Homemade Chocolate Pie

Remember back during the summer before the apples, cherries and other fruits were ripe and the days were hot. You longed for a summertime treat that didn't call for heating up the house, because air conditioning was fanning yourself with a folded newspaper. The pudding pie and a glass of milk was served as a nice cool dessert. What a treat, my personal favorite is chocolate. There was always fresh milk and eggs available as well the can of Hershey Cocoa powder in the cupboard. There are many variations of chocolate pudding pies but few use the dry powdered cocoa as this recipe does. Chocolate pie 1 baked pie crust cooled Filling; 1 1/2 cups 1/2 and 1/2 or whole milk (don't use skim or 2% it won't be as rich and the texture will be grainy) 2 egg yolks slightly beaten (save whites for meringue) stir together in a heavy medium sized sauce pan In a medium bowl mix the following: 4 Tblsp. cocoa powder 5 Tblsp. all purpose flour 1/4 t. salt 3/4 cup white sugar stir to mix well, before adding to the milk and egg, beat out lumps as it cooks. Heat on medium heat stirring constantly, until it begins to boil(about 10 min)and thicken. Remove from heat and stir in: 1 tbls butter or margerine 1 t vanilla beat in until the butter is mixed in and the pudding becomes glossy. Pour into baked shell Top with a meringue made from the reserved egg whites from the pudding. Meringue 2 egg whites 5 Tblsp white sugar 1 t. cream of tartar Beat egg whites at medium speed until they begin to get frothy, beat at high speed until peaks form. Continue beating while adding sugar and cream of tartar mixture 1 tablespoon at at time until stiff peaks form. Spread Meringe on top of pie being careful to seal edges at the crust. Place in a hot Oven 400 degree for 12-15 minutes, until well browned. Allow to cool before cutting. If it's hot outside and you don't want to use the oven, top the pie with whipped cream or eat it plain. Excellent for all of us chocoholics. You can also eat the filling as a pudding dessert if you wish.