Double Chocolate Silk Cream Pie

We all know I don't bake, but when I saw this recipe for Double Chocolate Silk Cream Pie I had to have it. An Oreo cookie crust and rich, chocolate filling sounded heavenly. And since there's no baking involved I figured it would be a piece of cake (or pie...ha!) to whip up one weekend.

Double chocolate silk pie

The only downside to this recipe is that the pie has to cool overnight. The original recipe says you can let it cool for 4-6 hours, but you really want this ice cold so overnight is probably best (at least in my opinion). The lingering smell of crushed Oreos and cooked chocolate drove us all crazy until we could finally enjoy a slice of this decadent pie.

A little goes a long way for this one, unless you have a serious sweet tooth. I served this with fresh whipped cream after Sunday dinner and we were all in love. Baby Girl especially loved this one, so I know I'll be making it again soon.

Double Chocolate Silk Cream Pie
As seen on Lauren's Latest

CRUST
20 Oreo cookies
6 tablespoons melted butter

FILLING
5 large egg yolks
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
10 oz. semi sweet chocolate chips

whipped cream, for serving

Place all the Oreo cookies (use the whole cookie) in a food processor. Pulse a few times until the cookies become crumbs. Mix the crumbs and melted butter together until moist. Press into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch pie plate or cake pan. Refrigerate while making the filling.

Separate the eggs, reserving the egg yolks in a bowl. Reserve or discard the egg whites. Lightly beat the yolks and set aside.

Place a medium-sized glass bowl over a pot with about an inch of simmering water (this is called a double boiler). Make sure the water does not touch the bottom of the bowl. Add the cream to the bowl and heat until you start to see bubbles forming. This will scald the cream. Stir in the sugar and salt, whisking until dissolved, about 2 minutes. Stream one tablespoon at a time of the hot cream into the egg yolks, whisking after each tablespoon is added. Do this 4 or 5 times. This is called tempering. Stir the tempered egg yolks back into the cream in the double boiler. Cook, whisking occasionally, until the eggs and cream start to thicken and coat the back of a spoon, about 8 minutes. The pie won't set if you don't thicken the cream and egg mixture long enough, so if you're unsure whether or not the mixture is thick enough, continue cooking for another 5 minutes.

Remove the cream and egg mixture from the heat and stir in the vanilla and chocolate chips. Whisk until the mixture is smooth and all the chocolate has melted. Pour the filling into the prepared pie shell and cool to room temperature.

Once the pie is cool, cover it with plastic wrap, pressing the plastic wrap directly onto the filling. Refrigerate the pie overnight. Cut into pieces and serve with whipped cream (recipe below).

Homemade whipped cream

1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons confectioners' (powdered) sugar

Place a metal, glass or ceramic bowl in the freezer for 15-30 minutes to chill. Once chilled, pour the cream into the bowl and add the sugar. Using an electric hand mixer or balloon whisk, beat the cream to the desired consistency. For soft peaks, the cream will be just thick enough to hold its shape. For stiffly beaten cream, the beaters or whisk wires will leave distinct traces on the cream and stand in firm peaks when the beaters are lifted.

MAKE AHEAD
The cream can be whipped up to 1 day ahead, covered tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerated. If liquid separates from the cream, whip it again to incorporate the liquid.

Oklahoma Fried Onion Burgers

A few weekends ago we were all watching Cook's Country together (yes, my 5-year-old loves to watch cooking shows. It warms my heart). They were making something called Oklahoma Fried Onion Burgers and they looked mouthwateringly good.

Oklahoma fried onion burgers

For some reason that episode was on at least 3 or 4 more times within a two-week span and I finally told SP I had to make them. So, he picked up some ground beef at the store and I planned to make them one Saturday for dinner. Then we had a ridiculously huge lunch and couldn't stand the thought of eating again. The ground beef went into the freezer, where it was promptly forgotten. I finally remembered that I wanted to make the recipe and put the burgers on the menu two nights ago. They were so good I had to blog them immediately.

Oklahoma fried onion burgers

I thought these would be more complicated but it's actually a very easy recipe. All you need to do is plan ahead enough to let the onions sit in the colander. SP said they tasted like a McDonald's hamburger only a million times better. Baby Girl had the mini burger in the center of the picture above, sans onions because she isn't a fan. They even reheated well the next day.

Oklahoma Fried Onion Burgers
As seen on Cook's Country

1 large onion, peeled, halved and thinly sliced
salt and pepper
1 lb ground beef
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
4-8 slices American cheese
Mayo, mustard and pickles, for serving
4 hamburger buns, toasted

Combine the onion slices and 1 teaspoon of salt in a bowl and toss to combine. Transfer the onions to a colander and let sit for 30 minutes, tossing occasionally. Transfer the onions to a clean dish towel, gather the edges together and squeeze out as much liquid as you can from the onions. Do this over the sink or a large bowl since the onions will have quite a bit of liquid in them.

Divide the onions into 4 separate mounds on a rimmed baking sheet. Form the beef into 4 lightly packed balls. Place the beef balls on top of the onion mounds and flatten the beef firmly (use your palm) so the onion adheres to the beef. The patties should measure 4 inches in diameter. Season the beef generously with salt and pepper.

Melt the butter with the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Using a large spatula, transfer the patties to the skillet, onion side down. Cook for 6-8 minutes, until the onions turn a deep golden brown and begin to crisp around the edges. Flip the burgers, then increase the heat to high and cook until well browned on the second side, about 2 minutes.

Add 1 or 2 slices of cheese to each burger and allow to melt. Add mayo, mustard and pickles to the top buns, then place each burger on a bottom buns. Serve immediately.