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Chocolate Pecan Pie

Chocolate Pecan Pie is the breakfast of champions. I wrote about what I inexplicably called "Pecan Chocolate Pie" in 2009 but that recipe did not reflect my best efforts. So here is an updated version, which is a simple modification of your favorite pecan pie recipe: first, cover the bottom of the crust in broken bits of chocolate; second (and this is the part missing from the earlier recipe), add two tablespoons of cocoa to the filling. You won't be disappointed.

While we are on the subject of pecan pies, I wasn't impressed with them as a kid because the samples I tasted were inevitably pecan-poor. You know those restaurant pies with a single layer of pecans floating on top of a gelatinous mass of congealed corn syrup. It doesn't taste any better than it sounds. Fill the pie with pecans, with the corn syrup + egg mix just filling the gaps, and you have a good pie. Find some truly fresh pecans and you will find true enjoyment. My favorite pecan supplier is still Ellis Brothers: excellent quality, a choice of varieties, and very good prices.

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