Tuscaloosa Tollhouse Pie

My sister Diana has been making requests for me to bake her some sort of sweets when she comes into town, and of course, I am always willing and very happy to do that for her! This time she asked me to make her a Kentucky Derby Pie without bourban.....I had never had a Kentucky Derby Pie so I did a little research and found out that a Kentucky Derby Pie is a chocolate and walnut tart in a pie shell usually with a pastry dough crust. It is also commonly made with chocolate chips, pecans and Kentucky bourban, it is much like a chocolate pecan pie.

After I did some research I knew that I had the perfect recipe for her. It was this Tuscaloosa Tollhouse Pie recipe that I have been wanting to bake and try out for a while from Baked New Frontiers in Baking cookbook by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. It is a really great cookbook and I definetly reccomend getting it if you are a dessert lover!

They state that "the pie which is almost always served warm and a la mode, is a cross between a pecan pie and a chocolate chip cookie-a very good, gooey chocolate chip cookie." And it was! Everyone loved it and Diana said it was "heavenly" and kept raving about how good it was, even served at room temperature.

Tuscaloosa Tollhouse Pie: (Baked; adapted by me)

Yield: 1 (9-inch) Pie

 -1 ready to bake pie crust for a 9-inch pan, chilled 

-1/2 cup all-purpose flour

-1/2 cup granulated sugar

-1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

-2 large eggs

-3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, cut into cubes

 -2 teaspoons vanilla extract

-3/4 cup pecans, chopped

-1 1/4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Put ready to bake pie dough into a 9-inch pie dish, set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour and sugars until combined. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs on high speed until foamy, about 3 minutes. Remove the whisk attachment and add the paddle attachment. With the mixer on low, gradually add the flour mixture. Turn the mixture to high and beat for 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl and add the butter. Beat on high speed until the mixture is combined. Scrape down the bowl, add the vanilla, and beat the mixture on high speed for 1 minute.

Fold the pecans and 3/4 cup of the chocolate chips into the filling.

Pour the filling into the pie shell and spread it out evenly. Top the filling with the remaining 1/2 cup chocolate chips.

Bake in the center of the oven for 25 minutes, then cover the edges of the crust loosely with aluminum foil and bake for another 25 minutes (this will prevent the crust from browning too quickly). Test the pie by sticking a knife in the center of the filling. If the knife comes out clean, the pie is done. If the knife comes out with clumps of filling sticking to it, bake for another 5 minutes and test again. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool before slicing.

The pie can be stored in the refrigerator, tightly covered, for up to 2 days.