Chocolate Pudding Pie

A classic favorite – Chocolate Pudding Pie

Fresh whipped cream speckled with vanilla bean seeds contrasts nicely with the velvety, rich chocolate pudding in this chocolate pudding pie.  For this pie, you can vary the crust, using anything from a cookie crust (made with chocolate or vanilla wafers) to a normal pie crust.  For my version of this classic pie, I used a Pâte Sucrée, which is like a vanilla sugar cookie crust. 

Chocolate Pie Recipe

Adapted from Gourmet Magazine’s Chocolate Cream Pie

Serves 8 to 10

• 2/3 cup sugar
• ¼ cup cornstarch
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 4 large egg yolks
• 3 cups whole milk
• 7 oz bittersweet chocolate
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 – 9-inch pie crust, baked (I used my Pâte Sucrée)
• ¾ cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
• ¼ to ½ vanilla bean, split and scraped

Make the Chocolate Pudding:

Whisk together sugar, salt and egg yolks in a 3-quart heavy saucepan until combined well.  Add cornstarch and whisk until evenly distributed.  Then add the milk in a stream, while continuing to whisk.  Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking, and then reduce heat and simmer for 1 minute while continuing to whisk (filling will be thick). 

While the mixture is coming to a boil, melt the bittersweet chocolate in a double boiler. Since I do not own a double boiler, I like to place the chocolate in a metal bowl over another slightly larger bowl with very hot water.  The hot water should hit just below the bottom of the metal bowl.  The heat and steam from the water will melt the chocolate as it sits.  

Strain the pudding through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl.  Whisk in butter and vanilla. 

Add the melted chocolate and whisk until evenly distributed. 

Cover surface of the pudding with plastic wrap so that none of the pudding is exposed to air (i.e. place the plastic wrap so it is touching the top of the pudding) and cool completely, about 2 hours.

Spoon filling into crust and refrigerate, loosely covered, at least 4 hours.

Assemble the Pie:

Just before serving, beat cream and vanilla bean seeds in a bowl using an electric mixer until cream is frothy.  Add the powdered sugar and beat until it just holds stiff peaks (do not overbeat!).  

Spoon whipped cream on top of pie.  Add chocolate shavings, if desired.  For the chocolate shavings on my pie, I grated a dark chocolate espresso bar with a microplane.