Death by Sugar Lovin pie

It's probably never a good idea to try and put two sweet things together that you've never made before.  But I really, really thought that these might taste good, which they did, they just happened to send the eater into a sugar lovin high. To give you a description of the Death by Sugar Lovin pie:  it began with an oat cookie crust that was lined with chocolate ganache, filled with a no bake cheesecake and topped with peanut brittle.

I know.  My teeth hurt just thinking about all that sugar in one place.  It was highly decadent and it was an experiment that was successful the fact that it taught me a few things and it gave me a couple of new techniques to share.

We'll start with the oat cookie crust:


In Bon Appetit's September Restaurant issue, they revealed the recipes of Christina Tosi, the pastry chef at Momofuku Milk Bar and the Momofuku restaurant empire (for more on the Momofuku family of restaurants, visit www.momofuku.com or read Anthony Bourdain's Medium Raw).  Tosi is known for being incredibly inventive and her desserts are known for being very addictive.   What caught my eye in all of her desserts was the recipe for Crack Pie.  You can find the whole recipe here, but today, I am focusing on the crust.


The oat cookie crust is very unique to me.  While it resembles a graham crust or any crushed cookie crust, what's unique about this crust is that rather than starting with already crushed cookies, or buying a package or oreos, you make an oatmeal cookie bar, crumble it and create the crust completely from scratch.  The oat cookie crust technique inspired me to start thinking about other types of cookie crusts you could make from scratch and the number of delicious fillings you could pair with them to make a truly unique pie.  See your basic recipe here and get ideas on how to make it your own.

But for my first try, I followed Tosi's recipe.  The oat cookie crust came out perfectly.  The only thing I did differently was blind bake the crust without the filling for 17-18 minutes after pressing into the pie pan because I wanted to fill the crust with a cheesecake and ganache filling that couldn't be baked.  


Now for thoughts on a cheesecake & ganache filling.  Some key items to remember.


1.  You won't need as much ganache as you think.
2.  You won't need as much cheesecake filling as you think.
3.  When in doubt, let it chill longer.


Ganache is a very basic pastry item that everyone can make.  You just need chocolate and heavy cream.  See the recipe here.  The beautiful thing about ganache is that you can adjust your ratio of cream to chocolate to create a thicker or thinner ganache.  The consistency you are looking for here is equal parts cream to chocolate for a thin glaze effect.

This particular cheesecake filling was a no-bake filling, which means there aren't any eggs.  The bonus is that it comes together quickly.  The downside is that it never reaches a true cheesecake density.  It depends what you like in your cheesecake.  I decided to go a slightly tangy and sweet route.  My filling recipe can be found here, but for quick reference it had cream cheese, greek yogurt, goat cheese, honey, sugar and a touch of heavy cream.

And finally, the topper- peanut brittle.

I had never made candy or brittle before this little experiment.  A few things I learned:

1.  When in doubt, opt for a bigger pan.
2.  Understand that you need to spend the whole time at the stove with the peanut brittle mixture.  
3.  Corn syrup is kind of flavorless.


My peanut brittle ended up being very thick.  It still tastes good, but for brittle of any kind, thinness is key for breaking it up and eating it.  When it's too thick, it doesn't break well and it gets stuck in your teeth, giving you the flavor of peanut brittle constantly.   

I thought since my candy thermometer was going to gauge the temperature for me, I could watch TV and check on it every once in a while.  Nope, nope, and nope.  Peanut brittle needs to be stirred, and often.  In addition, you have to watch the pan to make sure the brittle mixture doesn't overflow while boiling.


Also, corn syrup has absolutely no depth of flavor.  So the original recipe I made tastes like peanut brittle, but in the future, I'll be making it this way, courtesy of Sir Emeril, minus the chili powder.


So when you assemble this Death by Sugar Lovin pie, it goes:


Crust
Ganache
Cheesecake filling
Broken peanut brittle pieces

Then it has to chill overnight.  It does taste really good.  It's just so decadent that you need to take a very small slice.  Or, do this....try making all of these fun pastry items, just not in the same dessert!

Cookie-style pie crust: the basics

This new way of thinking about pie crust is inspiring and fun.  Let the cookie and pie filling combinations take you all kinds of places.

Cookie pie crust, basic recipe:

Ingredients:
9 Tbsp Unsalted butter, divided
5 1/2 Tbsp Brown sugar, divided
2 Tbsp Sugar
1 Large egg
1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
1/2 cup Flour
1/8 tsp Baking powder
1/8 tsp Baking soda
1/4 Heaping tsp Salt

Method:
1.  Preheat oven 350 degrees F.  Line 13/9/2 in pan with parchment paper, coat with non-stick cooking spray or grease with butter.  In bowl of mixer, combine 6 Tbsp of butter,  4 Tbsp of brown sugar and 2 Tbsp of sugar and beat well until light and fluffy.  Scrape down the bowl as needed.
2.  Add egg, beat until pale and fluffy.  Add remaining ingredients and beat until well blended.  Pour mixture into prepared pan and spread evenly to the edges.  Bake for 17 to 18 minutes or until golden.  Allow to cool completely.
3.  Crumble cookie into large bowl.  Add remaining butter and brown sugar and using your hands, mix together until it is moistened and crumbly.  Press into a 9-in pie pan.

Now, depending on the filling you choose, you may need to blind bake this crust of about 10-15 minutes.  Any filling that does not get baked will need to have the crust blind baked first. 

From here, can you imagine the possibilities?  

How about a snickerdoodle crust with a pumpkin pie filling?  You'll need to add 1 tsp of cinnamon to your cookie batter and then add another 2 tsp to the second stage of crumbling with brown sugar and butter. 

Or a chocolate chip cookie crust with a cookie dough ice cream filler?

Or a shortbread cookie crust with a lemon meringue filling?  For that, the shortbread cookie recipe will be rather different, but you get the idea. 

My Sugar Lovin pie plate runneth over.  

No-bake cheesecake filling

This tangy cheesecake filling does triple time as a fruit dip and a unique peanut butter cookie sandwich filling.

Ingredients:

6 oz Cream cheese
4 oz Goat cheese
1/4 cup Sugar
1/4 cup Honey
1/4 cup Greek-style yogurt
2 Tbsp Heavy Cream

Method:
1.  Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and beat together until sugar dissolves, or about 5 minutes.  Place in refrigerator to chill overnight.

  It's unique, it's tangy and it's easy!

Basic chocolate ganache recipe and methods

Chocolate ganache, depending on the consistency, can be used as a cake filler, a cake glaze, chocolate syrup to drizzle and more.  Here's your basic recipe, which can be used to glaze a cake or drizzle syrup across a yummy dessert.

Ingredients:
2/3 cup Heavy Cream
10 oz Chopped chocolate (any kind will do...though chocolate baking discs are my favorite)

Methods:

There are many ways to make chocolate ganache.  Some swear that you can place both items in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 30 seconds at a time, stirring it until it's smooth.

I personally prefer one of the two following methods.  I choose the way I do it based on the time in which I need the ganache to be finished.

Quick Ganache:
1. Place chocolate in stainless steel bowl, set aside.  Heat cream in small saucepan over high heat until it just boils. 
2.  Pour hot cream over chocolate, stirring until smooth.

Slow Ganache:
1.  Place chocolate and cream in large stainless steel bowl.  Set bowl over pot of simmering water and allow to heat slowly, stirring occasionally until smooth.

Either way, when you are done, your ganache should look like this:

Notice the ribbon-like stream of chocolate- that's what you're aiming for.

A few nifty tidbits on chocolate ganache: 

1.  By adjusting the ratio or chocolate to cream, you can create a thinner or thicker ganache.  More chocolate than cream will give you a thicker ganache that could be used to fill a cake.  More cream then chocolate gives you a thinner glaze.

2.  Chocolate ganache can be reused.  If you have leftover ganache, transfer it to a stainless steel bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator.   To bring it back, place the bowl over a pot of simmering water and stir.