Maple Mousse Pie

Another pie from the NYTimes Thanksgiving list. This pie was not my favorite because the sugar-- if you cook it to 237-- becomes a tad too carmelized/burned which gives the pie not an unpleasant, but certainly a more done, flavor. The chocolate sauce helps to mitigate the effect. The crust is good though, and I figured out how to smash up chocolate cookies better than I ever had before, using a disposable roasting pan and a regular cereal bowl. It was a total triumph to me.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups fine chocolate cookie crumbs

1 cup maple sugar

Pinch of salt

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

3 large egg whites, at room temperature

1 cup pure maple syrup, preferably Grade B

2 cups heavy cream

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix crumbs with 1/4 cup maple sugar, the salt and the butter. Press into bottom and sides of a 10-inch pie plate. Refrigerate 15 minutes. Bake chilled crust 10 minutes, cool to room temperature, then place in freezer.

2. Beat egg whites until frothy. Place all but a tablespoon of remaining maple sugar in a saucepan, add 1/4 cup water, bring to a boil and cook until mixture is 237 degrees on a candy thermometer. Continue beating egg whites until softly peaked. Then, beating all the while, drizzle in all the maple sugar mixture and beat until egg whites are firm and glossy. Beat in 4 tablespoons maple syrup. Refrigerate.

3. Whip cream until stiff. Fold into egg white mixture. Refrigerate separately until cookie crust is cold. Spoon mousse in prepared cookie crust, smooth top and freeze 4 hours. When frozen, cover with plastic wrap until ready to serve.

4. Melt chocolate on low heat. Whisk in remaining maple syrup and vanilla. Place in a container, cover and refrigerate.

5. Do not thaw pie for serving. Dust top with remaining tablespoon maple sugar and serve. Spoon some chocolate sauce over each portion.

Yield: 10 to 12 servings.