Decadent, creamy, and perfectly rich, Grandma’s chocolate pie is a real showstopper. It’s a luscious chocolate custard resting on a flaky, almost melt in your mouth crust, topped with whipped cream and shaved chocolate. Your friends and family will be impressed and in love with this irresistible dessert! We often enjoy Grandma’s easy chocolate pie recipe during the holidays and usually make it in addition to pecan pie to satisfy everyone’s cravings.
Have you ever had that one dessert that you just couldn’t stop thinking about until you got another piece? That’s this chocolate pie for me. It’s the perfect amount of chocolate, creaminess, and richness to keep you coming back for more.
Chocolate cream pie is the cure for many things including PMS, homesickness, lovesickness, any sort of sickness. It has the texture of creamy chocolate custard and is poured into a tender, flaky crust. It’s a popular choice for birthdays and other special occasions. A good dessert can take an ordinary gathering and make it something extraordinary. And this chocolate pie is that good! This irresistible, yet super easy dessert is a total crowd-pleaser that both adults and kids will enjoy.
GRANDMA’S CHOCOLATE PIE
Grandma’s chocolate pie is a real showstopper. It’s a luscious chocolate custard resting on a flaky, almost melt-in-your-mouth crust, topped with whipped cream and chocolate curls. Your friends and family will be impressed and in love with this irresistible dessert!
INGREDIENTS
FOR THE CRUST:
- 1 1/2 cups (188g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil
- 2 tablespoons milk
FOR THE PIE:
- 1/4 cup cocoa
- 3/4 cups sugar
- 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 egg yolks,, lightly beaten
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 tablespoon butter
- whipped cream or Cool Whip and chocolate curls, optional for serving
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 425° F.
- For the crust, combine flour, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add oil and milk; mix well and pat in 9-inch pie dish, flutting edges if desired. Bake for 10-12 minutes.
- In a saucepan on medium heat, stir together the cocoa, sugar, flour, salt, egg yolks, and milk.
- Stir the mixture constantly as it cooks and until it bubbles and thickens, about 10-15 minutes. If it becomes lumpy, simply beat out the lumps. Be sure it is as thick as you want because it won’t thicken up much more. If it’s not getting thick that just means you haven’t been cooking it long enough.
- Once thick, remove the chocolate filling from the heat and stir in the vanilla and butter.
- Pour the chocolate filling into the baked pie crust and let pie cool for about 1 hour.
- Serve warm, room temperature or refrigerate for 2-4 hours and serve chilled. Top with whipped cream or Cool Whip and chocolate curls, if desired.
NOTES
Tips
- If you want an even easier chocolate pie you can use a frozen pastry shell or even a graham cracker crust instead of making your own.
- A flaky, buttery crust is classic with chocolate pie, but feel free to change things up and use a graham cracker crust or an Oreo crust.
- Waiting for the chocolate mixture to thicken takes longer than you think. Give it at least 15 minutes of cooking and stirring – it will eventually thicken.
- To make homemade whipped cream, use an electric mixer to whip 1 cup of heavy whipping cream with 2 tablespoons powdered sugar or granulated sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Continue to whip on medium-high speed for about 3-4 minutes and until medium peaks form.
- To make chocolate curls, you’ll need a bar of chocolate and a vegetable peeler. The chocolate needs to be slightly warm – you can hold it in your hand to warm it up. To test if the chocolate is the right temperature to curl, put your finger on it – if a fingerprint is left behind, it’s warm enough that the curls will hold their shape.
Storage
- To store: Cover the pie and store in the fridge for up to about 5 days.
- To freeze: You can actually freeze this chocolate pie for up to about 2 months! When you’re ready to serve it, simply thaw it in the refrigerator overnight and then take it out of the fridge about 10-20 minutes before serving. Top with the whipped cream and shaved chocolate and enjoy!
Nutritional information includes crust. Crust recipe from an old Pillsbury cookbook.