PEPPERMINT STICK CHIFFON PIE

PEPPERMINT STICK CHIFFON PIE

Another long remembered, if not nearly essential flavor of the Holiday Season is the Peppermint Stick or Candy Cane.  Countless people that I asked about personal favorite flavors immediately responded with the minty, cool, sweetness of this red and white striped confection.  It’s rather inescapable, and rightly so.  This simple little treat seems to be incorporated into so many wonderful recipes this time of year.  It’s as iconic with the Holidays, and enjoyed by most everyone.

And why shouldn’t it?  Candy Canes have a somewhat interesting history all their own:

The origin of the candy cane goes back over 350 years, when candy-makers both professional and amateur were making hard sugar sticks. The original candy was straight and completely white in color.

Around the Seventeenth Century, European Christians began to adopt the use of Christmas trees as part of their Christmas celebrations.  They made special decorations for their trees from foods like cookies and sugar-stick candy. The first historical reference to the familiar cane shape goes back to 1670, when the choirmaster at the Cologne Cathedral in Germany, bent the sugar-sticks into canes to represent a shepherd's staff. The all-white candy canes were given out to children during the long-winded nativity services.

The clergymen's custom of handing out candy canes during Christmas services spread throughout Europe and later to America. The canes were still white, but sometimes the candy makers would add sugar-roses to decorate the canes further.

The first historical reference to the candy cane being in America goes back to 1847, when a German immigrant, August Imgard, decorated the  Tannenbaum, or Christmas tree in his Wooster, Ohio home with candy canes.

This Holiday season, why not try a new twist on an old favorite.  This delicious chiffon-style pie is a sure-fire winner, as well as a proven crowd pleaser.

PEPPERMINT STICK CHFFON PIE:

For Crust:

·         1 Package Nabisco Chocolate Wafers

·         1/3 Cup Sugar

·         6 Tbs. Butter, Melted

For Filling:

·         1/2  Cup Sugar

 ·         1 Cup Peppermint Stick Candy, Crushed

·         Envelope Unflavored Gelatin

·         1/4  tsp. Salt

·         1 1/4  Cups Milk

·         3 Egg Yolks, Slightly Beaten           

·         1 tsp. Peppermint Extract

·         4 – 5 Drops Red Food Coloring

·         1 ¼ Cups Heavy Whipping Cream

For Garnish:

·         2 Cups Heavy Whipping Cream

·         4 Tbs. Powdered Sugar

·         1 tsp. Peppermint Extract

·         Crushed Peppermint Stick Candy & Chocolate Shavings (If Preferred)

  

DIRECTIONS:

For Crust:

Process chocolate wafers in a food processor and set aside into a mixing bowl.  Add sugar and melted butter and mix thoroughly until all crumbs are coated.  Press crumbs into a baking sprayed pie plate.  Bake at 350 degrees for 5 – 7 minutes.  Cool completely before filling.

For Filling:

In a saucepan, combine sugar, the 1/2 cup crushed peppermint candy, the unflavored gelatin, and salt. Stir in the milk and egg yolks. Cook and stir the mixture until bubbly. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more.

Remove from heat; stir in food coloring, additional ½ cup of crushed peppermint candy, and peppermint extract. Chill mixture until partially set (consistency of unbeaten egg whites).

Beat the 1-1/2 cups whipping cream until soft peaks form. Fold into gelatin mixture. Chill until mixture mounds when spooned.

Spoon into cooled chocolate wafer crust. Chill in the refrigerator for 4 hours or until firm.

Top the pie with additional whipped cream.  Garnish with additional crushed peppermint stick candy and chocolate shavings. Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.