Chocolate Strawberry Slab Pie

Let it set first.. then it's great! Unique and intense flavor, gorgeous presentation... loved it! My friends and I ate this warm, maybe 20 minutes out of the oven. Interestingly, at that point, I would have given it probably 2 stars.. couldn't get my taste buds around the lemon & chocolate mingling together, and the bottom crust was too wet. Luckily for me, we had leftovers... turns out this is MUCH better the longer it's set. Great after 4-6 hours (chocolate and bottom crust finally settled), and FANTASTIC chilled the next day (the harder chocolate enhanced the texture of a perfect crust with luscious strawberries). Now that's actually saying a lot, coming from someone who prefers virtually everything eaten warm right out of the oven. Also, the longer it set, the less the lemon intruded. By the second day, the lemon had fully faded and I didn't notice it at all. I made the pie dough from scratch (a fully butter recipe) and used the exact size pan as called for, 10.5" x 15.5." I ended up needing 2-1/2 crusts total (1-1/2 for the bottom and 1 for the top). I was a little reluctant to brush the top with milk/cream, but it turned out well. I brushed all over with probably 1-2 Tbsp of heavy cream, and it had the effect of lightening and softening the crust (I almost want to say aerating it), so that it's a little closer to a phyllo-type crust. The cream-brushing also allowed me to bake the full 40 minutes without burning the crust: the strawberries and both crusts were all perfect. After having set, the bottom crust was golden brown and fully cooked.. not too wet after all. Next time, I'll try a (homemade) shortening crust instead, so that the heart cutouts will keep their highly-defined shape (butter crusts are super-yummy, but tend to melt a little more, losing their shape). As I was putting in the strawberries, I wondered whether to include the sugary red juice from the strawberry bowl or not. I decided to add it, and (after having set of course) I think it's perfect. Lastly, set your heart cutouts on a baking sheet, sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon and bake 10 minutes at 425 degrees.. a cute little cookie to serve with each slab of pie.