Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: Tons of deep chocolate flavor without any cloying artificial sweetness like the pre-made frozen silk pies from the store.
Texture: The filling is so rich, creamy, and decadent and pairs perfectly with the slightly crunchy crust and ultra-light whipped cream.
Ease: This recipe does make a bit of a mess, but the good news is that it’s made ahead of time so it’s perfect for entertaining or bringing to a party.
Pros: A classic recipe without any raw eggs that your family will request for every holiday.
Cons: A bit involved and messy to make, but one bite of the final pie will convince you it was all worth it.
Would I make this again? Every Thanksgiving, Friendsgiving, and Christmas!
This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.
Growing up, it wasn’t a holiday without a French Silk Pie with those chocolate curls on top.
You see, I come from a long line of chocoholics. My dad and my grandma love chocolate and sweets just as much as I do.
However neither of them bake, so we always got those frozen silk pies from the grocery store.
Free Baking Science Mini-Course!
From cookies that spread to undercooked brownies, this FREE 5-day Baking Science course helps you conquer common baking challenges and make bakery-worthy treats every time.
A few years ago, I decided to finally make a chocolate French silk pie from scratch for Thanksgiving and it was the most popular pie of the evening! So I knew I had to share the recipe with you ASAP.
It’s now a yearly tradition. No Thanksgiving is complete without this pie, my decadent Caramel Apple Streusel Pie, and my creamy No Bake Pumpkin Mousse Pie.
This silk pie is perfect for Thanksgiving, Friendsgiving, Christmas, or any special occasion! I hope it becomes a tradition in your home as well!
Sprinkle of Science
How to Make French Silk Pie
The Pie Crust
I love an Oreo crust for this recipe! It’s so much easier than traditional pie dough and adds an extra dose of chocolate! Use regular-stuff Oreos with the filling intact.
If you’d prefer to use a pastry crust, check out my Best Ever Pie Crust recipe here and follow the directions for pre-baking.
French Silk Pie Filling
Since this recipe doesn’t use raw eggs, it’s safe to serve to everyone.
However, there are a few extra steps and bowls you will dirty while making this recipe – but it’s so worth it. I highly recommend reading the recipe through completely before you get started. You’ll need an electric mixer (handheld or stand) and an instant-read thermometer for best results.
What Type of Chocolate Will I Need?
I love using bittersweet chocolate in this French Silk Pie recipe. It brings an intensely rich chocolate flavor. Use high-quality chocolate baking bars, not chocolate chips, for best results. If you’d prefer something more mild, feel free to use semisweet chocolate instead (1:1 ratio). Learn more about Chocolate in Baking here.
Whipped Cream Topping for French Silk Pie
- Be sure to top the pie with the whipped cream no more than a few hours before serving, so it looks its best.
- The whipped cream will begin to deflate and weep if topped too far in advance.
- Garnish with chocolate curls (see just below) or a sprinkling of cocoa powder for a pretty presentation.
How to Make Chocolate Curls
Taking the time to make chocolate curls, instead of just shaving a block of chocolate or garnishing with a dusting of cocoa powder, really makes this French Silk Pie look gourmet. Here’s a super helpful step-by-step video on how to make chocolate curls.
What Type of Pie Pan Should I Use?
- This recipe was designed for a 9-inch deep dish pie plate, like this one.
- If you don’t have a deep-dish pie pan, you may have some filling leftover (hellooo, little snack for you!)
- Because this pie doesn’t go in the oven for long (just a few minutes for the crust to set), the pie pan material doesn’t matter as much as it would for a baked pie. If you choose instead to make a pastry pie crust, however, I recommend checking out my Best Pie Pan article for more information and tips.
Can I Make French Silk Pie Ahead of Time?
Yes! This pie actually needs to be chilled for 6 hours before serving, so it’s the perfect make-ahead dessert! You can make it up to 2 days ahead of time. Keep covered in the fridge, then top with whipped cream shortly before serving.
Can I Freeze French Silk Pie?
We haven’t tested freezing this French Silk pie, but some of our wonderful readers have done so with success. Just note that freezing may slightly alter the texture after thawing. Place inside an airtight container and freeze for up to one month. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before adding whipped cream, chocolate shavings, and serving.
More Recipes You’ll Love:
French Silk Pie
Email This Recipe
Enter your email, and we’ll send it to your inbox.
Ingredients
For the crust
- 20 Oreo (230 grams) cookies (regular-stuffed, keep filling intact)
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
For the filling
- 1 1/3 cups (266 grams) granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 8 ounces (227 grams) bittersweet baking chocolate, melted
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 10 tablespoons (142 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 1/3 cups heavy cream, cold
- 4 teaspoons powdered sugar
For the topping
- 1 cup heavy cream, cold
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Chocolate shavings or cocoa powder, for garnish if desired
Instructions
Make the crust:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9-inch deep pie dish with cooking 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.
Make the filling:
- In a small saucepan, whisk together the granulated sugar and eggs. Set over medium-low heat and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture reaches 160°F and coats the back of a metal spoon. Remove from heat and stir in the melted chocolate and vanilla until smooth. Set aside to cool to room temperature (around 75°F), stirring occasionally.
- Using 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 separate clean bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the cream until it begins to thicken. Add the powdered 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.
Make the topping:
- Use an electric mixer to beat the cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla on high speed until stiff peaks form. Top pie with whipped cream and garnish with chocolate shavings or dust with cocoa powder.
Recipe Notes
The Ultimate Cookie Handbook
Learn the sweet SCIENCE of cookie baking in a fun, visual way to customize your own recipes frustration-free. Plus, my best 50+ homemade cookies!
This post was published in 2019 and has been updated with additional recipe tips. Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
This pie was delicious and definitely will make it again!! Just wish I could post a pic but for some reason I can’t 🙁
So happy you loved this recipe, Michelle! Our website doesn’t currently have the ability to upload photos to reader’s comments; however, if you’re on Instagram, be sure to use #handletheheat so Tessa can see pictures of your HTH bakes! You can also join our free HTH Facebook Baking Community and post pictures there as well 🙂
Fantastic! Rich and creamy. I made it with a regular crust to balance the extra bittersweet chocolate I had and it was so very delicious! Lots of steps and techniques but I was able to follow along, and even though I was worried I had scrambled my eggs a little and knew my chocolate had seized because I added the vanilla to it instead of the mixture, it all came together at the end!
Yay! So happy this recipe worked out perfectly for you, Amanda!
hmmm thought I posted this question but it seems to have been removed
Can chocolate chips be substituted for the baking chocolate? Would I need to cut the sugar back a bit?
Hi Chris! We haven’t tried that! We typically don’t recommend chocolate chips in place of a baking bar because they have added ingredients that help them maintain their chip shape when exposed to heat, and they won’t melt down as smoothly as a chopped baking bar.
Thank you – I decided not to chance it and ran out to the store 🙂
I’ll let you know how it turns out
I made mine with one baking bar and 4oz of semisweet chocolate chips and it turned out great, if that helps.
Update 🙂 This was the best French Silk Pie I’ve had – so fluffy and smooth. I do not generally bake and had no trouble with this. I did ad 2 teaspoons of espresso powder to bring out more intense chocolate flavor and it was fantastic. I’m glad I opted to use good baking chocolate and not “test” the chocolate chip substitution. Melted very quickly and smoothly on the double boiler setup. Thank You for sharing this recipe
Happy Thanksgiving
Hooray!! Great idea on adding espresso powder! So glad you loved this recipe, hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! 🙂
Delicious! No other words required!
I just finished making this and I still have a ton of pie mixture left over, is this supposed to be for more than one pie?
Hi Stephen! Nope, when using a 9″ pie pan, this pie will be tall with filling! If you’d prefer to not have as tall of a pie, feel free to place any extra in custard cups, then refrigerate for an incredibly delicious treat 🙂
Thanks Emily, I thought it was going to spill over but I ended up pouring all the mix into the pan and it’s setting up very nicely!
Glad to hear it! Let us know what you think when you try it tomorrow 🙂 Happy Thanksgiving!
Hello, making this for Thanksgiving! Do I put the topping on before it sets? Or do I let it set for 6 hours and then add the topping? TIA!!!
Hi Megan! Let the pie set for 6 hours (or overnight) and then add the toppings 🙂 Enjoy your pie!
Thank you for this recipe! It was very good, but too sweet. I will make again and cut down on the sugar. I think I may also try topping with crushed oreos for a different texture, and I think the crust needs salted butter to contrast that thick layer of very sweet filling.
I remade this and it turned out so much better! Thank you for all the tips. It really helped.
Woohoo!! I’m so happy to hear that 🙂 I just made it myself last night in preparation for Thanksgiving, can’t wait to dig in tomorrow!
Hi, I made this pie today and followed all the instructions to a T and I’m not sure what I did wrong because my filling ended up runny instead of thick and fluffy. Will it still be OK, or will I have to start over?
Hi Miriam! Sorry you’re experiencing issues with this recipe! It definitely shouldn’t be runny. It sounds to me like your filling isn’t setting properly. That’s typically due to too warm of ingredients or a step not being beaten for long enough. Do you heat the sugar and eggs to 160°F? How about your butter, is it warmer than room temperature? Do you make sure the butter/cooled chocolate mixture is light and fluffy and the cream/powdered sugar is beaten to stiff peaks? Each of these steps is crucial in creating an airy but also rich and creamy filling. You also want to make sure that the pie is chilled for at least 6 hours, which is the final step in setting properly. I really hope you try this recipe again, please let me know if you have more questions, but hopefully this helps!
That does answer my question. It was probably the butter. It was way too soft. Almost melty. I’m trying again and hopefully it works better this time.
Hi, can you make this pie on a regular pie crust, not oreo? Thanks
Sure! Check out the pink tip box above the recipe for a link to our favorite pastry crust and follow the directions for pre-baking 🙂 Can’t wait to hear what you think of this pie!
I am going to make this for Thanksgiving. The caveat is that it has to make the 2 hour teip to my inlaws. I’m thinking that my best bet is to make it the day before and then freeze it overnight. I’ll make the whipped cream and take it and the chocolate curls to add when there. A little secret I learned to stabelize homemade whipped cream – add 1 teaspoon of dry milk to the process. It will stay firm and won’t weap. And it doesn’t impact the flavor. Wish me luck!
Hi Kaye! While we haven’t tried freezing this pie, it should be fine 🙂 Make sure to cover it with a layer of plastic wrap before freezing, then thaw in the fridge (or a cooler in the car) prior to adding the toppings. Please let us know how it goes! Good luck, and Happy Thanksgiving!
Just made this pie, it is excellent and easy to make. Great recipe.