Kelly's Island Chocolate Coconut Rum Pie

This is what my sweet husband made for my birthday dessert. Rich and decadent, it is a mixture of several of my favorite things: coconut, chocolate, and oh yes, rum. Come to Mama.

It's from Celebrate With Chocolate by Marcel Desaulniers. Yes, Number One even made the pie crust too! And whipped the cream and rum for the topping. He is talented!

Note: This recipe does need to chill in the refrigerator for 8 hours, so be sure to plan ahead.

Flaky Pie Crust Dough

1/3 cup whole milk
2 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon pure vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-ounce pieces

Chocolate Coconut Rum Filling

1 1/2 cups dried unsweetened coconut flakes
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark corn syrup
3 ounces unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-ounce pieces
1/4 cup Myer's dark rum
1 teaspoon salt
8 ounces semisweet baking chocolate, coarsely chopped
5 large eggs

MAKE THE FLAKY PIE CRUST DOUGH:
Place the milk, egg yolks, and vanilla in a small bowl. Use a fork to stir the egg and milk mixture until thoroughly combined. Set aside.

Place 1 3/4 cups of the flour and the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle. Mix on the lowest speed (stir) for 1 1/2 minutes, until the butter is cut into the flour and the mixture develops a very coarse texture (some small chunks of butter should be visible; if not, you probably have overmixed). Gradually add the milk and egg mixture while mixing on low until the dough comes together, 15 to 20 seconds. Remove the dough from the mixer and form it into a smooth round ball. Wrap in plastic wrap, then press into a 1-inch-thick disk (this makes rolling the dough real easy, especially with a soft dough like this one). Refrigerate the dough for 20 minutes.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and remove and discard the plastic wrap. Place the dough on a clean, dry, lightly floured work surface. Roll the dough with a rolling pin that has been dusted with flour (use the remaining 1/4 cup of flour as necessary to prevent the dough from sticking) into a circle about 16 inches in diameter and 1/4 inch thick. Line a 9 x 1 1/2-inch nonstick pie pan with the dough, gently pressing the dough around the bottom and sides of the pan. Use a paring knife or scissors to trim the dough, leaving a 2 inch border. Fold a 3- to 4-inch section of the border at a time, over and into the sides of the dough in the pan, and press gently into place. The folded border should stand about 1 inch from the top edge of the pan. Continue to fold and press the remaining dough border into the pan, a 3- to 4-inch section at a time, until all of the border has been folded into the pan (this creates an impressive-looking wavelike edge). Set aside at room temperature while preparing the filling.

PREPARE THE CHOCOLATE COCONUT RUM FILLING:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Toast the coconut flakes on a baking sheet in the oven until golden brown (they will also be crispy after a few seconds out of the oven), about 5 minutes.

Heat the sugar, corn syrup, butter, rum, and salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently while the mixture is heating. Reduce the heat to low and cook the mixture for 1 minute. Remove from the heat; immediately add the semisweet chocolate, stirring constantly until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth (be careful while stirring not to splash the scorching-hot mixture out of the bowl). Set aside until needed in a minute or so.

Place the eggs in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a balloon whip. Whisk on medium speed for 1 minute until combined. Operate the mixer on medium while gradually adding the hot chocolate mixture. Mix on medium speed for 1 minute until incorporated. Remove the bowl from the mixer and use a rubber spatula to fold in the coconut flakes until evenly distributed.

Pour the chocolate and coconut mixture into the prepared pie shell. Place the pie pan on a baking sheet on the center rack in the oven and bake for 1 hour, until the crust is golden brown and the chocolate center is domed and shiny. Remove the pie from the oven and cool at room temperature for 30 minutes. Refrigerate the pie for 8 hours before cutting and serving.

After assembly, you may keep the pie in the refrigerator for 2 days before serving. To avoid permeating the pie with refrigerator odors, place it in a large, tightly sealed plastic container.

TO SERVE:
Heat the blade of a serrated knife with a rounded tip under hot running water and wipe the blade dry before cutting each slice. Consider serving the pie with rum-flavored unsweetened whipping cream.