Cook the Book: Grasshopper Pie
One of my favorite jokes goes like this: A grasshopper walks into a bar, and the bartender says, "Hey, did you know that we have a drink named after you?" The grasshopper replies, "You have a drink named Carl?"
Well, I think it's pretty hilarious, so hilarious that I couldn't resist sharing this recipe for grasshopper pie from Mrs. Rowe's Little Book of Southern Pies by Mollie Cox Bryan as an excuse to tell the joke.
This is the pie version of the grasshopper cocktail, a sweet and mint after-dinner drink that was popular in the South throughout the 1950s and 1960s. This pie is certainly from another era (marshmallows and green food coloring?), but the combination of chocolate and mint is undoubtedly delicious. This is also a wonderful summer dessert since it requires very little stove and oven time.
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Grasshopper Pie
- makes one 9-inch pie -
Adapted from Mrs. Rowe's Little Book of Southern Pies by Mollie Cox Bryan.
Ingredients
1 recipe Chocolate Cookie Crust, baked and chilled (recipe follows)
1/4 cup milk
24 large marshmallows (just over 6 ounces)
1/4 cup crème de menthe
2 tablespoons white crème de cacao
1 to 2 drops green food coloring (optional)
1 cup heavy cream, whipped to firm peaks
Procedure
1. Heat the milk in a saucepan over medium heat until warm, then add the marshmallows can continue to cook and stir until the marshmallows are melted and the mixture is smooth. Cool until lukewarm.
2. Add the liqueurs and mix well, then stir in a drop or two of green food coloring if you like. Fold in the whipped cream.
3. Spread the filling in the crust and freeze for 3 or 4 hours, until firm, before slicing.
Chocolate Cookie Crust
- makes one thick 9-inch crust or one thin 10-inch crust -
Ingredients
2 cups crushed plain chocolate cookies (without icing or filling)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Procedure
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. Combine the crumbs and butter and mix well. Firmly and evenly press the mixture into a 9- or 10-inch pie plate.
3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until the crust darkens to a deeper (almost black) brown, then cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes before filling. This crust can be made a day ahead and stored in the refrigerator.
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3 Comments:
This is my family's favorite pie! Why? Because it is AMAZING. In fact, this pie is often requested in lieu of cake on birthdays. You don't need the food coloring though - the creme de menthe turns it a wispy grashopper color. You also don't need the milk. Just creme de menthe, creme de cacao, marshmallows, heavy creme and a cookie crust (which can be store bought in a pinch)!
Kazem at 8:16PM on 07/15/09
this is my best friend's absolute favorite pie. she's been talking about it for years. i really should just buck up and make it for her!
sparkle_leech at 1:11AM on 07/16/09
this was my aunt mary's specialty, and my mother loved it. i gotta make this!!
mary00 at 4:52PM on 07/19/09