French Coconut Pie with Dark Chocolate Sauce

 

I've been wanting to dedicate a post to Paris for a while now, but just never got around to it. I didn't know what to make, since most of what I ate when I was there was cheese and fruit and more cheese. Then finally it dawned on me: the first night we were there we ate at Le Café du Marché near the Eiffel Tower, and although our dinner was rich and kind of "meh", we split the most delicious coconut pie with the darkest, blackest chocolate sauce I'd ever tasted.

My friend (and then roommate) Christina and I went on a little trip to Paris in September 2011 to celebrate finishing our theses and finally being done with school. As soon as we stepped off the train, I immediately understood what all the fuss was about. Paris is magical. I was swept off my feet.

Christina and I stayed in a nice little hostel in Montmartre and did a lot of walking... like, a lot. Which was good, because when we weren't walking we were drinking wine and eating ALL the cheese and pastries.

 

I know some people think it's a little tacky, but I thought the Eiffel Tower was so pretty when it lit up at night.

 

Taking a look back a Versailles on our little row boat. I'm already wistful and we haven't even left yet. 

And here it is, the coconut pie (tarte coco?) we had on our first night. That chocolate sauce was probably 99% cocoa... it was black as pitch and intensely chocolatey. It paired well with the sticky sweetness of the coconut, which was like a dense, moist macaroon.

I'm sure my homage to this pie isn't authentically Parisian (I mean, I didn't even make my own pastry! Mon Dieu!) but it's insanely easy to make and extremely tasty. The chocolate sauce I made to accompany it isn't as bittersweet as the stuff in Paris, but it's nice and dark and not syrupy or overly sweet. It's an easy dessert to whip up, but it looks and tastes impressive; it's so French, mon cher.

 

 

French Coconut Pie with Dark Chocolate Sauce
Pie adapted from Paula Deen's recipe (I know. I'm sorry)
Chocolate sauce adapted form Michael Smith's recipe
Serves 6 to 8

Coconut Pie
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
1 cup coconut milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 unbaked deep-dish pie shell (such as Tenderflake)

Dark Chocolate Sauce
1/2 cup whipping cream (33-36% MF)
1 tablespoon sugar
5 ounces good quality semisweet chocolate chips (such as Callebaut chips)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

To make the pie: 

Preheat the oven to 350F/180C. In a large bowl, mix the melted butter, eggs, flour, sugar, coconut, coconut milk, and vanilla until smooth. Pour into the unbaked pie shell and carefully place in the oven. Bake for about 50 minutes until the pie is golden on top and appears set in the middle when you jiggle it. Allow to cool on a rack while you make the chocolate sauce

To make the chocolate sauce:

Place the chocolate chips in a small bowl and set aside. In a small saucepan over medium heat, stir together the cream and sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Once the cream reaches a boil, remove from heat and pour it over the chocolate chips. Stir until the chocolate has melted and it's all smooth, then stir in the vanilla. Pour the chocolate sauce into a clean jar and store in the fridge when you're done serving.

I like this pie at room temperature, but you could also heat it up just a little or eat it cold from the fridge. It's good any way you eat it, really.