French Silk Pie Recipe

You’d think a pie as decadent and delicious as this French Silk Pie recipe would actually be French, but no, don’t let its name and indulgent nature fool you into believing this falsity. I can tell you, however, that this French silk chocolate pie is as luscious as it sounds!

What is French Silk Pie?

Most people say that French silk pie was created by a famous pastry chef in Saratoga, New York in the ’80s, while others argue that it’s a creation from the South. All I can say is, I don’t give a hoot where this pie came from; all I know is it’s ridiculously good.

Traditional French silk pie is typically made with a butter pie crust and a chocolate mousse filling. 

The reality is, you’ll find French silk pie made with everything from a pastry crust to a chocolate Oreo crust. I’m honestly not opposed to any of the variations. 

In this recipe, I’m sharing a French silk pie with a graham cracker crust because I just adore the combination, but I’ve also made this pie with the other mentioned crust types as well.

How to Make French Silk Pie

French silk pie is not only made with a pie crust, but a chocolate mousse filling. I honestly think the filling is why the name of this recipe has the word French in it. 

If you’ve ever had French chocolate mousse, it’s rich and creamy, and tastes very much like the filling in this pie. 

If you’re a chocolate lover, then you will love this decadent chocolate pie, no doubt about it. 

The crust is the only thing that’s baked, and even that could be skipped in favor of freezing the crust like some people do with either graham cracker crusts or Oreo crusts.

The reason I like to bake the crust is that I find the time spent in the oven helps toast the graham cracker crumbs and bring out their flavor. It also tends to set up just a bit nicer in the oven rather than the fridge.

Once the crust has cooled, you simply whisk up the filling ingredients together in a stand mixer or a mixing bowl with an electric beater and pour the filling into the cooled pie crust shell. 

Off the French silk pie goes into the fridge to chill and allow the filling to set. When you’re ready to serve, cover the top with a nice heaping portion of whipped cream and chocolate shavings for the ultimate chocolate lover’s dream.

Is French Silk Pie Safe to Eat?

This is a completely valid question if you take a look at the ingredients as you’ll notice there are raw eggs in the chocolate mousse filling. But this is nothing new with French recipes. 

In fact, if you’ve ever made French chocolate mousse, you’ll know that the French make it with raw eggs. 

This means that if you’re pregnant, elderly, or have an immune compromised system, you may want to think twice before indulging in this recipe. 

Chocolate Pie Heaven

I just think this is one of the best french silk pie recipe options you can find out there because of how easy and heavenly it truly is.

This pie is filled with the most airy, decadent chocolate mousse filling you will ever eat. Then, as if it couldn’t get any better, it’s topped with a super light whipped cream frosting. I mean, have I won you over or have I won you over?

You’ll also look like a superb baker, when really the only thing that needs to be baked is the graham cracker crust. The crust goes into the oven for about 15 minutes, but everything else is just whisked together and refrigerated so no need to worry about burning this pie or having to wait until it’s ready to test the flavor.

Feel free to dab your finger in this batter and be reassured that your pie is indeed fabulous!

French Silk Pie

Yield: 10

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Cooling Time: 2 hours

Total Time: 2 hours 35 minutes

A delicious golden graham cracker crust filled with an airy, yet decadent chocolate mousse filling.

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Ingredients

for the crust

• 12 graham crackers
• ⅓ cup unsalted butter, melted
• ⅓ cup sugar

for the filling

• 2 sticks of unsalted butter
• 1 ½ cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 oz. semi-sweet baking chocolate, melted
• 4 eggs

for the whipped cream

• 1 ½ cup heavy whipping cream
• ¼ cup powdered sugar
• a piece of chocolate to grate on top

Instructions

1. To create the crust, you’re going to crush your graham crackers in a food processor until they are turned into crumbs. Add the sugar in and pulse until combined. As your graham cracker crumbs pulse in the processor, stream your melted butter in through your food processor’s feed. The result will be a loose, crumbly dough that resembles wet sand.
2. Scoop this mixture into your pie pan and, using a rubber spatula, spread the crumbs throughout the bottom and sides to mold the crust to the pan. Bake in the oven at 350°F for 15 minutes, or until golden. Then, set aside in the fridge to cool completely.
3. To create the filling, start off by melting the baking chocolate in the microwave for approximately 1 minute. Give it a stir until the chocolate is completely smooth. Let it cool until it reaches room temperature.
4. Meanwhile, beat the butter and sugar together until they’re completely combined and fluffy using a stand mixer or an electric handheld mixer.
5. Add the cooled, melted chocolate, along with the vanilla extract, to the butter and sugar mixture. Mix on medium speed until completely incorporated. Stop to scrape the batter off the sides of the bowl before continuing to mix again to blend everything together.
6. Add in one of the eggs to the batter and mix on medium speed for 3 minutes. Stop and add in the second egg, then mix again for 3 minutes. Repeat this process for the following 2 eggs (It should take a total of 12 minutes for all 4 eggs to be mixed in).
7. Scoop the mousse filling into your prepared pie dish and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
8. To prepare the whipped cream topping, simply mix the heavy whipping cream with the powdered sugar on low speed for 1 minute. Then bump up the speed to high and continue whisking until soft peaks are formed.
9. Scoop this topping onto the mousse filling before grating a piece of chocolate over the whole thing using a cheese grater.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 10 Serving Size: 8 Servings
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 673Total Fat: 47gSaturated Fat: 28gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 180mgSodium: 128mgCarbohydrates: 58gFiber: 3gSugar: 45gProtein: 7g