Hazelnut and Chocolate Pie with Vanilla Whipped Cream

Hazelnut and Chocolate Pie with Vanilla Whipped Cream

Recipe courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis and foodnetwork.com

I happened to see Giada make this a couple days before my anniversary. Within 48 hours it was sitting on my kitchen counter.... I decided it would make a perfect anniversary 'gift'. And let me tell you...... yum. Very rich and decadent and guess what? It was a breeze to make. Nothing better than a pie without the trouble of a crust, is what I say! So there is no excuse for you not to make it. Right away! You know you want to......

Here's the lowdown.....

Ingredients:

8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup hazelnuts, skinned and toasted
1/4 cup all-purpose flour, plus more to dust the pie dish
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup hot water
4 eggs
1 stick butter, cut into 3/4-inch pieces, at room temperature, plus more to grease the pie dish
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon


for the whipped cream:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon


Position an oven rack in the lower 1/3 of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.

Put 1/2 of the chocolate chips, hazelnuts, and flour in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the hazelnuts are coarsely chopped. Pour the hazelnut mixture into a small bowl and set aside. Combine remaining chocolate chips and sugar in the food processor. Blend until the mixture is finely ground. With the machine running, gradually add the hot water until the chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Add the eggs, butter, vanilla and cinnamon. Pulse until mixture is blended. Return the hazelnut mixture to the food processor and pulse to incorporate. Pour the mixture into a buttered and floured 9-inch pie dish. Bake for 35 minutes. Place the pie on a cooling rack and cool for 1 hour. (Top may crack during cooling.) Refrigerate for 2 hours. (Pie can be made 1 day in advance and stored in the refrigerator).

to make the whipped cream:

In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream until it forms soft peaks. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon. Continue to beat until cream holds stiff peaks.

Let pie sit out at room temperature about 30 minutes prior to serving..... in fact, we heated it up just a little bit in the microwave prior to putting on the whipped cream and eating it.