Cooking & Conversation: Mud Pie-Mudathlon

Doug and I made a road trip to Indiana to observe our daughter and our niece participating in a 5k race called the Mudathlon. It was very enlightening and fun to watch. Our grandsons even participated in the "mud" events for the kids. It was family friendly, even though as the name implies, it was very muddy and messy. So, to commemorate the event, I am making a Mud Pie.

Evie & Sarah, 2013.

Mississippi Mud Pie, according to Wikipedia, is a chocolate-based dessert pie that is likely to have originated in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The pie originally contained a gooey chocolate sauce on top of a crumbly chocolate crust. The pie is usually served with ice cream or whipped cream. While Mississippi mud pie was originally associated with Southern United States cuisine, the dish has gained somewhat of an international reputation, owing in large part to the sheer amount of chocolate in each serving. The name "Mississippi Mud Pie" comes from the fact that it resembles the banks of the Mississippi River. It is believed that this dish was created by home cooks after World War II because it was made of simple ingredients that could be found at any supermarket and did not require any special cooking tools. Its earliest known reference in print is 1975. There is also a reference to Mississippi Mud Cake in a 1972 recipe. If you would like this reference it is A Muddy Cake Story from The Old Foodie.

The recipe I am using today is a simplification of a Mud Pie from the magazine, Taste Of Home. My recipe takes around 35 minutes to make, not including freezer time. I am modifying the steps in it to make it even easier. I am substituting Cool Whip in place of beating the whipped cream. I am using our favorite, Oreo Cookies, in place of other brands of chocolate wafers. If you are pressed for time, you can also substitute ice cream fudge sauce in place of making your own from scratch. But, as easy as the sauce is to make, I would recommend making it. It has that home-made taste. But if you use it from a jar, it simplifies the recipe immensely. Taste of Home originally published this recipe in their Taste of Home's Holiday & Celebrations Cookbook Annual 2006, p59.

Mud Pie

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups chocolate cookie crumbs, such as Oreo cookies crushed
1/3 cup oleo, melted
1 quart chocolate ice cream, softened
1 quart coffee ice cream, softened

Chocolate Sauce:

2 tablespoons oleo or butter
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 can (5 ounces) evaporated milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Topping:

1 carton Cool Whip non-dairy topping

Click here for Printable Mud Pie recipe.

If you want to make this pie with no cooking, just assembling, use a Keebler Ready Crust, Chocolate. Then combine the 2 quarts of chocolate and coffee ice cream. Follow the same directions for assembling, but when the ice cream has frozen again in the crust, pour your favorite fudge topping, such as Smucker's Chocolate Fudge or Hot Fudge toppings. Then top with Cool Whip non-dairy topping. It is quick and very delicious!

In a small bowl combine crushed cookie crumbs and melted butter.

Press the cookie mixture into an ungreased 9-in. pie dish.
Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

In a large bowl, mix together chocolate ice cream and coffee ice cream.
We wanted an extra dose of chocolate, so we used chocolate brownie ice cream.
The recipe calls for 1 quart of each kind of ice cream. I used 3/4 of a quart of each kind.
That fit into the size of pie dish that I had.

Mix until blended together.

Cool baked crust while you are preparing the chocolate sauce.

For chocolate sauce, in a small saucepan, melt the butter and chocolate over low heat,
stir until smooth.

Stir in the sugar, salt, and evaporated milk.

Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.
Stir in vanilla.

Set aside to cool.

Spoon ice cream mixture into the cooled crust. Cover and freeze for 8 hours or overnight.

Remove from freezer 15 minutes before serving.

Drizzle chocolate sauce over the ice cream. Top with Cool Whip.
Serve with remaining chocolate sauce.

Enjoy!

Mudathlon

The Mudathlon took place June 29th in Indianapolis. It was a muddy adventure of 3 miles and 40 obstacles and acting like a kid again. On the course, there was a 100 yard long Mucking Mud Pit, a thrilling Mud Slide, a Cargo Net Climb, and Creek Crossing, just to name a few of the obstacles. Take a look at the pictures of the day.