Let’s play a little game, it’s called, “Have you met Doug?” (Do you get the reference?? It’s from How I Met Your Mother, but we’re not trying to get Doug a date.)
So who is Doug? Doug is husband to Rachele, a Swimmer, a Hunter, a Fisherman, a Photography enthusiast, and he likes to play Chess. He’s also a certified Scuba Diver and has been since 1989 or 1990 (he couldn’t remember). We learned all of this when we read his Dive Master Interview, so why are we discussing Doug again? I’m glad you asked!
This summer, Doug became an Assistant Instructor at Extreme Sports Scuba. Now I could have gone through the interview questions with him again, but there are really only 1 or 2 different questions from Dive Master Interviews to Instructor Interviews, so definitely check out his Dive Master Interview!
So we definitely needed to update his blog post though to Assistant Instructor because that my friends is a big deal! So it happened earlier this summer, why am I just now mentioning it? Well… ask Doug.
So I decided that since we’ve interviewed him already, how can I make this a fun post… Well if you know Doug, he’s a great baker! Last year at like the October or November Dive Club Meeting he brought a delicious pie with him. A lot of people were asking him for the recipe. Now if he ever makes it again (hint hint) I’ll update this post with a picture of it to go along with the recipe, but here’s the recipe for those who are interested.
Chocolate Chunk Pecan Pie
Provided by Doug Lord adapted from King Arthur Flour
Filling:
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- 1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder, optional;
- for flavor and color 1 1/3 cups bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips or chunks, or a combination 2/3 cup diced pecans, toasted in a 350°F oven till golden, 8 to 10 minutes 1/2 teaspoon vanilla-butternut flavor, pralines & cream flavor, or butter-rum flavor, optional but delicious*
*Substitute 2 teaspoons vanilla for any of the flavorings, if desired
Topping 2/3 to 1 cup pecan halves, optional
1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Beat the eggs, sugar, and salt for about 2 minutes at high speed, until they’re thick and light-colored.
3. Stir in the flour, the cooled, melted butter; the espresso powder, and the flavor of your choice, 4. Add the chocolate chips/chunks and the diced pecans.
5. Pour the batter into the piecrust, then scatter the pecan halves on top.
6. Bake the pie for 30 minutes.
7. Tent it lightly with aluminum foil, and bake for an additional 15 minutes, till the crust and top are both golden brown.
8. Remove the pie from the oven, and allow it to cool for about 30 minutes before serving.
Top with ice cream or whipped cream, if desired.
Yield: one 9″ pie, about 8 to 10 servings.