Chocolate Cream Pie With Graham Cracker Crust: A super silky and decadent chocolate cream pie made in a simple graham cracker crust and topped with fresh whipped cream.
This pie is made with a custard base that requires tempering eggs. Tempering eggs cooks the eggs while preventing them from curdling or essentially scrambling. It does take some practice, but there are a few tricks to getting a perfectly smooth custard cream.
Desserts made with a custard base are unexpectedly satisfying. Many desserts are chewy like Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookies, or cakey, like Italian Olive Oil cake, or crunchy and fruit-filled like Swedish Apple Pie. But custard-based desserts allow the main ingredient, in this case chocolate, to really shine.
Although this pie is made with chocolate cream, custards can be used with a variety of flavors like Salted Caramel and White Chocolate Mousse Cake.
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🌟 Why You’ll Love This Pie
Decadent and Creamy: Made with high-quality chocolate, the filling is decadent and creamy.
Make Ahead: This pie can be made ahead saving you time and distraction on the day of.
Texture: Crunchy graham cracker crust, silky chocolate filling, and light and fresh whipped cream - lots of satisfying and contrasting textures.
🛒 Ingredients
Below are the ingredients needed to make Chocolate Cream Pie With Graham Cracker Crust including notes on the graham cracker crust, the chocolate cream filling, and the optional whipped cream topping.
Graham Cracker Crust
- Graham Crackers: Any brand will do.
- Butter: I use salted butter.
Chocolate Cream Filling (no bake)
- Bittersweet Chocolate Chips: Using bittersweet chocolate chips will result in a super indulgent and decadent filling. If you prefer something a little less intense, use milk chocolate chips, or half milk chocolate and half bittersweet. But most importantly, use high-quality chocolate, like Ghirardelli or Guittard. Lower quality or store brands won’t hold up well to melting or the tempering process.
- Egg yolks: The base of the custard.
- Granulated Sugar and Salt: Change the temperature of the eggs and help to achieve a smooth consistency.
- Heavy Cream: The heavy cream is used both for tempering the eggs, but also separately to create a whipped cream to add to the chocolate base.
Whipped Cream Topping
- Heavy Cream: Whipped slowly and used as topping.
- Powdered Sugar: Adds sweetness to the whipped cream topping.
- Cocoa Powder: Optional for dusting on the whipped cream.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
📝 How to Make Chocolate Cream Pie With Graham Cracker Crust
Below are the step-by-step instructions and photos for how to make Chocolate Cream Pie With Graham Cracker crust.
*Note: The recipe card with instructions, ingredient list, and quantities is included further below these step-by-step photos.
Prep: Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Step 1. Graham Cracker Crust: Melt the butter in a large mixing bowl. Crush the graham cracker crumbs either with a blender, food processor, or in a gallon-sized freezer bag with a rolling pin.
Add the crumbs to the melted butter, combine, then press into a pie dish with the back of a spoon or your fingers. Press the crumbs into the bottom and up the sides.
Bake for 8 minutes.
Tip: Get kids or family members involved with this step. They'll love crushing the crumbs with a rolling pin (and perhaps snack on a few extra graham crackers while doing so). They can even help press the crust into the pie dish.
Step 2. Melt the Chocolate: Add the chocolate to a large microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 1 minute at 50% power. Stir, then add 30 seconds at 50% power as needed stirring in between until the chocolate has melted.
Step 3. Prep the Egg Mixture: In a medium bowl, combine the egg yolks, sugar, and salt.
Tip: Adding sugar and salt to the egg yolks impacts the temperature of the eggs which helps to prevent the eggs from curdling when adding the simmering heavy cream.
Step 4. Heat the Heavy Cream: In a small saucepan add ½ cup heavy cream and bring to a low simmer at medium heat.
Step 4. Temper the Eggs: Slowly add the simmering heavy cream to the egg yolk mixture, whisking constantly.
Pour the mixture back into the saucepan. Turn the heat to medium-low, and cook for another 1-2 minutes while whisking constantly, until slightly thickened.
Tip: If the custard (egg yolk mixture) is not entirely smooth pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer to remove any lumps that may have formed from the eggs curdling.
Step 6. Combine Egg Mixture with Chocolate: Add the egg mixture to the melted chocolate and combine.
Tip: Do not leave the egg mixture in the saucepan for any length of time as the egg mixture may cook from the residual heat of the pan.
Step 7. Incorporate Whipped Cream: Add 1 ½ cups heavy cream to a large bowl and whip at low speed until soft peaks form.
Soft Peaks: If you pull a whisk or beater up through the cream, the cream should form a peak that is soft. Rather than staying upright (stiff peaks), the peak will gently fall to one side.
Tip: Be sure that the cream at the bottom of the bowl is getting whipped. Sometimes some cream sits at the bottom without being drawn in by the beaters. If you are not sure when to stop whipping the cream, err on the side of overwhipping rather than underwhipping.
Fold in the Whipped Cream: Add half of the whipped cream to the chocolate mixture, and gently fold (not stir) the whipped cream into the chocolate to prevent deflating the whipped cream. Add the remaining whipped cream and ensure that there are no white streaks remaining.
Tip: To fold the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture use a flat wide spatula and gently incorporate the whipped cream using an up and down motion. Press the spatula down along the back of the bowl to the bottom center of the bowl and then back up. Turn the bowl and repeat until all the cream is incorporated.
Step 8. Assemble the Pie: Add the chocolate mixture to the pie, spreading it towards the edges. Cover loosely and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.
Remove from the fridge 10-15 minutes before serving to allow the chocolate cream to soften slightly.
Whipped Cream Topping (optional): Add the remaining 1 ½ cups heavy cream and powdered sugar and whip until soft peaks. Top the pie with the whipped cream and dust lightly with cocoa powder if you have it.
Tip: Wait to add the whipped cream until right before serving to prevent it from weeping.
❄️ How to Serve and Store
- To Serve: Top with whipped cream and dust with cocoa powder, or serve it plain. The chocolate filling is rich and decadent and doesn't necessarily need any toppings.
- To Store: Cover loosely with plastic wrap or tin foil. Try to prevent the covering from pressing into the chocolate.
✏️ Chocolate Cream Pie With Graham Cracker Crust FAQs
Yes, absolutely. You can use substitute all of the chocolate for milk chocolate or use a combination of milk chocolate and bittersweet chocolate. Using milk chocolate results in a less intensely chocolatey cream filling.
Tempering the eggs and heating the mixture will cause the mixture to thicken. If it feels too thin you can continue to cook the custard (egg mixture) while stirring for an extra minute or two. When combined with the chocolate and whipped cream, the filling will be thick enough to set and will not be too soft.
This pie can be made 1-2 days ahead. Too much longer and the chocolate cream will soften the graham cracker crust. However, you can make the filling several days in advance and then make the crust and assemble the pie the day of or the day before.
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If you tried this Chocolate Cream Pie Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. I'd love to hear from you!
Chocolate Cream Pie With Graham Cracker Crust
Ingredients
Graham Cracker Crust
- 8 tablespoon butter
- 12 graham crackers
Chocolate Cream Filling
- 2 cups high-quality bittersweet chocolate (14oz) or milk chocolate
- 3 large egg yolks
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup heavy cream (for tempering eggs)
- 1½ cups heavy cream (for whipping and incorporating into the filling)
Whipped Cream Topping
- 1½ cups heavy cream
- 2 tablespoon powdered sugar
- cocoa powder for dusting optional
Instructions
Graham Cracker Crust
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Add the graham crackers to a blender or food processor and pulse until they become fine crumbs. Alternatively, if you do not have a blender or food processor add the graham crackers to a gallon-sized freezer bag and use a rolling pin to crush them into fine crumbs. This is a great task for kids to get involved.
- Melt the butter in a large microwave-safe mixing bowl. Add the graham cracker crumbs and combine. Press into a pie dish using the back of a spoon or even better, your hands. Be sure to press the crumbs into the bottom and up the sides of the pie dish.
- Bake for 8 minutes. Remove, set aside, and allow to cool.
Chocolate Cream Filling
- To make the filling you will need four dishes/pans:1. A large mixing bowl to melt the chocolate chips2. A medium bowl for the eggs, sugar, and salt3. A medium saucepan to simmer the heavy cream4. A large mixing bowl to make whipped cream
- Add the chocolate chips to a large mixing bowl and microwave at 50% power for 1 minute. Continue adding 30 seconds at a time at 50% power, stirring in between until the chocolate is melted.
- In a medium bowl combine the eggs, sugar, and salt.
- Add the 1 ½ cups heavy cream to a medium saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer at medium heat.
- Temper the eggs: Slowly add the simmering heavy cream little by little to the egg yolk mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk. Add the mixture back to the saucepan, turn the heat down to medium-low, and continue to stir for 1-2 minutes until thickened.
- Remove the custard and add it to the melted chocolate. Stir to combine. Allow the chocolate mixture to cool for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, make the whipped cream. Add 1 ½ cups heavy cream to a large mixing bowl, and beat on low speed until you get soft peaks (if you are not sure, err on the side of overwhipping, rather than underwhipping).
- One half at a time add the heavy cream to the cooled chocolate mixture. Gently fold the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture. Be sure that no white streaks remain.
- Assemble: Pour the chocolate cream into the pie crust. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.
- Remove the Chocolate Cream Pie 10-15 minutes before serving to allow the chocolate cream to soften slightly.
Whipped Cream Topping
- Add the remaining 1 ½ cups heavy cream and powdered sugar to a large mixing bowl and whip at low speed until soft peaks form.
- Top the pie with the whipped cream. This can either be done by spooning the whipped cream over the pie or filling a piping bag (or gallon-sized plastic bag, cut at a corner) with the whipped cream and pipe onto the top of the pie.
- Optional: Dust the whipped cream with cocoa powder by adding a small amount of cocoa powder to a fine mesh strainer and tap it genntly over the whipped cream.
Notes
- Adding sugar and salt to the egg yolks impacts the temperature of the eggs which helps to prevent the eggs from curdling (scrambling) when adding the simmering heavy cream.
- Do not leave the egg mixture in the saucepan for any length of time as the egg mixture may cook from the residual heat of the pan.
- If the custard (cooked egg yolk mixture) is not entirely smooth, pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer to remove any lumps that may have formed from the eggs curdling.
- Whipping Cream: Be sure that the cream at the bottom of the bowl is getting whipped. Sometimes some cream sits at the bottom without being drawn in by the beaters. If you are unsure when to stop whipping the cream, err on the side of overwhipping rather than underwhipping.
- To fold the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture use a flat wide spatula and gently incorporate the whipped cream using an up-and-down motion. Press the spatula down along the back of the bowl to the bottom center of the bowl and then back up. Turn the bowl and repeat until all the cream is incorporated.
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