Margaret's Southern Chocolate Pie

Nope, not our Margaret. It's from allrecipes.

Margaret's Southern Chocolate Pie

1 1/3 c white sugar
3 egg yolks
1/4 c unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 c all-purpose flour
3 T butter
1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk
3 egg whites
6 T white sugar
1/2 t cream of tartar
1 (9 inch) pie shell, bakes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Sift together the cocoa powder and the flour and pour them into a saucepan. Whisk the egg yolks and 1 1/3 cups sugar. Gradually add the evaporated milk, whisking constantly; slowly pour the milk mixture into the saucepan, whisking until combined.

Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a flat-bottomed wooden spoon or spatula, until the mixture begins to thicken and coats the back of the spoon, about 15 minutes. Remove the custard from the heat and stir in the butter until melted. Pour the filling into the baked pie crust.

To make the meringue topping: Combine the egg whites and cream of tartar in a clean glass or metal bowl; beat with an electric mixer until foamy. Gradually add sugar, a tablespoon at a time, continuing to beat until stiff peaks form. Lift your beater or whisk straight up: the egg whites will form sharp peaks. Spread the meringue over the chocolate filling.

Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, or until the tips of the meringue peaks are golden brown.

It was good, but not great, possibly because of user error. It was very sweet. The two pieces I ate were almost too rich for me to finish, which does not happen very often. There was a layer of liquid between the meringue and the chocolate that got into the thick pudding and the crust. We cut and served it hot, but it needs to cool to set completely (see picture), and that might also help the liquid layer problem. I think it would be better with Cool Whip instead of meringue, but I did the meringue since I had 3 egg whites to use up.

The crust recipe I used was weird. I think it had too much fat, and it ended up tough. Back to my Betty Crocker classic recipe for future pies.