Mississippi mud pie

Myself and a bunch of friends traveled to South Carolina on a J1 visa last summer. While there, my keen interest in food and baking had me trying every tasty treat that my broke Irish behind could afford. Although the dessert doesn’t originate in South Carolina, my all time favorite had to be the Mississippi Mud Pie. This traditional Southern dessert with its rich chocolatey filling and whipped cream topping will have you feeling guilty for a week after eating a slice. However, it’s well worth it!

You might have guessed that the dessert in question is in fact the infamous pie featured in The Help, but, you’ll be extremely glad to know that unlike Mini’s, my mud pie doesn’t have a horrendous secret ingredient! This recipe is adapted from Love Food’s gorgeous book ‘Bake’.

Ingredients
For the base:

• 175g Plain Flour (sieved)
• 25g Cocoa Powder (sieved)
• 40g Light Muscovado Sugar
• 85g Butter (softened)
• 3 tbsp Cold Water

For the filling:

• 85g Dark Chocolate
• 85g Butter
• 85g Light Muscovado Sugar
• 2 eggs (lightly beaten)
• 100ml Whipping Cream
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract

For the topping:

• 250ml Whipping Cream
• 100g Dark Chocolate

Method
For the base:
1) Preheat your oven to 200C/ 400F/ Gas mark 6 and grease your round tart dish with melted butter.
2) The water for the pastry works best when it’s really cold so place a small glass of water into the freezer at the beginning.
3) Sift the flour and cocoa powder into a large bowl and stir in the sugar.
4) Add the butter and using your fingertips rub the butter into the mixture until it resembles small breadcrumbs.
5) Add the three tablespoons of water until the mixture binds a dough.
6) Roll the dough out onto a lightly floured surface – make sure that it’s large enough to cover your pie dish.
7) Prick the base multiple times with a fork, cover with greaseproof paper, and fill with baking beans. If you don’t have baking beans, simply sit a small plate on top and bake in the oven for 10 minutes.
8) After the 10 minutes have passed remove the base from the oven and reduce the temperature to 180C/ 350F/ Gas mark 4.
9) For the filling, melt the chocolate and butter in a saucepan on a low heat.
10) Whisk the sugar and eggs together until smooth and then stir into the chocolate mixture along with the cream and the vanilla extract.
11) Pour the mixture over the base and bake for 20-25 minutes until firm.
12) When ready, leave to cool while you whip the cream.
13) When the tart is fully cool spread the cream over the filling. Then drizzle melted chocolate over the cream using a spoon or, if you want to be extra fancy, fill a plastic food bag with the chocolate, pierce it with a cocktail stick and squeeze the chocolate over the top.

Serve chilled and enjoy!

By Paula Murphy

For more of Paula’s delicious recipes, check out her blog Yummmmyy