Making Mud

Mud Pies, that is. Today is Mrs. V’s birthday and, even if birthday celebrations lose a bit of their thrill after a while (does it peak around age 7?), I think everyone should still get to have cake. When you have a long list of allergies that gets a bit more complicated, but, after the bakingsuccessstories from the Ladies’ Retreat, I was feeling confident to tackle a cake-ish recipe.

I made three separate mud pies. One for the people without allergies, one for Crystal without wheat or egg, and one for Mrs. V without gluten, sugar, or chocolate. They look very similar, except the carob one is darkest.

The recipe I used is modified from the General Mills cookbook for kids: Alpha-Bakery (M is for Mud Pie). In each case, I used a 10-inch pie pan.

Regular Mud Pie

3/4 – 1 c. granulated sugar 3/4 c. applesauce 1/2 c. flour 1/2 c. cocoa 1/4 t. salt 1 t. vanilla 3 eggs 1 c. chopped nuts (optional — I left them out this time) 1/4 c. Hershey’s chocolate syrup Cool Whip or sweetened whipping cream

Heat oven to 325 F. Spray a 10-inch pie plate with non-stick spray.

Mix sugar, applesauce, flour, cocoa, salt, vanilla, and eggs in a medium bowl. Stir in nuts, if using. Pour into pan.

Bake 30-35 minutes, wooden pick in center should come out clean but center will be very moist.

Immediately prick holes in pie with a fork or knife, then spread with chocolate syrup. Cool completely.

Spread Cool Whip over top. Drizzle with chocolate syrup, if desired. Store pie in refrigerator.

I reduced the sugar from the original recipe and I think it’s actually even better at the lower range I’ve given b/c the chocolate syrup and Cool Whip add enough buzz. This is definitely a recipe that is easy to reach the ‘sickeningly sweet’ level.

Eggless Mud Pie

3 t. Ener-G egg replacer 4 T. warm water 3/4 c. granulated sugar 3/4 c. applesauce 1/2 c. spelt flour 1/2 c. cocoa 1/4 t. salt 1 t. vanilla 1/2 t. xanthan gum 1/4 c. Hershey’s chocolate syrup Cool Whip or sweetened whipping cream

Heat oven to 325 F. Spray a 10-inch pie plate with non-stick spray.

Mix egg replacer with warm water and stir until smooth and well mixed. Mix sugar, applesauce, spelt flour, cocoa, salt, vanilla, xanthan gum, and egg replacer in a medium bowl. Pour into pan.

Bake 30-35 minutes, wooden pick in center should come out clean but center will be very moist.

Immediately prick holes in pie with a fork or knife, then spread with chocolate syrup. Cool completely.

Spread Cool Whip over top. Drizzle with chocolate syrup, if desired. Store pie in refrigerator.

This came out darker than the one with egg but tastes very similar.

Gluten Free, Non-Dairy, Carob Mud Pie

1 c. agave nectar 3/4 c. unsweetened applesauce 1/4 c. sorghum flour 2 T. white rice flour 2 T. arrowroot powder 1/2 c. carob powder 1/4 t. salt 1/2 t. xanthan gum 1 t. vanilla 2 eggs Coffee-carob sauce (see below)

Heat oven to 325 F. Spray a 10-inch pie plate with non-stick spray.

Mix agave nectar, applesauce, flours, carob, salt, xanthan gum, vanilla, and eggs in a medium bowl. Pour into pan.

Bake 30-35 minutes, wooden pick in center should come out clean but center will be very moist.

Immediately prick holes in pie with a fork or knife, then spread with coffee-carob sauce. Cool completely.

Coffee-carob sauce 2 T. canoleo 2 T. carob powder 2 T. agave nectar 1 t. vanilla strong coffee

In a small pan, heat canoleo, carob powder, and agave nectar, stirring constantly until smooth. Remove from heat and add vanilla and coffee to desired consistency.

I’d love to be able to tell you how this tastes but coffee really, truly does make me nauseous and even vomit. 😛 TMI, I know. Sorry.