|
||
|
PETITCHEF |
Add your blog-site | Add your recipes | Receive daily menu | Contact us | |
Grasshopper Pie
I don't know that it has to be birthday CAKE for the celebration does it? Have a look at this:
 Couldn't you quite happily have a slice of birthday PIE instead? I mean, if the person who's day it is prefers such delights? So it is for The Lovely Man. He's a huge fan of chocolate and mint. If we're talking sweet treats he loves peppermint filled chocolate, peppermint flavoured chocolate, chocolate peppermint milkshakes and, as it turns out, this Grasshopper Pie. Nigella finding out about it from the TV show Glee and then reading up about it.Never heard of it before myself either, and it was only after reading the introduction of this recipe in Kitchen that I realised the name comes from a cocktail that I enjoyed rather frequently in the 80's! So much so that I still own the two major ingredients; creme de cacao and creme de menthe! Good thing such booze never goes off! The price of the creme de menthe there is $12.99 on special, which is certainly would be if bought now. I'm guessing the bottle's about 25 years old and that price would be about half price these days.  I had a challenge though, as bourbon biscuits, which are required for the base are not so easy to find here. After a bit of investigating, I decided to go with Tim Tams, but not the standard version, rather the dark version. Then, as the one packet wasn't quite the quantity required, I thought I could just mint it up even further by buying a packet of Tim Tam Mint Crush for the extra quantity! Here is the finished pie, all aglow. The Lovely Man turned 35, which is the reason for the 3 candles and the 5 candles - he's not 8! He did however have the expression of an 8 year old upon tasting this pie, which is surely pretty enough to be a substitute cake? (Carn the Mighty Maggies!)Grashopper Pie for the base 200g packet Dark Tim Tams (setting one biscuit aside - and no, not for munching!) 100g of Tim Tam Peppermint Crush biscuits (which WILL leave leftovers for munching!) 50g dark chocolate, chopped 50g very soft, unsalted butter for the filling 150g mini marshmallows (or cut larger ones) and get all-white if you can 125ml full-fat milk 60ml creme de menthe 60ml white creme de cacao 400ml thick cream green food colouring (optional) 1 x 25cm deep fluted tart tin - mine wasn't deep actually but it was 26cm so perhaps this is why everything still worked. First prepare the base: Process the biscuits (remembering you should be saving one Dark Chocolate Tim Tam for crumbling over at the end) and chocolate in the food processor until well crumbled. Pop the butter in and process again until you notice the bits are starting to clump together and look a bit 'wet'. Press the mixture into the tin, and up into the fluted sides, I find the easiest way is the back of my fingers with my knuckles. Stash this away in the fridge.  For the filling, put the marshmallows and milk (and this is when I put in the green food paste**) in a saucepan over a very gentle heat. You will notice, as you stir, that the milk starts to foam, keep stirring as this happens until the marshmallows are all but melted. Remove from heat and stir further until you no longer see any mushy lumps. Perhaps my heat was a little too low, this took me nearly 10 minutes.Leave the mixture to cool. Whisk the cream until soft peaks form, and then add the cooled green milk mixture** continuing to whisk until it's all combined. Pour the filling into the chilled biscuit base, smoothing it over. Put it back in the fridge to set for the suggested 4 hours, though I noted mine was ready in just 2 hours. Break up the reserved biscuit (I left it in the packet and pummelled it with my mortar and pestle) and sprinkle it over the pie. Serves 8-12 depending on how generous you want your slices! *I had a mixture of white and pink marshmallows which meant I needed to add more food colouring to offset the initial appearance of the mixture which spoke to me of 'I feel seasick' green-grey when I added just a little green food paste! **Do ensure the marshmallow milk is properly cooled before adding to the cream, or the cream will melt rather than hold it's shape.  I think I got the colour just right. If you had all white marshmallows I imagine it would be a rather classy white if you didn't want to use a dye. I read in the notes for this delightful Nigella recipe that this pie freezes really well, and I thought about how delicious it would be eaten FROZEN. Mmm, it would be good, very good. This tastes better than any Grasshopper cocktail I can ever remember buying or making back in the day! It will probably be the only grasshopper I am ever prepared to eat too. Seriously delicious, it's so very light and delicately textured, but cuts easily all the same. Decadence and delight, what a perfect way to celebrate a birthday!Happy Birthday to my Lovely Man! GO PIES!!!  related searches : Grasshopper
|
Related recipes
Recipes
Questions answers