Chocolate Pudding Pie

At a glance

What stands out: A from-scratch silky smooth chocolate pudding becomes the filling for the most rich chocolate pie. Forget pudding from a box. Once you’ve made your own chocolate pudding pie, no other will compare!

How long it takes: 35 minutes to prep, plus chilling time
Equipment you’ll need: saucepan, pie dish
Servings: 8

NOTE TO READERS: In the past, some of you tried this recipe which was originally written by a contributing blogger and had varying results. We want to make sure that our recipes are reliable so, as of February 2020, we have retested and completely rewritten the recipe. We apologize for any frustration you may have experienced with the original recipe. We’re sure you’ll be pleased with this homestyle chocolate pudding pie! It’s absolutely delightful.

Creamy, homestyle chocolate pudding pie is such a treat with crisp buttery crust, smooth chocolate pudding, with mounds of fluffy whipped cream, and sprinkled with chocolate shavings. You’ll take delight in every bite!

This pie is nothing like the chocolate cream pie you see in dessert cases in restaurants, or frozen pies that you thaw and eat. There is absolutely no comparison! Making pudding from scratch makes all the difference in this pie. If you’ve never tried from-scratch chocolate pudding pie, you are in a for a real treat.

About this chocolate pie

From-scratch chocolate pudding is the centerpiece of this pie. Many of us default to using canned pudding or instant pudding mixes, which are fine in a pinch, especially if you’re in a hurry. But let us tell you, canned pudding or boxed mixes can’t hold a candle to from-scratch. There’s just no comparison! Once you’ve tried from-scratch, we can almost guarantee you won’t look back.

It’s not difficult to make. The ingredients are simple and wholesome: milk, eggs, sugar, cocoa, flour, butter, vanilla. No artificial anything and most likely, every ingredient can already be found in your kitchen. And by the way, you don’t have to make it into pie. From-scratch chocolate pudding can easily stand alone as a great dessert.

Be prepared to do some stirring. We would have to say that the hardest part of making pudding is the stirring. To make creamy smooth pudding, plan on spending 15 minutes standing by the stove stirring. Stirring isn’t difficult, we’ve all mastered that, but it does take time for the pudding to heat and thicken. So be patient, put on some good music, stir, stir, stir, and anticipate the delight of chocolate pudding pie.

Use a purchased crust for convenience. You can make your own pie shell or use a frozen pie crust. A graham cracker or Oreo cookie crust is sensational, as well.

Dress it up. You’ll want to top your pie with lots of from-scratch whipped cream. Fancy up your pie with chocolate shavings. Use your vegetable peeler and a chocolate bar to make reliable curlicues of chocolate. Mini chocolate chips or chocolate sprinkles are great, too.

Keeping leftovers

Chocolate pudding pie should be stored in the refrigerator. Cover it with plastic wrap or foil, or put it in an airtight container. It will keep for a couple of days. It doesn’t freeze well.

• Yield: 8 slices
• Prep: 15 minutes
• Cook: 20 minutes
• Total: 2 hours 35 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 9 inch frozen deep dish pie crust (any type of pie crust can be used)
• ¾ cup sugar
• ½ cup cocoa powder
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs
• 3 cups milk (whole milk is best but 2% can also be used)
• 1½ tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• Whipped cream and chocolate shavings, for garnish

Method

1. Bake the frozen pie crust according to package instructions. Allow to cool completely.
2. In a medium sized saucepan, mix sugar, cocoa, flour, salt, and eggs until well blended. Stir in milk slowly until ingredients are blended.
3. Over medium heat, stirring constantly, bring to boil. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, three to five minutes, or until pudding thickens slightly.
4. Remove from heat; stir in butter and vanilla.
5. Pour into baked pie shell. If desired, cover with plastic wrap directly on surface of pudding to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate 4 hours, or up to 24 hours.
6. Top with whipped cream, and chocolate shavings, if desired, and serve.

Notes

Nutrition information does not include whipped cream.