Easy Chocolate Pie

Ingredients

• Pie crust — you can use a store-bought pie shell, but I recommend using my homemade pie crust recipe! It’s buttery, flaky, and so easy to make. I find store-bought pie crusts are not as thick, and you want a sturdy base to hold up the chocolate filling.
• Sugar — the chocolate filling sets in the fridge, so it’s important not to skimp on the sugar. When the sugar melts, it helps thicken the pie and adds to its silky smooth texture.
• Cocoa powder — any type of unsweetened cocoa powder will work in this recipe. For a dark chocolate pie, use Dutch-processed or black cocoa powder.
• Milk — for the milk in the filling, you can use whole milk or evaporated milk. I do not recommend using skim milk as it won’t give you a filling as rich and thick.
• Egg yolks — using egg yolks add more flavor and less moisture to the chocolate filling, making it taste richer and velvety. The eggs also add structure and stability to the filling. Don’t toss the egg whites, though! Save the whites for my meringue cookies recipe by storing them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
• Flour — flour helps thicken the filling.
• Butter — adding butter to the chocolate mixture at the end gives you a glossy finish and smooth texture.

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar and cocoa powder.

2. Slowly whisk in 1½ cups of milk until well combined. Place over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer, stirring frequently. Reduce the heat to medium-low.

3. Meanwhile, in a large heat-proof mixing bowl, whisk together the remaining ½ cup of milk, egg yolks, flour, and salt until well combined.

4. When the milk comes to a simmer, slowly whisk the hot milk into the egg mixture. Pour back into the saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly until thickened and bubbling.

5. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter and vanilla until melted and completely combined.

6. Pour the pudding into a baked pie shell. Refrigerate (uncovered) for at least 4 hours or overnight before slicing. Serve the chocolate pie with whipped cream, if desired.

PRO TIPS FOR MAKING THIS RECIPE

Be very careful when adding the simmered milk mixture to the egg mixture. The slower, the better. If you add the milk too quickly, the yolks will curdle, and you’ll end up with scrambled eggs.

Cold egg yolks are easier to separate from the egg whites. Room temperature yolks are more likely to break than cold ones.

To make slicing the chocolate pie easier, warm the knife under hot water. Wipe the knife clean between each slice with a warm, wet paper towel.

If you want to make this a no-bake chocolate pie, you can swap the pie crust for my flavorful graham cracker crust or substitute the graham crackers with Oreo cookies!

For a more decorative topping, you can add some shaved chocolate on top of the whipped cream or even make a chocolate ganache to drizzle over the pie.

If you use a store-bought pie crust, keep in mind that they’re usually on the thinner side, so they’ll bake faster. I recommend following the directions on the package if using a frozen store-bought crust.