Pie Week

Four & Twenty Blackbirds' Black Bottom Oatmeal Pie

by:
November 12, 2013

For #PieWeek, our guest editors are Emily and Melissa Elsen, the pie mavens behind Four & Twenty Blackbirds in Brooklyn, NY. They will be sharing recipes all week from their first cookbook, and giving away a copy each day!

Today: Oatmeal makes its way into the holiday pie rotation.

Black Bottom Oatmeal Pie on Food52

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This pie has slowly but surely become a sort of cult favorite in our pie shop. We loved it from the start for its oatmeal chocolate chip cookie quality; it’s like a pie version of that classic recipe. In the olden days, this pie (minus the chocolate) was dubbed “poor man’s pecan pie” because oats are far less expensive than pecans. We up the ante by adding a decadent layer of dark chocolate ganache on the bottom.

Black Bottom Oatmeal Pie

Serves 8 to 10 people

1 1/2 cups rolled oats
1/4 cup heavy cream
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate (we use 70%), chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 cup dark corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons cider vinegar
4 large eggs

See the full recipe (and save and print it) here.

Photo by Gentl & Hyers

To win a copy of The Four & Twenty Blackbirds Pie Book, tell us in the comments: What cookie would you like to see in pie form? We'll pick winners at random at the end of the week! (Unfortunately, we can only ship domestically.)

See what other Food52 readers are saying.

  • Linda
    Linda
  • JoAn Tamares Bernal
    JoAn Tamares Bernal
  • Nicollette
    Nicollette
  • Deborah Mc Closkey Highsmith
    Deborah Mc Closkey Highsmith
  • Sam
    Sam
Sisters Emily Elsen and Melissa Elsen were born and raised in the rural farm town of Hecla, South Dakota. Their mother and her sisters owned and operated the popular local restaurant, the Calico Kitchen, for which their grandmother Liz made all the pies. After pursuing different careers—Melissa in finance and Emily in sculpture and photography—they established their business in Brooklyn. They originally custom-baked pies in their apartment before opening Four & Twenty Blackbirds pie and coffee shop in 2010. Named “Artisan of the Year” by Time Out New York in 2011, they have received critical praise for their pies and have been featured in a variety of food media including the Food Network and the Cooking Channel, in the New York Times, Martha Stewart Living, and New York magazine.

86 Comments

Linda March 5, 2023
I would like a Peanut Butter Pie, but dairy free and please no artificial whipped toppings.
Thank-you!
 
JoAn T. July 1, 2018
Florentine or Oatmeal lace!
 
Nicollette June 30, 2018
Toffee nut (even with some chocolate for good measure!)
 
Deborah M. June 28, 2018
Chocolate chip, oatmeal, peanutbutter pie
 
Sam November 3, 2015
Chocoalte chip cookie :)
 
Renata November 4, 2014
White chocolate macadamia pie sounds insane!
 
Cassie P. November 25, 2013
white chocolate macadamia nut cookie pie!
 
handy21682 November 19, 2013
snickerdoodle!
 
BglLvr November 18, 2013
7 layer bars in pie form! Oh, my teeth hurt just thinking about it....(sigh!)
 
robywilliam November 18, 2013
I love the delicious combination of oatmeal pie with chocolate...it looks yummy and crispy so i would decide to make it for my kids during vacations. I hope they like it and appreciate my unique baking. http://www.chocholik.com/
 
Christine L. November 17, 2013
Raspberry linzer cookie pie would be absolute heaven for me!
 
Bex K. November 17, 2013
A good peanut butter cookie turned into pie. Not the creamy peanut butter pie
 
SEASPRAY November 17, 2013
I would like to see shortbread cookies in pie form
 
Lydia November 17, 2013
ginger snaps would make a fun pie flavor!
 
KMicken November 17, 2013
We make molasses cookies and then dip half of each cookie in white chocolate. A pit version of that would be awesome!
 
Barbara P. November 17, 2013
Cranberry/apple is really good!
 
Andshewas November 17, 2013
Girls Scout Cookies' Samoa. Chocolate, caramel, toasted coconut.
 
Patty R. November 17, 2013
My kids favorite cookie is a Snickerdoodle and they love pie.....so a Snickerdoodle Pie would be awesome and I think fairly simple :)!
 
Renee B. November 17, 2013
Butterscotch cookie pie calls to me.
 
Angela November 16, 2013
how about a christmas sugar cookie...pie? with sprinkles?