Momofuku crack pie

Do you ever eat an apple pie and think, hey, this would be great without all those pesky apples? Well, that's pretty much the idea behind Momofuku crack pie - an oatmeal cookie crust filled with, well, filling. Take a look at the central ingredients - sugar, brown sugar, salt, milk powder, butter, heavy cream, vanilla extract and egg yolks. That's it. No redeemable healthy fruits or nuts. No crumb or pastry topping. Just tons of the most deliciously unhealthy stuff imaginable.

Not surprisingly, this pie is awesome. It has a buttery, caramely, slightly salty taste. Despite having no binder, it manages to somewhat hold together, as long as its served chilled or at room temperature. Topping with some powdered sugar matches nicely and helps to cut through the sweetness (UPDATE - Ok, this doesn't seem to make much sense, but there is something about the powdered sugar that really makes the pie that much better!). I know it sounds weird and time consuming, but it's totally worth it (not to mention much cheaper than the selling price of $44 at Momofuku Milk Bar). On to the recipe!

First, a giant oatmeal cookie is made - this will be crushed to form the pie crust.

The cookie crust is composed of rolled oats, brown sugar, sugar, butter and an egg.

The final step in the cookie-making process is the addition of the rolled oats. The cookie dough is then spread on a large baking pan and cooked for about 20 minutes.

The edges of my giant cookie were a bit burnt, but the rest was perfect. This is the half remaining after I made the crust - it tastes pretty good on its own as well.

After the cookie has cooled, it is broken up and mixed with butter, brown sugar and salt in a food processor. Then the crust is pressed into a pie tin (or in my case, a Pyrex dish) and set aside while the filling is made.

Making the filling is extremely simple - just whisk together sugar, milk powder, butter, heavy cream . . . oh, and a crapload of egg yolks. Hey, I didn't say this was healthy.

The filling is poured into the crust and baked, first at 350, then 325. After the final cooking stage, my pie was still very jiggly, so I left it in there for another few minutes. From all the blog posts I've read about this pie, the actual cooking time is variable. If I made this again I would probably add at least another five minutes (even after a long cooling period the filling was still a bit too gooey).

Here is what the pie looks like when "set."


Momofuku Crack Pie
From Momofuku for 2

Cookie ingredients (enough for 2 crusts):
2/3 cup plus 1 Tbsp flour
1/8 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup softened butter
1/3 cup light brown sugar
3 Tbsp sugar
1 egg
1 cup rolled oats

Heat the oven to 375. In a medium bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, cream the butter, brown sugar and sugar until light and fluffy. Whisk the egg into the butter mixture, then stir in the flour mixture until fully combined, and then stir in the oats. Spread the mixture onto a 9-by-13-inch baking sheet (it might not fill the entire pan) and bake until golden brown and set, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and cool to the touch on a rack. Crumble the cooled cookie to use in the crust.

Crust ingredients (for 2 crusts):
Crumbled cookie for crust
1/4 cup butter
1 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar
1/8 tsp salt

Combine the crumbled cookie, butter, brown sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse until evenly combined and blended (a little of the mixture clumped between your fingers should hold together). Divide the crust between 2 (10-inch) pie tins. Press the crust into each shell to form a thin, even layer along the bottom and sides of the tins. Set the prepared crusts aside while you prepare the filling.

Filling ingredients:
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup plus a scant 3 Tbsp light brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup plus 1 tsp milk powder (non-fat dry milk)
1 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup plus a scant 2 Tbsp heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
8 egg yolks

Heat the oven to 350. Whisk together the sugar, brown sugar, salt and milk powder. Whisk in the melted butter, then whisk in the heavy cream and vanilla. Finally, gently whisk in the egg yolks. Divide the filling evenly between the 2 prepared pie shells. Bake the pies, one at a time, for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 325 degrees and bake until the filling is slightly jiggly and golden brown, about 12 minutes (it really won't look done, but the pie will set after some time in the fridge). Remove the pies and cool on a rack. Refrigerate the cooled pies until well chilled. Serve cold, and the filling will be gooey. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.