Tiny Pies

Here is yet another recipe I'm crazy excited to share with you (because I could probably eat all twenty-four in one night if I didn't have plenty of people to share with). Miniature fudge-cream pies. Look how cute they are! If you like dark chocolate, these are a huge win, and not very difficult to make.

Mini Fudge-Cream Pies

Makes 24 mini-muffin-size pies

Total time about 48 minutes
Time to cook: 18 minutes

Prep time about 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 cup of unsalted butter, softened (two sticks)
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 8 oz semi-sweet baking chocolate (comes in bars, sectioned into squares. I bought two, 4-oz bars)
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 8 oz frozen whipped topping (thawed. more if you want to go crazy with the whipped topping)

Instructions

When I first read this recipe, I decided to put off making it because it sounded like a lot of work. Make the crust. Form the crust. Bake the crust. Press the crust. Bake the crust again. What kind of magic, bored and lonely housewife do you think I am?! But I promise it's worth it... in part because the results are delicious, but also because it's not nearly as tedious as it sounds. 

Crusts

1. Preheat your oven to 350. 
2. Coat a mini-muffin tin (the kind with 24 tiny cups) with non-stick cooking spray.
3. Beat butter and sugar until well combined. (You can use a hand mixer or a stand mixer. This is basically a less-sweet sugar cookie crust you're making)
4. Mix in flour and salt until dough ball is formed. 
5. Make 24 dough balls, about 2 teaspoons in size.
6. Press one dough ball into the bottom of each mini-muffin cup and spread the dough up the sides of the cups a bit. 
7. Bake for 10 minutes.
8. Remove from oven and press center of each crust with a spoon. (I do not recommend using your finger. I used a plastic measuring spoon and it got a little uncomfortably hot in the bowl of it)
9. Return pan and crusts to the oven for 6-8 minutes, until edges start to brown.
10. Remove from oven and let cool while you make the delicious filling!

Filling

1. Load your chocolate and milk into a large, microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 30 second intervals until chocolate is totally melted. (this only took two microwave sessions for me)
2. Let melted chocolate mixture cool for 10 minutes.
3. Stir in vanilla and 1-1/2 cups of thawed, whipped topping. 

Combine

1. Scoop (or pipe with a piping bag if you're really ambitious) chocolate mixture into the crust cups, while they're still in the pan.
2. Scoop (or, again, pipe...) a bit of the remaining whipped topping on top of each pie.
3. Scatter some chopped chocolate, or sprinkles, or... whatever... on top of your adorable pies.
4. Remove from the pan and serve immediately or store, covered, in the fridge.