Photo by Intangible Arts

Dish of the Week: Derby pie

Most people closely associate mint juleps with Kentucky Derby weekend. The drink has some close Washington ties, with Kentucky politician Henry Clay introducing the drink at the Round Robin Bar in the Willard Hotel. But before my grubby little paws ever came in contact with a mint julep tin, I was loving derby pie. It is the equivalent of taking a chocolate chip cookie and putting it in pie form with nuts – either pecans or walnuts. If you don’t overdo it with the nuts, the top is delicate and crackly. When served warm, the chocolate is deliciously oozy and melty, just like those Tollhouse chocolate chip commercials.

But I should be careful in calling it Derby pie. The name Derby Pie is trademarked by Kern’s Kitchen. The Kerns originally crafted the recipe for serving at the Melrose Inn. And they claim that no one can quite duplicate the unique blend of flavors and delicate crust on their pie. But for those of us who find it slightly silly to order a pie from Kentucky, we can make our own version to enjoy.

Avoiding Trademark Infringement Pie – Adapted from Fannie Lou’s Thoroughbred (Almost Derby) Pie in the New York Times

1 shot of bourbon (optional)
1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust
4 tablespoons butter, melted
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon bourbon (optional, the cheap stuff will be fine here)
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
3/4 cup semisweet-chocolate chips

1. Knock back your shot of bourbon. This recipe is pretty hard to mess up. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Put your pie crust into your pie pan and prick the bottom with a fork. Cover it with foil so the edges are covered. Bake for about 10 minutes and remove the foil. Bake for 5 more minutes until the crust is cooked, but not browned. Remove from oven.

2. While your crust is baking, mix the butter, eggs, vanilla, and bourbon. (Feel free to pour yourself another shot at this point.) After that add your dry ingredients – the salt, brown sugar and flour – and mixed until well blended. Put the chocolate chips and chopped nuts in a layer on your pie crust and pour your mixture over the top. If you’re a big fan of nuts, you can chop more to sprinkle over the top.

3. Put your pie back into the oven and bake until it’s puffy and brown, about 30 minutes. Serve warm with some bourbon whipped cream and vanilla ice cream. You can find a basic recipe for whipped cream and just substitute bourbon to taste instead of or in addition to the vanilla extract.