Homemade Chocolate Cream Pie
Rich, decadent chocolate custard topped with sweetened whipped cream and chocolate shavings inside a crushed Oreo cookie crust make this Chocolate Cream Pie a creamy, cool dessert that is guaranteed to please!
Prep Time20 minutes mins
Cook Time10 minutes mins
Additional Time4 hours hrs
Total Time4 hours hrs 30 minutes mins
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 12 servings
Calories: 680kcal
Crust
- 24 Oreos crushed into fine crumbs in a food processor
- ¼ cup salted butter, melted
Filling
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- 8 Tablespoons salted butter, cut into chunks
- ½ cup granulated sugar, divided
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 9 egg yolks
- 8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
- 2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
Topping
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream, chilled
- 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Grated dark chocolate, for garnishing
Crust
Heat oven to 350°F.
Pulse the Oreo cookies in a food processor until coarsely ground, about 15 pulses, then continue to process another 15 seconds until they turn into fine, even crumbs. Drizzle the melted butter over the Oreo crumbs and pulse to combine.
Transfer the cookie crumb mixture to a pie plate and press into an even layer on the bottom and up the sides, using the bottom of a measuring cup or drinking glass. Bake for 10 minutes, then cool completely before filling.
Filling
In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the milk, cream, ¼ cup of the sugar, and salt to a simmer, stirring occasionally.
While the milk mixture heats, whisk together the remaining sugar, cornstarch, and egg yolks until smooth and creamy.
When the milk mixture is hot, slowly pour 1 cup of the hot liquid into the egg mixture, whisking to temper the egg yolks. Then slowly whisk the tempered yolks back into the saucepan of simmering milk and cream. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens and large bubbles start to burst on top, about 30 seconds.
Remove the pan from the heat and immediately whisk in the cubed butter and chocolate until completely melted and smooth. Stir in the vanilla, then pour into the prepared pie crust. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing into the surface of the filling so a skin doesn't form, and refrigerate for 4 hours until the filling is set and chilled.
Topping
Using an electric mixer or stand mixer, whip the cream, sugar, and vanilla together until soft peaks form, anywhere from 1 to 3 minutes. Spread over the top of the chilled and set pie, then sprinkle with chocolate shavings and serve.
- 3 ½ cups of half-and-half can be used in place of the whole milk and cream.
- Update 11/2021: I recently changed the recipe slightly to only require 8 instead of 9 egg yolks and leaving out the 2 ounces of bittersweet chocolate, just to simplify things a bit. I think the difference is negligible, but received immediate and decisive feedback from more than one loyal reader that they loved the original recipe as written, so I have changed it back. THE PEOPLE HAVE SPOKEN! I have the best readers. But if you want to use one less egg yolk and not bother with a partial bar of bittersweet chocolate, I think you can totally get away with it.
Calories: 680kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 52g | Saturated Fat: 30g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 16g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 264mg | Sodium: 309mg | Potassium: 303mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 32g | Vitamin A: 1499IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 126mg | Iron: 4mg