the drawer and would sometimes get it out just to crank it up and listen to it whirling around in the air. Ha!