A few years ago, the Momofuku Milk Bar craze began.  It wasn’t until I actually visited it myself in New York City did I really understand why.  This place was too much.  The desserts in the case were incredible, the cookies outrageous, and the cereal milk ice-cream…let’s just say, I am hooked for life.  It was really quite a experience, and that was before I tried the Crack Pie.  So, what kind of pie is called Crack Pie?  A pie that is so irresistibly delicious, you just can’t stop.  The name captures it perfectly.

A good friend of mine in Seattle is a huge fan as well – in fact, she lived in NYC and frequented the Milk Bar often before moving out west.  She is a huge Momofuku fan.  We had been talking about having a Momofuku dinner for a while – she would make the main dishes, I would make the dessert.  Since Crack Pie was printed in Bon Appetit a couple of years ago, I was all set.  We finally put a date on the calendar to have our special meal, and since the pie had to chill overnight, I put a note for myself on the counter on Friday night to remind myself to make it on Saturday (our dinner was Sunday).  We had some friends over on Friday night for cocktails – unfortunately I still had a ton of work to do – so after everyone left  – I went to the computer to tackle my emails.  A couple of hours later – I went back to the kitchen to look at my list for the next day – and mind you, I could barely keep my eyes open I was so tired.  I saw the pie, then brownies and cookies.  I thought I only had to make a pie?  Why do I have to make Pot Brownies and Cocaine Cookies?  I burst out laughing.  Obviously my friends were as well – as I figured out exactly what happened.  When I spoke to them the next day, we all had a good laugh about it.  No, their friend had not turned into a dug addict…just a pie addict.

Ingredients

Preparation

Oat Cookie Crust

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan with  parchment paper; coat with nonstick spray. Combine 6 tablespoons butter, 4  tablespoons brown sugar, and 2 tablespoons sugar in medium bowl. Using electric  mixer, beat mixture until light and fluffy, occasionally scraping down sides of  bowl, about 2 minutes. Add egg; beat until pale and fluffy. Add oats, flour,  baking powder, baking soda, and salt and beat until well blended, about 1  minute. Turn oat mixture out onto prepared baking pan; press out evenly to edges  of pan. Bake until light golden on top, 17 to 18 minutes. Transfer baking pan to  rack and cool cookie completely.

Using hands, crumble oat cookie into large bowl; add 3  tablespoons butter and 1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar. Rub in with fingertips  until mixture is moist enough to stick together. Transfer cookie crust mixture  to 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Using fingers, press mixture evenly onto  bottom and up sides of pie dish. Place pie dish with crust on rimmed baking  sheet.

Filling

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Whisk  both sugars, milk powder, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Add melted butter  and whisk until blended. Add cream, then egg yolks and vanilla and whisk until  well blended. Pour filling into crust. Bake pie 30 minutes (filling may begin to  bubble). Reduce oven temperature to 325°F. Continue to bake pie until filling is  brown in spots and set around edges but center still moves slightly when pie  dish is gently shaken, about 20 minutes longer. Cool pie 2 hours in pie dish on  rack. Chill uncovered overnight.

DO AHEAD Can be made 2  days ahead. Cover; keep chilled.

Sift powdered sugar lightly over top of pie. Cut pie into  wedges and serve cold.

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