Chocolate peppermint cream pie is velvety smooth, rich chocolate pie with a healthy layer of peppermint, then kissed with whipped cream for a little extra joy to your taste buds.
This recipe came about as a maternity test for Sons #2 & #3. Allow me to explain…you see, in the midst of Pie Week my middle sons declared that they do not like pie. Imagine my horror! Not like pie?! To which I responded, “Who are you and what have you done with my boys?”
Didn’t like pie…pssh! We’d just see about that. I did what any good self-proclaimed Pie Girl would do…I baked more pies and forced politely asked the “pie abstainers” to be my taste testers. They were quite reluctant until I explained to them that some pies are actually more like pudding in a crust. That got their attention! A few bites later, we discovered that not only do Sons #2 & #3 like pie, they love cream pies! Especially this Chocolate Peppermint Cream Pie!
Comfortably Domestic Confession: Except for the occasional craving for mint chocolate chip ice cream, I’m not a big fan of the whole mint + chocolate combination.
I know, I know! Chocolate and peppermint are totally BFFs, but for some reason I just can’t wrap my head around the two of them as a couple. Chocolate and mint are two things that I like on their own, but together they don’t make much sense to me.
Kind of like Billy Bob and Angelina.
Or Demi and Ashton.
Or Sandra and Jesse.
You get the idea.
The Sons, however, are huge fans of mint chocolate anything. Huge. Fans. So seeing as ’tis the season for all things that are chocolaty and minty, sweet and candy-coated, Chocolate Peppermint Cream Pie is definitely in order because it’s all of those things, plus a little velvety smooth for good measure.
And you know what? Although mint + chocolate is usually not my jam, I love this pie! The Chocolate Peppermint pie filling is rich, creamy, and chocolaty enough to stand on it’s own. The lightly sweetened whipped cream is flavored with a just a touch of vanilla, but the crushed candy canes sprinkled over top infuse just enough peppermint flavor to compliment the chocolate without dominating the whole affair. In fact, it’s so refreshing that I fully embrace this chocolate peppermint union.
Try it! You’ll see!
Chocolate peppermint cream pie is sure to bring a little extra joy to your taste buds this holiday season.
♥♥♥
Calories
Fat
Carbs
Protein
Kirsten Kubert
Yields 9-inch pie
Velvety smooth, rich chocolate pie with a healthy layer of peppermint kissed whipped cream to bring a little extra joy to your taste buds.
1 hrPrep Time
25 minCook Time
1 hr, 25 Total Time
Save RecipeIngredients
- 1 half recipe homemade pie dough , or a favorite 9-inch pie shell
- One egg white
- 1 tsp. water
- Aluminum foil
- 2 to 3 C. dried beans (about 2 lbs.) or ceramic pie weights
- 1 1/3 C. granulated sugar
- 1/3 C. cornstarch
- Pinch of salt
- 18 oz. (2 1/4 cups). 2% milk
- 3 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 oz. unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped
- 16 oz. heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp. clear vanilla extract (or peppermint, for an extra minty kick)
- 1 Tbs. powdered confectioner’s sugar
- peppermint candy canes, coarsely crushed (about 2 large candy canes)
Instructions
- Roll out the pie dough to fit a 9-inch pie plate. Fold and crimp edges as desired. Dock the pastry well with a fork. Freeze the lined pie plate for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Remove the lined pie plate from the freezer. Layer a double thickness of aluminum foil over the frozen pie dough, and fill it with 2 C. of dried beans, or other pie weights. Bake the pie dough for 15 minutes.
- During initial baking, whip 1 egg white with a teaspoon of water. After 15 minutes of baking, reduce the oven heat to 375 degrees F. Remove the foil and pie weights from the pie plate. Lightly brush the egg white wash over the interior of the pie dough—this will keep the crust from becoming soggy from the custard filling. Continue baking the pie shell at the lower temperature for another 10 to 12 minutes or until crust is golden and cooked through. Allow the pie shell to cool completely on a wire rack.
- While the pie shell is cooling, prepare the chocolate custard by whisking the granulated sugar, cornstarch, salt, and unsweetened chocolate together in the bottom of a heavy saucepan until well blended. Lightly beat the egg yolks in a medium bowl. Pour the milk into the egg yolks, whisking to incorporate it with the egg yolks. Slowly whisk the milk mixture into the cornstarch mixture until there are no lumps present. Cook over medium heat, slowly whisking, until it begins to boil and get very thick, about 6 to 8 minutes. Continue to cook for another minute at a boil while vigorously whisking. Stir in the vanilla extract.
- Spoon the custard into the cooled pie shell, leveling it to the edges of the pastry. Cover the surface of custard with a layer of plastic wrap, so that it doesn’t form a “skin” as it cools. Refrigerate the pie for 2 hours, or until the custard has completely cooled.
- Once the custard has cooled, prepare the whipped topping by beating the heavy whipping cream with the vanilla extract and powdered confectioner’s sugar on medium high speed, until soft peaks form. For an extra minty kick, peppermint extract can be substituted for the vanilla in the whipped cream. Spread the whipped cream over the chocolate custard layer of the pie. Sprinkle crushed candy canes over the whipped cream.
- Serve immediately. Leftover pie may be stored for a day or two, lightly covered in plastic wrap, in the refrigerator.
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