I once had someone describe my French Silk Pie as “heaven on a plate”.
This creamy, rich, chocolaty dessert is also known as Chocolate Silk Pie. And although it’s not as heavy as chocolate mousse it’s every bit as decadent and delicious.
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There really aren’t words to describe just how delicious this French chocolate silk pie tastes. The addition of the Oreo crust to my French Silk Pie Recipe adds another layer of chocolate pie taking it to another level of deliciousness..
Topped with homemade whipped cream and chocolate shavings, this French silk chocolate pie is truly a culinary masterpiece!
*For a more dramatic effect, use chocolate curls.
What ingredients do I need to make a Chocolate Silk Pie?
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make Chocolate Silk Pie. In Chef Speak this is called the “Mise en Place” which translates to “Everything in its Place”.
Not only does setting your ingredients up ahead of time speed up the cooking process, it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
How to Make an Oreo Crust
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Spray a 9-inch deep pie dish with pan spray.
- Place the Oreo cookies (whole Oreos not just wafers) in the bowl of a food processor
- Pulse the Oreos until they are cookie crumbs.
- Add the melted butter to the oreo crumbs.
- Pulse the crumbs and melted butter until the crumbs are moistened.
- Press the cookie mixture into the bottom and partially up the sides of the prepared pie dish.
- Bake for 10 minutes, or until fragrant and the crust has set. Let the cookie crust cool on a wire rack.
If you’d rather have a flaky pie crust or graham cracker crust, both work really well with this dessert. If you’d rather not use the oreo filling, add another 10 wafers and 2-3 additional tablespoons of melted butter.
How to melt chocolate
- Place a metal bowl with the chopped chocolate over a pot of simmering water. You can also use the microwave to melt the chocolate in a glass bowl.
- Stir the chocolate as it begins to melt. Once most of the chocolate has melted, remove the bowl from the heat and continue to stir until all of the chocolate has melted. *Allow the chocolate to cool slightly before using.
Make the chocolate filling for a French Silk Pie
- Add the eggs and granulated sugar to a small saucepan.
- Whisk the ingredients together until well blended.
- Place the saucepan over medium-low heat. Continue whisking the egg mixture while it’s cooking. When the egg mixture has reached a temperature of 165° F and coats the back of a metal spoon, it’s done.
- Remove the pan from heat and stir in the melted chocolate and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth. Allow the mixture to cool until it’s just warm.
*Bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened chocolate) is the best choice for this chocolate pie. Semi-sweet chocolate will also work with this recipe it just won’t be as strong a chocolate flavor, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
Always buy the best chocolate available and don’t use chocolate chips for this cake; chocolate chips are generally not the best quality chocolate.
- With an electric mixer, beat the butter until light and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Gradually add the cooled chocolate mixture to the butter until it’s all incorporated.
- Beat the chocolate butter mixture on high speed for 5 minutes, or until it’s light and fluffy. Make sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl during the process.
- In a clean bowl use an electric mixer to whip the cream until it begins to thicken. Add the sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. *Take your time whipping the cream. The faster it whips the faster it breaks down.
- Fold the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture.
- Mix the chocolate silk pie filling until smooth. Don’t overbeat!
How to make assemble a French Silk Pie
- Pour the mixture into the pan, smoothing evenly. It will be above the level of pan.
- Add the heavy cream, sugar and vanilla into a mixing bowl.
- Whip the cream mixture on low and gradually increase the speed over 8-10 minutes until stiff peaks form.
- Add the whipped cream to the top of the Chocolate Silk Pie
Refrigerate the pie for at least 6 hours so it can set up. Overnight is best.
Before serving sprinkle the top of the chocolate silk pie with shaved chocolate or chocolate curls.
This French Silk Pie is one of my favorite pies and one I make when I want to impress my guests. It’s a decadent, rich dessert that’s perfect for a dinner party, brunch or just to make dinner a special event.
Recipe FAQ’s
The American chocolate cream pie is a homestyle version of this French classic dessert. While Classic American Chocolate Cream Pie has more of a pudding-like consistency, the French Chocolate Silk Pie has a silkier, smoother texture.
The French version is also much richer and decadent, getting its silky texture and rich flavor from heavy cream and butter.
This delicious pie got its name because of how silky and smooth the chocolate is. I promise, one bite and you’ll agree that this is the smoothest and best chocolate pie you’ve ever had.
There are no raw eggs in my version of a French Silk Pie, and it is not advisable to eat raw eggs that are incorporated into any food product that isn’t cooked.
More Chocolate Recipes You’ll Love!
French Silk Pie
Ingredients
Crust
- 20 Oreo whole cookie with stuffing
- 3 tablespoon unsalted butter melted
Filling
- 1 ⅓ cups granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate melted. (or semi-sweet)
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 10 tablespoon unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 ⅓ cups heavy cream
- 4 teaspoon granulated sugar
Topping
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Crust
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9-inch deep pie dish with pan spray.
- Place the Oreo cookies in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely ground. Add in the melted butter and pulse until moistened. Press the mixture into the bottom and up the sides of the prepared pie dish.
- Bake for 10 minutes, or until fragrant and set. Let cool completely on a wire rack.
Filling
- Place a metal bowl with the chopped chocolate over a pot of simmering water.
- Stir the chocolate as it begins to melt. Once most of the chocolate has melted remove the bowl from the heat and continue to stir until all of the chocolate has melted.Allow the chocolate too cool slightly before using.
- In a small saucepan, whisk together the granulated sugar and eggs.
- Set over medium-low heat and cook, constantly whisking the mixture until it reaches a temperature of 165° F and coats the back of a metal spoon.
- Remove from heat and stir in the melted chocolate and vanilla until smooth. Cool to just warm, stirring occasionally.
- Use an electric mixer, beat the butter until light and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Gradually add in the cooled chocolate mixture then beat on high speed for 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy.
- In a clean bowl use an electric mixer to beat the cream until it begins to thicken. Add the sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Fold into the chocolate mixture.
- Pour the mixture into the pan, smoothing evenly. The pie will be tall with filling. Chill for 6 hours. At this point the pie can be stored for up to 2 days ahead of time.
Topping
- Add heavy cream, sugar and vanilla to the bowl of a stand mixer (or electric mixer). Whip the ingredients to stiff peaks.This process should be slow, starting. on low increasing the speed over about ten minutes.**This method is how you keep the whipped cream from breaking. The cream should be ice cold and as fresh as possible. Look for heavy cream with the longest expiration date.
- Top pie with whipped cream and garnish with chocolate shavings or dust with cocoa powder.
Summar says
I can’t wait to try this! How far in advance can I make and put the whipped cream on top of the pie? Can I make the entire pie with the whipped cream the night before?
Chef Dennis Littley says
As long as the whipped cream is done slowly it will hold up. But if you want to be sure that the whipped cream stays firm and pretty, add one teaspoon of gelatin to the cream, let it bloom for a minute, and then begin whipping it. If you stabilize the whipped cream you could make this two days ahead of time.
Shannon Hansen says
Where is the step about melting the chocolate and adding the vanilla?
Chef Dennis Littley says
thanks for catching the melted chocolate instructions. The vanilla goes in at step 5 with the melted chocolate.
Rhonda says
This was my first Chef Dennis recipe and it was a huge success. I followed his recipe to the letter. We decided to get 9 pieces out of his French Silk Pie and none of us found it to be too much to finish. This pie was perfectly balanced. Not too sweet, not too rich. Definitely on the “must do again” list. Thanks so much for your awesome recipe. So glad to have found your website.
Jenny says
This is where the expression silky smooth came from! It’s on my short list for best deserts of the year. Your French silk pie is chocolate heaven!
Hayley Dhanecha says
This silk pie was so good! My family finished it in no time. A perfect dessert for get-together or for a Sunday afternoon.
Laura Arteaga says
This was so delicious, with simple ingredients and really straightforward recipe. Loved the oreo base, never thought of it and it was yummy!
Marie says
This pie is just spectacular! The rich, silky smooth texture wowed my guests. I was super curious with the name of the dish because it’s such an American-style dessert (didn’t seem French to me at all!) and I learned that it was actually an award-winning dessert at a Pillsbury Bake-Off competition in the 50s. It’s called “French Silk” because it’s as smooth and feels as luxurious as French silk! So clever and makes so much sense. Thanks for allowing me to discover this wonderful dessert, I’ll be making it again!
Kristina says
I have not had this dessert in a long time, but remember it being my favorite at a local diner that closed. This recipe tasted amazing and I am glad I found it. Definitely recommend!
Tracy says
This dessert was so rich a decadent! We loved it so much! Thank you for another amazing recipe.
Amanda Mason says
I agree; it’s heaven on a plate. Oh my goodness this was better than fantastic! My son loved it and I loved the richness. Delicious!
Ashley says
I love a good French silk pie and this one was absolutely luscious! And the Oreo crust was the perfect addition.
Amanda says
What a creamy, dreamy pie! The filling was nice and rich but not overly so with such a luscious texture. Loved the Oreo crust touch as well!
veenaazmanov says
Definitely a party dessert, everyone loved it! Thanks for all the step by step detailing to making it.
Vicky says
I have just discovered you!! I have to thank you for NOT filling your pages with dozens of flashing ads and videos that load on top of each other!!! I have lost my patience trying to delete the ads so I can actually see the recipe and related pictures. I have started to unsubscribe those pushy recipe sites!
You are awesome!!
Jenny lendrum says
Will be making this delicious and outstanding dessert this weekend Chef Dennis, again thankyou for relaying these amazing recipes to us.
Denise says
I’m not a fan of the Oreo stuffing, why is it needed in the crust?
Chef Dennis Littley says
You can eliminate the stuffing and just add another 2-3 tablespoons of butter. Or you can make a flaky pie crust or graham cracker crust instead, both will work.