Chocolate Marshmallow Pie

I made this around Thanksgiving and it truly is an American pie. It came from Jamie's magazine and I have to say mine looks very much like the picture! I love how they use crumb bases, rather than faff around with pastry bases, most of the time. This appeals to me. Plus this pie allowed me to blowtorch marshmallows – always a pleasure.

This pie went to the top of the favourites list for many of my work colleagues, which is not to be sniffed at. It’s very rich so only a small slice is needed per person. I’d encourage you to make this is a pie dish as the heavy weight of it lends something to the whole experience. I’ve found that TK Maxx has great deals on bakeware and the one near me always had a selection of pie dishes in various sizes.

Ingredients

Base

225g digestive biscuits

1 tbsp plain flour

Pinch of salt

115g melted butter, cooled

Filling

75g plain flour

25g cocoa powder

Pinch of salt

75g dark muscovado sugar

100g butter

100g dark chocolate – no more than 60% cocoa

150ml cold water

1 egg

Topping

Make your own marshmallows – recipe here – or just buy a pack

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/GM4.
2. Put the biscuits, flour and salt in food processor and pulse until fine. Then add the melted butter, whizz and put the resulting crumb in the pie dish (mine was 23cm). Chill for 20 minutes. (You can always bash the hell out of the biscuits using plastic bags and a rolling pin, doing the mixing in a bowl).
3. Once chilled bake the base for 10 minutes.
4. Now for the filling. Sift the flour, cocoa powder and salt into a bowl.
5. In a saucepan put the sugar, butter (chop up) and chocolate (broken into pieces) with the water and heat gently until melted and smooth. Take off the heat, add the dry mixture and the egg, then mix together well.
6. Pop in the oven for 10 minutes. Don’t worry when you take it out – it should look wobbly. It will firm up as it cools.
7. Once cool, or just before serving, arrange the marshmallows on top and blowtorch!!! Serve.

Marshmallows (with no sugar thermometer)

So I'm writing this while waiting to run up and down a hill. It's The Thew's fault as he signed up for a race up and down three hills (hilariously called The 3 Molehills) and of course his family followed suit. My sister-in-law asked if I'd do one of the stages, so she could do only two, and for some reason I said yes.

Outside its pouring with rain and fairly cold. I'm surrounded by people waiting for their stage who seem genuinely excited about running and it's not helping my mood. I don't enjoy running and somehow I seem to do so much of it. I suppose it keeps me fit and gives me a focus for the monotony of the gym but it's annoying I don't enjoy it. Seriously it would make my life easier if I was super thrilled to run around all day, get muddy and sweat in public.

However the place where I'm waiting has a little Christmas shop so it's better than a tent in a field. It's getting all festive and before Christmas hits we have Thanksgiving to do first. If you know Americans, or anyone who has lived there for a while, try and celebrate it with them. There is all the good food and marshmallows play a large part. I mean they put them on top of sweet potatoes!!!! However, these ones are destined to be put on top of a chocolate pie. I thought I should try making them and sugar thermometer be damned. These are sufficiently good and I did it based on time rather than temperature. You can flavour and colour them however you like but I kept these white and vanilla to complement the dark richness of chocolate.

Ingredients
175ml water
300g granulated sugar
100ml golden syrup
5 sheets (about 9g) gelatine sheets
1/2tsp vanilla extract
Optional food colouring
Icing sugar
Oil
Cornflour

1. Put the water, sugar and syrup in a pan. Dissolve everything together on a medium heat and them put on medium/high. Once boiling set your timer for 9 minutes.
2. Put the gelatine sheets in a bowl of cold water. Once soft transfer to a large bowl and add the vanilla.
3. Get a loaf tin and lightly grease with vegetable oil. Then coat with cornflour. This is going to help you get the marshmallow out. It will be a pain still but at least you're ahead of the game.
4. Once the timer goes off slowly pour the sugar syrup into the bowl while whisking. I did it with hand held but a free standing with balloon whisk would be easier. Once all the syrup is in mix for 10 minutes. Yep - 10 minutes. This will transform the golden liquid into white fluffy sticky mallow.
5. Pour into tin and let set for a few hours.
6. To get it out I recommend having a pile of icing sugar on hand. Cover your fingers in it and gently prise one end away from the shortest side with the tin as upside down as you can. Then keep re-covering your fingers in icing sugar and slowly ease it from the tin onto a surface covered in icing sugar.
7. Cut with a sharp knife dipped in icing sugar and seal any sticky edges with some. There done!