Homemade French Silk Pie Recipe

I’ve wanted to make a French Silk Pie for ages but kept putting it off. I’m glad I finally made it because it turned out to be one of the best pies I’ve ever eaten. I’m not really even a pie girl. In 5 years of blogging mostly about desserts, I have just a few pie recipes. But I have fond memories of being in high school and college and going to Baker’s Square for study sessions. I’d plop down in a booth for hours with a pot of coffee, and midway through my study sessions the French silk pie in the bakery cases kept looking better and better. But I’ll never be satisfied with theirs after making this. If your only experience is with store-bought French silk pie, the difference between homemade and store-bought is beyond words. It’s one of those items that the difference is so huge you’ll hardly think it’s the same thing.

Rather than a traditional pie crust, I made an Oreo cookie crust. It adds to the overall chocolate intensity of the pie. The crunchy firmness of the crust is a perfect counterbalance to the silky, creamy, luscious filling. The filling takes about 20 minutes to make because you add 4 eggs, one at a time, spaced 5 minutes apart. While the mixture was whipping, I organized some messy kitchen drawers that I otherwise would have kept putting off. I knew there was a reason I made this chocolate silk pie. The filling is some of the best stuff I’ve ever tasted in my life. Not exaggerating. It’s not as light and airy as chocolate mousse but nowhere near as dense or heavy as chocolate cheesecake. It’s why the pie is called French silk. It’s silky smooth, rich, decadent, and truly incredible. Definitely worth 20 minutes of whipping. The contrast of the silky filling, the crunchy cookie crust, fluffy and creamy whipped cream, and firm chopped chocolate create a wonderful array of textures and complementary flavors in each bite. I shared this French silk chocolate pie with family, friends, and neighbors, and everyone who tried it said it was the best chocolate pie or French silk pie they’ve ever had. Family members told me that it’s in the top 5 desserts I’ve ever made, and I have 500+ recipes on my blog and 200 spanning two cookbooks. If I could only choose one pie for the rest of my life, this is the one. I loved it that much.

French Silk Pie Ingredients

For this French silk chocolate pie, you’ll need: 

Oreo cookies Butter Dark chocolate Ultrafine sugar Vanilla extract Instant espresso granules (NOT ground coffee)  Salt Eggs Whipped topping

How to Make French Silk Pie

Before you can start on the filling for this chocolate silk pie, you’ll need to make the Oreo cookie crust. To do so, pulse the Oreos in a food processor until they’re the texture of coarse sand. Then pour in the melted butter and continue pulsing until the mixture starts sticking together. Press the mixture into a pie plate and bake to set.  Next, you’ll need to make the filling. Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (it’ll take about 5 minutes). Add the vanilla, espresso granules, salt, and melted chocolate and continue mixing to combine. Then, add in the eggs one at a time and beat for roughly 5 minutes after each addition. It’s crucial that you take the time to whip the pie filling, otherwise it won’t become silky and smooth.  Turn the mixture into the cooled Oreo cookie crust and refrigerate, covered, for 4 hours to set. Once the pie is fully set, top with whipped topping and garnish with chocolate shavings. Then find some neighbors to share this pie with, otherwise you’ll eat it all at once! 

Can I Use Powdered Sugar Instead of Ultrafine? 

No, powdered sugar (aka confectioner’s sugar) isn’t the right texture and will make your pie far too sweet. 

What Type of Chocolate Should I Use? 

You want to use a chocolate bar and not chocolate chips since they’re more resistant to melting. Use a bar that contains at least 72% cacao. If you use anything sweeter in this recipe, your French silk pie will wind up being way too sweet. 

Tips for Making French Silk Pie

For the filling and for the chopped chocolate on top, I used Trader Joe’s 72% Pound Plus bar. Use a high quality dark chocolate to ensure the pie has enough depth of rich, chocolate flavor. A pinch of instant espresso granules brings out the chocolate intensity and doesn’t make the pie taste like coffee. I highly recommend using ultrafine sugar, also called baker’s sugar and it’s sold near other sugars. It’s the sugar used on top of Creme Brulee. Using ultrafine sugar ensures it’ll fully integrate into the butter and chocolate. There’s a chance that granulated sugar won’t incorporate fully and the filling could be gritty. The pie filling isn’t baked and the eggs are raw, which is what classic French silk pie is. If this isn’t a good choice for you or someone who may eat the pie, use pasteurized eggs, which are safe to eat raw. As a lifetime orange Julius drinker and cookie dough eater, I don’t have any issues. And if a little bit of crust crumbles when you’re slicing the pie, just sprinkle it on top like you meant to do it. Being the world’s worst pancake-flipper and pie-slicer, this may have come in handy for me.

More Easy Pie Recipes: 

Crustless Blueberry Pie — Somewhere in between pie, cake, and blondies is what you get with this FABULOUS blueberry dessert recipe! Tried this recipe? Leave a review! Consider leaving a 5 star rating if you’ve made and loved one of my recipes!

No-Bake Peanut Butter Silk Oreo Pie — The pie is easy, no-bake, and uses a storebought Oreo cookie crust. It’s full of rich peanut butter flavor and perfectly sweet and creamy from whipped topping.

Crustless Fresh Strawberry Pie — FAST, super EASY, no-mixer dessert that’s perfect for summer entertaining, picnics, or potlucks!

Sugar Cream Pie — The pie is sweet, creamy, the texture is custard-like, and it reminds me of crème brûlée. It’s incredibly easy and you don’t need a mixer.

Crustless Cranberry Pie – FAST, super EASY, no-mixer dessert that’s perfect for holiday entertaining!! Somewhere in between pie, cake, and blondies is what you get with this FESTIVE recipe!

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Pie — This isn’t your ordinary (i.e. boring) pumpkin pie. Everything is better with cream cheese and pumpkin pie is no exception! 

Crack Pie — The recipe lives up to its name and everyone should try this pie at least once! 

Sugar Cookie Apple Crumble Cheesecake Pie – A buttery sugar cookie crust, tangy cream cheese filling, tender juicy apples, and a crumble topping make this pie a total SHOWSTOPPER!

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