GETTING OUT
OF THE MUD PIE
OF THE MUD PIE
Makes one 9½-inch pie
sugar cone pie shell
- 1¾ cups ice cream sugar cone crumbs
- ¾ stick unsalted butter, melted
filling
- ½ cup sliced almonds
- 2 pt. mocha almond ice cream, toasted and cooled
glaze
- 6 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
- ½ stick unsalted butter
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 2 tbsp. light corn syrup
- 1 tsp. almond extract
instructions
1
For the pie shell: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Toss together the crumbs and butter in a medium bowl to moisten. Press the mixture onto the bottom and up the sides of a 9½-inch deep-dish pie pan.
2
Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes to firm up the butter. Bake in the center of the oven for about 10 minutes, or until just set and fragrant. Place on a wire rack to cool to room temperature.
3
For the glaze: Heat the chocolate, confectioners’ sugar, butter, cream, and corn syrup in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring until smooth. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the almond extract. Let sit until lukewarm.
4
Pour half the glaze into the bottom of the pie shell and spread until even; refrigerate for 30 minutes, or until the glaze sets. Reserve the rest of the glaze.
5
For the filling: Let the ice cream sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes, or until soft enough to scoop and spread. Spread 2 cups of the ice cream in the pie shell.
6
If the reserved glaze has turned too firm to pour, reheat it over very low heat. Drizzle the ice cream with half the remaining glaze and sprinkle with half the almonds.
7
Return to the refrigerator to chill for 15 minutes, then repeat the layers. Freeze for 2 hours, or until firm.
Ice-cream pies
The key to success with frozen pies like this one is patience. You need to make sure your ice cream is soft enough to be spreadable, then let it get cold enough to be completely firm between each layer. That means a few trips back to the refrigerator as you are assembling it and then a good long cooling-off period in the freezer before you serve it up. Skimp on time at any point in the process and you won’t have distinct layers, just a soupy mess.