This Chocolate Cream Pie, also known as Chocolate Pudding Pie, is filled with smooth and rich dark chocolate pudding made from scratch. Topped with freshly whipped cream all nestled in a chocolate cookie crust. It’s the perfect make-ahead dessert!
Satisfy your sweet tooth and chocolate craving with this Chocolate Cream Pie. The pie begins with a chocolate cookie crust that provides a perfect base for the luscious filling. The filling is a homemade chocolate pudding, that isn’t hard to make and sets this pie apart from its store-bought counterparts.
The pie is then topped with a lavish amount of freshly whipped cream that adds a perfect touch of lightness to the richness of the chocolate pudding. The whipped cream also adds a beautiful visual appeal to the pie with its snowy white peaks that contrast perfectly against the dark chocolate filling. If you don’t want to make a whole pie, try my Dark Chocolate Pudding.
Reasons You Will Want To Make This Chocolate Cream Pie:
- Completely homemade pudding that makes all the difference!
- It tastes so much better than the store-bought ones….so much richer and more chocolate flavor!
- The pudding sets up into a nice soft yet sliceable structure and is not soupy.
- The perfect make-ahead dessert!
- Customize this dessert with the type of chocolate you use: bittersweet, semi-sweet, or milk chocolate.
- In this recipe, you don’t have to temper the eggs!
Ingredients:
OREOS AND BUTTER: Used to make a super simple chocolate cookie crust.
COCOA POWDER: Adds a lot of rich chocolate flavor!
HALF & HALF: I strongly suggest using half and half for this recipe for the best texture. If you must go for lower fat, don’t go lower than whole milk.
EGG YOLKS: This is what helps provide structure and richness to the pudding.
ALL-PURPOSE FLOUR: I have tried many times to make pudding with cornstarch to keep it gluten-free, but it always ends up soupy the next day, so I use flour instead. I haven’t tested this using a cup 4 cup gluten-free flour.
SUGAR
SALT: Just a little bit of salt to balance the sweetness and flavors. Yes, salt is very important in baking!
BUTTER: Added at the end to make the pudding silky smooth.
BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE: Added at the end to boost the chocolate flavor and make this pie burst with chocolatey goodness.
VANILLA
HEAVY CREAM AND POWDERED SUGAR: Used to make the tall whipped cream topping.
How To Make Chocolate Cream Pie:
OREO CRUST: Process the cookies with melted butter until you have fine crumbs. Press into a 9 inch pie plate and bake for 10 minutes. Cool while making the filling.
CHOCOLATE PUDDING: Start by combining the sugar, cocoa powder, flour, and salt. Whisk in the milk and egg yolks. Cook over medium-low heat until the mixture gets hot and bubbles. The mixture should start to thicken.
Remove from heat and stir in the chocolate and butter. Once melted, stir in the vanilla until smooth. Pour into prepared crust and cool completely before topping with the whipped cream.
FAQs
For this recipe, it is essential to cook it at a medium-low temperature and constantly whisk to prevent lumps. The yolks are added in the beginning with the rest of the ingredients to make the pudding instead of tempering. It is easier and poses less risk for lumps.
If you do get lumps in your pudding, don’t worry! Just push the pudding through a fine mesh sieve to remove them.
Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. The whipped topping will begin to weep the longer it sits, and the crust will start to soften as well. If making this for a big day, I recommend making it no more than 2 days in advance and topping it with whipped cream the day you are serving.
Tips and Suggestions:
- Don’t want a chocolate crust? Try this All Butter Pie Crust instead and follow this post on How To Blind Bake A Pie Crust.
- Use different types of chocolate for varying levels of rich chocolate flavor. Bittersweet chocolate will give you the most flavor, and milk chocolate will be a little less intense.
- Don’t fret if your first slice isn’t very pretty because the first slice is the hardest to get out. It is much easier after you remove the first slice.
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Chocolate Cream Pie
Ingredients
CRUST:
- 20 regular oreo cookies
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
CHOCOLATE FILLING:
- ½ cup (110g) sugar
- ⅓ cup (45g) all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
- pinch of salt
- 2½ cups (590 ml) half and half
- 5 large egg yolks
- ⅓ cup (60g) bittersweet chocolate (chips or chocolate bar)
- 3 tablespoos butter
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
WHIPPED CREAM TOPPING:
- 1¼ cups (295ml) heavy whipping cream
- 3 tablespoons confectioners sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
CRUST:
- Preheat oven to 350℉.
- In a food processor or blender, blitz the oreos with the melted butter until fine crumbs. Or place oreos in a plastic bag and break up with a rolling pin then combine with melted butter. Pour into a 9" pie plate and press into an even layer along the bottom and sides. Bake for 12 minutes. Cool while making the filling.
CHOCOLATE FILLING:
- In a large saucepan, whisk together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Whisk in the half and half and egg yolks.
- Cook over medium-low heat, whisking constantly until the mixture gets hot, starts to bubble and thicken. Once it starts to thicken, cook for 30 to 45 seconds, whisking constantly. Remove from heat and whisk in the butter and chocolate. Whisk in the vanilla until smooth. Pour into prepared pie crust.
- Press parchment paper over the top of the filling and refrigerate for at least 12 hours. This gives the pie the required amount of time to cool down and completely set up so it will slice.
WHIPPED CREAM TOPPING:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the whipping cream, confectioners sugar, and vanilla until stiff peaks form. Spread onto chilled pie and top with chocolate curls if desired.
Notes
- STORAGE: Store leftover pie covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- MAKE-AHEAD: Make the pie crust and filling as stated above and leave off the topping until the day you will be serving. Make up to 2 days in advance.
