By Kathryn Reed

I’m not sure if it’s good or bad that Sue and I both love mint desserts. On the one hand it means being able to make something you know the other person will like. But it also means having to share. Considering we are both the youngest in our families, sharing is not our strong suit.

While I really like dessert, I don’t like many at restaurants. I’m a definite pie snob. So one of the best parts about making a dessert is I can have seconds, thirds and it allows for breakfast to be a repeat of dessert.

One of my favorite desserts is grasshopper pie. It’s a refreshing finish to a meal on a warm night – even if the warmth is from a hot fire. With it being so rich, I tend to cut smaller pieces compared to a fruit pie – which is good when serving to a group or wanting it to last in the freezer for more than a night or two.

My sister, Pam, shared the recipe with me eons ago. She spent the summer of 1981 in Alaska with her boyfriend at the time. One stop was Gustavus, where he had relatives. Pam picked up a copy of “The Gustavus Inn Recipe Book”, which was published in 1977. Sally McLaughlin followed in her mom’s footsteps with making family style meals and publishing a book of recipes. At the time this was published, McLaughlin said the grasshopper pie had been the inn’s most popular dessert since it opened in 1965.

I use Oreo cookies or a cheaper version (two rows from a normal, regular package) and omit the butter and sugar. I put them in a plastic bag to crush – and a wine bottle works just as well as a rolling pin. I don’t have a double boiler, so I put water into the pot I cook pasta in and the ingredients into a medium sauce pan that floats in the water. I also sprinkle some of the fine crumbled chocolate on top of the mixture before freezing it – just to jazz it up a bit.

Grasshopper Pie

 The crust: With a rolling pin, crush about two-thirds of a package of plain chocolate wafers until they are fine crumbs. Measure the crumbs – there should be 1 cup. Put them in a small bowl and add 1 tablespoon of sugar and 3 tablespoons of butter. With a pastry blender, work these ingredients together until no trace of butter remains. Press the crumbs firmly onto the bottom and sides of a 9-inch pie pan. Bake the crust for 7 minutes in a 350-degree oven and cool it on a wire rack.

The filling: In the top of a double boiler melt 24 marshmallows with one-quarter cup of milk. Do not let the water under the pot boil and stir the marshmallows occasionally. When they are melted, set the pot aside to cool slightly.

In a small bowl whip 1 cup heavy cream until stiff. When the marshmallow mixture is a little cooler, stir in 2 tablespoons of white creme de cacao and 3 tablespoons of green creme de menthe. Pour this mixture into the whipped cream and gently but quickly fold the two mixtures together. Pour into the cooled chocolate crust and put the pie in the freezer. When it is frozen hard, cover the pie with plastic wrap and tin foil folded tightly over the edges.

If the pie is frozen very hard, it is sometimes better to let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving. Cut into very small pieces as it is very rich. Will keep in freezer for up to two weeks.