Mrs. Whitmeyer's Shoofly Pie

This is a pie from an article in the Washington Post on May 14, 2014 written by Pennsylvania native Tim Artz; Mrs. Whitmeyer is a neighbor from his childhood and he would request this pie instead of birthday cake it is so good.

• Ready In: 1 hr 5 mins
• Serves: 8-10
• Yields: 1 pie

Ingredients

• 1 (9 inch)  pie crusts
• 1  cup flour
• 3⁄4 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 2 -3  tablespoons salted butter, at a cool room temperature
• 1⁄2 cup molasses
• 1⁄2 cup corn syrup (originally molasses and corn syrup together was 1 cup Ole Barrel Syrup, available in PA Dutch area)
• 1  large egg, beaten
• 1  cup  very hot water
• 1  teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1  teaspoon baking soda

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Line a 9-inch glass or ceramic pie plate with the unbaked pie dough/shell.
2. Use two forks or your clean fingers to combine the flour, brown sugar and butter in a mixing bowl, forming a crumbly mix. Reserve 1/2 cup of this mixture in a separate small bowl.
3. Whisk together the molasses and syrup, egg, 3/4 cup of the hot water and the vanilla extract in a medium bowl until well blended, then add to the crumbly mix in the mixing bowl.
4. Stir the baking soda into the remaining 1/4 cup of hot water until it has dissolved, then quickly stir that mixture into the bowl to form a rich filling. Pour into the pie shell.
5. Scatter the reserved crumbly mix evenly over the surface. Bake for 5 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 375 degrees. Bake for 40 minutes or until the pie is just set.
6. Cool almost completely before serving.