Gaye's Chocolate Pie

Every once in a while, someone comes along who holds a special spot in your heart, no matter what happens to you or them.  For me, one of those special someones is a black lab named Bubba (my husband will argue that I'd fall for any black lab I came into contact with but I digress).  When I first began working for my vet many, many years ago, I came across many dogs but there was just something special about Bubba.  He was always happy go lucky... unless he was in one of the exam rooms (but few dogs are ever happy in an exam room)!!  He didn't even need a leash when he came in the office.  He would just walk right back to the kennel because that's where he knew he was supposed to go.  During his final year, he required a permanent catheter to be placed into his bladder which had to be cleaned three times a day.  His mom would ask me to come over and clean his catheter when she would go out of town.  Bubba and I grew very close during our time together.  I held his head when he was finally put to sleep after fighting a long battle with his illness.  I even still have the earring he ripped out of my ear many years ago when I was trying to keep him still for a nail trim (did I mention I can still see the scar he gave me when one of his freshly trimmed toe nails scratched my arm?).  It reminds me of him every time I wear it.  I still miss him terribly and I know that I'll see him again one day...

Bubba and I before his decline

Okay!  Food time.  (After we've all grabbed a tissue, that is.)  Bubba's mom was named Gaye.  She was a truly great woman!  Anyone who ever brought us food this good was alright in our book.  She would bring us homecooked desserts to the office sometimes.  During one of those visits, she brought this pie.  I begged and pleaded (okay, I asked maybe twice) for her to give me the recipe - it was just so good!!  I'm so glad she did because this has become one of my favorite pie recipes ever.  It's so simple and easy to make.  A good recipe to have in your cookbook anytime you realize its Sunday morning and you need to make a dessert for that afternoon.

Gaye's Chocolate Pie
courtesy of Bubba's mom, Gaye

Uncooked Regular Pie Shell
1 Stick of Butter, Melted
2 Squares of Baker's Chocolate (unsweetened)
1 c. Sugar
2 Eggs, Beaten
1 tsp. Vanilla

Preheat your oven to 350 - please put a cookie sheet into your oven to preheat along with your oven.
Melt chocolate in microwave.
Combine all ingredients (tempering your eggs first.  How do you do that?  Add a little bit of melted butter or chocolate to your beaten eggs to bring them up to temperature without making scrambled eggs).
Pour into pie crust.
Put your filled pie onto the preheated cookie sheet and put back into the oven.
Cook for 25-30 minutes or until the center of the pie is firm.

Now, you may be asking, "Why on earth would you preheat your cookie sheet?"  Because you are cooking a filled pie, preheating the cookie sheet allows the pie crust at the bottom to cook properly.  If you do not preheat the cookie sheet, there is no guarantee that the bottom of your pie crust will cook.  So let's just play it safe and preheat the cookie sheet, shall we?