Ingredients
Crust:
2 cups flour
1 cup Crisco
2 TBS sugar mixed to form crumbles
½ cup cold water mixed until bough ball can be formed.
Cream cheese brownie:
1 8oz. package of cream cheese, softened
3 Tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 eggs
1 €“ 15 ½ oz. box of Pillsbury brownie mix
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 Tablespoons cold water
½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)
Chocolate pudding filling:
1-4 oz. German sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 Tablespoon salted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup sugar
3 Tablespoons cornstarch 1 ½ cups whole milk
2 large egg yolks
Directions
Crust:
Roll out place in pie plate and flute edge as desired. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Set aside and cool.
Cream cheese brownie:
In a medium bowl with a hand mixer; combine cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and 1 egg beating until smooth. Next in a large bowl combine brownie mix, oil, 1 Tablespoon water, and 2 eggs; mix together thoroughly until well blended. Divide batter and pour part of one half into a large pie pan, spoon in and spread cream cheese mixture carefully to make a layer with only one of the pie pans. Top with more brownie mix to cover and repeat process with second half of brownie batter minus the cream cheese in another large pie pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until edges begin to wrinkle and center is set. Cool cream cheese brownies for 10 minutes and remove from pans onto a piece of wax paper. Place the cooled brownie with cream cheese in it into the cooled pie crust, use second brownie (without cream cheese) as optional garnish or just to eat!
Chocolate pudding filling:
Melt chocolate and butter in a microwave, stir until smooth. Stir in vanilla until well blended. In a small sauce pan mix cornstarch and sugar. Then whisk in milk, cook and stir continually until thick and bubbles begin to form. Lower heat; cook and stir for about two minutes longer then remove from heat. In a small bowl temper egg yolks by whisking in a small amount of hot pudding mixture, doing so vigorously until smooth. Add the tempered eggs to the chocolate pudding mixture and bring back to a slow boil. Remove from heat. Pour slightly cooled pudding over brownie, decorate as desired, and refrigerate.