French silk pie weeping a day later

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neptune

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I made a French silk pie last night—the kind with butter in the filling (but no cream) and raw eggs. Last night, it looked smooth and creamy. Today, however, I noticed that it seems to be weeping some in the refrigerator.

Why would it be weeping a day later? Is this unusual? And what (if anything) can be done about it?

Incidentally, I reduced the sugar in the recipe because I didn't want it to be too sweet. Could that be a factor?

Thanks for any info.
 
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I made a French silk pie last night—the kind with butter in the filling (but no cream) and raw eggs. Last night, it looked smooth and creamy. Today, however, I noticed that it seems to be weeping some in the refrigerator.

Why would it be weeping a day later? Is this unusual? And what (if anything) can be done about it?

Thanks for any info.

It would really help if you posted your recipe and technique. There are many, many recipes out there for FSP for the filling, as well as different crusts and toppings. I've never had that happen even using a meringue crust, with butter and the yolks in the filling.
 
It would really help if you posted your recipe and technique. There are many, many recipes out there for FSP for the filling, as well as different crusts and toppings. I've never had that happen even using a meringue crust, with butter and the yolks in the filling.

The filling was from this recipe:

French Silk Pie Recipe | Ree Drummond | Food Network

I substituted 3 Tbsp. cocoa + 1 Tbsp. oil for each oz. of the unsweetened chocolate.
 
Oh, I thought of one more thing. Since I had never tried this recipe before, I decided to make just half the recipe. In the original recipe, it says to beat 4 eggs total, 5 minutes after adding each one. Instead, I beat 2 eggs, 5 minutes after each. But maybe I should've added 1/2 egg four times instead, beating 5 minutes after each addition. Thus, my total beating time was only 10 minutes instead of 20, so maybe the emulsion was less stable?

Anyway, I decided to re-beat the filling, and now it looks fine. Once it gets cold again in a few hours, I'm just going to freeze it. :mrgreen:

Incidentally, a lot of French silk pies call for cream as well. Cook's Country said that they added cream because using all butter results in "too dense" a pie. They also added more chocolate to enhance the flavor. I may try their version (even though it's less authentic) in the future sometime, but without cooking the eggs:

French Silk Pie (Americas Test Kitchen) | Food.com
 
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Did you use the whipped cream topping? I'd suspect that before snything else if you did. Unless I'm using it for a party where it will all get eaten, I use the canned whole cream spritz topping as it's served.

I make a meringue crust for mine. If you want, I'll look for and post the recipe tomorrow. I've never had any problems with it, even after 3-4 days.
 
Did you use the whipped cream topping?

No. I actually made some stabilized whipped cream separately, but I only added some to each slice right before serving.

I make a meringue crust for mine.
That sounds interesting. I never make crusts for pies or quiches anymore. It's so much easier, and I've found I don't even miss them. Lowers the carb count too.

If you want, I'll look for and post the recipe tomorrow. I've never had any problems with it, even after 3-4 days.
That would be great, medtran49, if it isn't too much trouble.
 
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Did you say something to hurt it's feelings?

Perhaps, but if I posted what I actually said to it here, then you might have to, um, pardon my French. :LOL:

But hey, if a pie turns out that wimpy anyway, what are we supposed to do—coddle it or something? ;)
 
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My recipe for the filling is cooked and uses heavy cream, but here it is, as well as the meringue pie shell. This is pretty close to how the first French Silk Pie I ever had was made and it has always remained my favorite.

FRENCH SILK PIE,
1 cup whipping cream
6 ounces semisweet chocolate pieces
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup sugar
2 egg yolks, beaten
3 tablespoons whipping cream
1 baked 9 inch pie shell
whipped cream (for serving)
chocolate curls (for garnish)


In a heavy 2-quart saucepan, combine the whipping cream, chocolate pieces, butter and sugar. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, till chocolate is melted, about 10 minutes. Remove pan from heat. Gradually stir about half of the hot mixture into the beaten egg yolks. Return egg mixture to saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, till mixture is slightly thickened and almost bubbly, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove pan from heat. Stir in whipping cream. Place saucepan in a bowl of ice water, stir occasionally till mixture stiffens and becomes hard to stir (20 minutes). Transfer chocolate mixture to a medium mixing bowl. Beat the cooled chocolate mixture with an electric mixer on medium to high speed until light and fluffy 2 or 3 mins. Spread filling in pie shell. Cover and chill pie 4-5 hours or until set. Best served within 24 hours, but will last 3-4 days if stored properly.


Serve with whipped cream and a garnish with chocolate curls.


MERINGUE PIE SHELL
3 egg whites
Pinch of salt
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
3/4 C. sugar


Combine egg whites, salt and cream of tartar and beat to a stiff foam. Beat in the vanilla. Add the sugar gradually, beating until medium peaks are formed and the sugar is dissolved. Spread in a well-greased 9-inch pie tin. Build up the sides; (optional) sprinkle the bottom with 1/3 cup finely chopped nuts. Bake in a 275-degree oven for 1 hour. Open oven door slightly, cool in oven and fill.
 
My recipe for the filling is cooked and uses heavy cream, but here it is, as well as the meringue pie shell. This is pretty close to how the first French Silk Pie I ever had was made and it has always remained my favorite.

Thanks so much for the recipes, medtran49. Your filling is a lot more like the Cook's Illustrated version. The shell sounds neat too.
 
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Apologize, then send it some flowers.

Apologize??? :ohmy: After I spend 10 minutes beating the goofy thing, the pie has the nerve to separate and get all weepy on me?? I'd say that an apology and flowers are definitely in order, but I'm the one who should be receiving them. ;)
 
The filling was from this recipe:

French Silk Pie Recipe | Ree Drummond | Food Network

I substituted 3 Tbsp. cocoa + 1 Tbsp. oil for each oz. of the unsweetened chocolate.

That's a pretty significant substitution, the chocolate will help it set up properly, but substituting cocoa and oil will not perform the same in this type of recipe. That's an OK substitution in a cake or brownie, but not in something as fiddly and temperamental as a french silk pie.
 
That's a pretty significant substitution, the chocolate will help it set up properly, but substituting cocoa and oil will not perform the same in this type of recipe.

Thanks for the info, bakechef. But isn't the percentage of fat using that substitution about the same as the percentage of fat in bars of unsweetened chocolate? If so, then why would this substitution make much of a difference? Incidentally, I used coconut oil, which becomes solid below 76 degrees and theoretically should've helped stabilize the mixture.

If that's not a good substitution in a recipe like this, would ground cacao nibs perhaps be a better choice?

That's an OK substitution in a cake or brownie, but not in something as fiddly and temperamental as a french silk pie.
You may be on to something here.
 
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Here's a little update. I tweaked the original Ree Drummond French silk pie (i.e., the one that was weeping) to use carob, and it turned out really well. No weeping at all—from either the pie or me. :LOL: In fact, I think it was as tasty as the original. As for why there was no weeping, I'm not sure. All my ingredients were basically at room temperature this time, so maybe that was a factor. I suspect that not many folks on here are fans of carob, but if anyone is interested in my tweaked recipe, I can post it. I plan to make it again since it was so good—and easy.

Also, I have since made the America's Test Kitchen French silk pie as well as the one that medtran49 posted. Of the recipes mentioned in this thread, I thought the ATK pie was the least impressive. It had waaaaay too much chocolate, and was also too mousse-like for me. Medtran49, I eventually recognized your recipe as the Better Homes & Gardens version from 1995. I had made it many years ago (and really liked it), but decided to try it again. The one difference in that recipe is it specifies 3 Tbsp. crème de cacao OR whipping cream as an ingredient. I used crème de cacao (homemade, in fact) in place of the whipping cream. Anyway, I liked it—thank you for reminding me of that recipe.

In evaluating all these recipes, I decided that I like the all-butter version the best. ATK found it to be "too dense," but that's exactly what I like about the recipe. :chef: It's also the easiest version, because apart from melting the chocolate (if in fact you're using squares of chocolate, which I did not), it only involves beating.

Anyway, it's been a very interesting French-silk journey. ;)
 
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Glad you worked it out and found a recipe you are happy with. I have no idea where the recipe came from, probably have had it for close to 40 years.
 
Thanks, medtran49.

In the BHG cookbook 75 Years of Favorite Recipes (I think that's the title), they discuss why they updated the French silk pie—to reduce risks from raw eggs. So, they call the recipe "Today's French Silk Pie," and say that it first appeared in their magazine in 1995. The filling recipes for that pie and for your pie are identical except for the mention of the chocolate liqueur as an alternative to the whipping cream. But if you've had this recipe for about 40 years, then maybe its actual origins lie somewhere else. :yum:
 

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