Race Day Must Have

Kentucky Derby Pie is trademarked by the Kerns Company. You can't technically call a pie a Kentucky Derby Pie, unless it is from this company, but it is what it is. Call it what you want, but most recipes like this are all relatively similar. They contain pecans or walnuts, chocolate chips and bourbon in a custard-like filling in a single pie crust. This recipe is from Martha Stewart and she calls it Run For The Roses Pie- I call it good. It's like chocolate chip pecan pie but with a kick! A huge hit with my husband :-) Kentucky Bourbon Pie

• 1/2 recipe (1 crust) pie dough
• 2 large eggs
• 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups pecans, coarsely chopped
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup bourbon whiskey
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

On a lightly floured surface, roll out 1 round of pie dough into a 12-inch round. Dust off any excess flour and carefully lay dough into a 9-inch pie plate, pressing it into the edges. Trim excess dough allowing a 1-inch overhang all around. Fold dough underneath the edges, making for a neat edge then crimp edge as desired. Cover with plastic wrap and chill pie shell until firm- approximately 20-30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prick bottom of dough all over with a fork. Line with parchment paper, leaving at least a 1-inch overhang, (so you can grab the edges when it comes out of the oven). Fill the pie with pie weights or dried beans to weight down the pie so it does puff up in the oven. Bake until the edges of the crust are just beginning to turn golden, about 25 minutes. Remove parchment paper and the pie weights or beans. Put the crust back in the oven and continue baking until golden all over, about 5 more minutes. Transfer pie shell to a wire cooling rack and allow pie crust to cool slightly (about 10 minutes).

In a large bowl, mix together eggs and melted, cooled butter. Add sugar and flour. Mix until well combined. Stir in pecans, chocolate chips, and bourbon. Pour into baked and slightly cooled pie shell. Place pie back in the oven and bake until filling is set, about 25 to 30 minutes. Allow pie to cool completely before serving.

NOTE: If you choose not to make your own pie crust, you can use a frozen pie crust and prebake it til lightly golden, then add the filling, or you can use refrigerated pie crust and follow the instructions above. I prefer the refrigerated, but use what you like.

I used walnuts instead of pecans, because that's what I had on hand, but use what you like. And if you don't have bourbon on hand, you can buy tiny bottles (like the ones on airplanes) from the liquor store, without having to purchase a full size bottle. I used Maker's Mark whiskey, but you can use Jack Daniels, Jim Beam, Knob Creek or whatever you like (or in my case, what my husband drinks). Keep in mind that JD is sour mash whiskey and that may affect the final result giving it a more "sour" taste.

Congrats Big Brown and rest in peace Eight Belles!

ETA: I didn't like the original picture of the pie slice, so I took another. And I forgot the bourbon- what was I thinking?