The total work time for this recipe will be around 40 minutes but this does not include the setting/chilling time. The pie needs to set overnight or for at least six hours.
French Silk Pie
Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 squares unsweetened baking chocolate, melted and cooled
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 pastry pie crust, prepared
Supplies
- small microwave-safe bowl
- saucepan
- whisk
- instant-read thermometer
- hand mixer
- 2 large bowls
- silicone spatula
Directions
In a small microwave-safe bowl, melt unsweetened baking chocolate in 30-second intervals, until melted. Stir after every 30 second interval. Set aside to cool.
In a saucepan, blend sugar, and eggs over medium heat with a whisk. Cook until an instant-read thermometer reads 160 degrees, stirring constantly.
Remove egg mixture from heat. Add the melted chocolate to the egg mixture, whisk until blended thoroughly. Add vanilla extract. Set aside to cool for 1 to 2 hours, or until room temperature.
Using a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat butter on high speed until light and fluffy (about two minutes.) Blend in cooled chocolate, and continue beating on high speed for an additional five minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl occasionally using a silicone spatula. When the butter and chocolate are entirely incorporated, set aside.
In a separate large bowl, whip the heavy whipping cream until it reaches a soft peak stage. Take the whipped cream and add it to the chocolate mixture. Fold in the whipped cream until the two mixtures are thoroughly blended.
Pour the chocolate mixture into your prepared pie crust and refrigerate overnight, or until set. Top with additional whipped cream. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Use chocolate shavings or curls as a garnish.
French silk pie is a lusciously creamy dessert, perfect for chocolate lovers yearning for a delightfully decadent treat. French silk pie consists of a few simple ingredients; eggs, cream, chocolate, sugar, and butter. These elements are blended to create a filling for the French silk pie. The texture is very similar to chocolate mousse. Typically, French silk pies call for raw eggs to be whipped into the filling, however, to reduce the risk of food-borne illness, pasteurized eggs may be used to reduce risk. For those looking for a completely worry-free variant, there are recipes such as the one featured in this article, that cook eggs at a low temperature, without altering taste or texture.
Choosing The Perfect Crust For Your French Silk Pie
Generally, the two most common pie crusts used for French silk pie are the simple single crust shells made from either dough or crumb. A homemade pie crust allows you to experiment with different flavors and textures. Here are a few tasty flavoring ideas for your pie crust:
- plain graham crackers
- cinnamon graham cracker
- chocolate graham cracker
- crushed ginger snaps
- crushed Oreo cookies
- crushed Nutter Butter cookies
- crushed vanilla wafer cookies
- cinnamon pie crust
For the chocolate-obessed, try a putting your creamy french silk filling on top of rich chewy brownies. If you like salted chooclate, try adding crushed pretzels as your crust for a fun delcious twist.
Jazz Up Your French Silk Pie Filling
French silk pie is chocolate bliss, but you can even kick it up another notch by intensifying that chocolate flavor by adding espresso! You can also create some extra zing by adding a layer of flavor in the filling. Check out some of these popular options for pie filling additions:
- cinnamon
- orange extract or zest
- espresso
- Frangelico
- peppermint extract
- almond extract
- caramel sauce
- raspberry jam
Beautiful And Flavorful Toppings For Your Pie
Presentation is everything, and you want your French silk pie not only to taste delicious but look visually appealing as well. Luckily, there are so many ways to dress up this indulgent dessert.
- chocolate shavings
- chocolate curls
- white chocolate shavings
- white chocolate curls
- whipped cream
- Cool Whip
- chocolate whipped cream
- raspberries
- strawberries
- caramel sauce
- chocolate sauce
- meringue
- hazelnuts
- crushed peppermints
- candied orange peel
French silk pie is irresistibly delicious, and an elegant ending to any special occasion. This pie will undoubtedly become an instant favorite!
