French Silk Chocolate Pie

Sorry, but this is the only photo I have of the completed pie; it was taken with Casey's iPhone, and the quality leaves a bit to be desired. But you can tell it's chocolate, and it's fluffy. :)

French Silk Chocolate Pie

1 prepared pie crust
3 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 c. butter, softened (no substitutes)
1 c. sugar
1 t. vanilla
4 pasteurized eggs (OR 1 cup fat-free cholesterol-free egg product)

1) Make pie crust as directed on box, using 9-inch glass pie plate. (Or buy a frozen crust already made in a tin, and bake as directed.) Be sure to cool the crust thoroughly, about 30 minutes. (I actually put the finished crust in the freezer, because I was pressed for time. It worked very well!)


2) Melt chocolate in microwave, stirring often; allow to cool to room temperature.


3) In a mixing bowl, beat butter on medium speed until fluffy. Beat in sugar, a little at a time, until light and fluffy.


4) Mix in chocolate and vanilla; blend well.


5) Add eggs 1 at a time (or egg product, a little at a time), beating on high speed for at least 2 minutes after each addition.
This is important: beat until mixture is smooth and fluffy.



6) Spoon into cooled baked shell. Refrigerate for 2 hours, or longer, before serving.




We served this with Cool Whip on top, but again, I didn't get photos, unfortunately.


NOTES:
I used pasteurized egg product, because salmonella is NO FUN!


Also, I think in the future, I'd substitute powdered sugar in place of the granulated sugar. This basically turned out tasting like a pie made out of chocolate frosting. Not that that's wrong. But, when you put the first forkful into your mouth, you get a little bit of a "grainy" texture from the sugar. Then, it kinda melts on your tongue. Not something to really complain about, but it just wasn't quite what I was expecting. I also think I'd put a heap of whipping cream into it, to thicken up the texture. We shall see what happens the next time I decide to make this.