Chocolate Mousse Pie - the most decadent chocolate mousse inside a homemade pie crust, topped with a layer of chocolate ganache.
I don't mess around when it comes to chocolate mousse. For me, it has to be REAL chocolate mousse with a luxuriously silky texture and the most intense chocolate flavor. And that's exactly what this chocolate mousse pie recipe gives.
While this is easy to make, if you are looking for one of those instant pie recipes with ingredients from a package - this isn't it. This delicious pie is made from scratch with quality ingredients. If you are a true chocolate lover, it is absolutely worth it.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- The most heavenly chocolate mousse pie with incredible flavor and texture.
- Made entirely from scratch, no packaged mixes or shortcuts.
- Easily make it a no-bake chocolate pie by switching out the pie crust.
Ingredients
The filling is my tried-and-true chocolate mousse recipe that I have been making for years. It's an easy recipe with just a few, simple ingredients.
- Egg Whites - Use large eggs. Don't throw away the egg yolks, you can use them to make some delicious pastry cream! I recommend using fresh egg whites rather than carton egg whites, as the carton egg whites don't whip up as well as fresh eggs.
- Sugar - White sugar, preferably superfine (caster sugar), but granulated sugar will work too.
- Chocolate - It's important to use real, high-quality chocolate, not chocolate chips or candy bars. I recommend dark chocolate or bittersweet chocolate for the best flavor. You can use milk chocolate or semisweet chocolate if you really want, but it won't be as chocolatey, and the mousse won't be as firm. Ideally, look for real chocolate with at least 54% cocoa solids.
- Heavy Cream - Use heavy cream, heavy whipping cream, or double cream. Anything with less than 36% fat content won't work, and the pie may not set up.
- Vanilla - To add some depth to the flavor, we'll infuse some vanilla extract (or vanilla bean paste) into the cream.
- Pie Crust - You can use a homemade pie crust or pick one up at the grocery store. You could also use an Oreo crust or graham cracker crust for a no-bake chocolate mousse pie.
See the recipe card for quantities.
Please note: If the ingredients are not right, specifically the chocolate and the cream, the pie may not set up properly - please pay close attention to these ingredient notes.
How to Make Chocolate Mousse Pie
The chocolate mousse filling is a meringue-based mousse, which means we will basically just make a chocolate ganache and a meringue and mix them together. This makes a chocolate mousse that is thick and silky but still melts in your mouth.
Make Pie Crust
Prepare your pie crust using my homemade pie dough recipe or a store-bought crust. Bake until it is fully baked and golden brown all over. See my post for detailed instructions on how to make the perfect pie crust.
If you are using a no-bake pie crust with cookie crumbs, there is no need to bake it, just prepare it and set aside.
Chop Chocolate
Chop the chocolate into small pieces so it will melt easily and put it in a large bowl.
Heat Cream
Heat the cream and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat until it is scalding hot.
This means that there is steam rising from it and you can see tiny bubbles appearing on the surface. Do not let it boil.
Make Ganache
Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate and let it sit for one minute, then stir until you have a smooth, completely melted chocolate ganache with no lumps.
Put roughly a third of the ganache (about ¾ cup) into a separate bowl. We will use this as a topping later. Set both bowls aside while you make the meringue.
Heat Egg Whites
Put the egg whites, sugar, and salt into a heatproof bowl and whisk them together, then place over a pan of simmering water to make a double boiler. Make sure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water.
Whisk constantly until it reaches a temperature of 160°F / 71°C or it doesn't feel grainy when you rub it in between your fingers.
Whip
Transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer and whip at high speed until glossy stiff peaks form and the bowl no longer feels warm to the touch (about 10 minutes).
If your meringue reaches stiff peaks and the bowl is still warm, let it sit until it cools to room temperature, then continue.
Fold Meringue
Gently fold the meringue into the larger bowl of chocolate ganache with a rubber spatula. Don't put it all in at once - add it in about a third at a time.
Fold until incorporated and there are no lumps of meringue.
Fill the Pie
Pour the chocolate mixture into the pie crust and smooth it out.
Place it in the fridge for 10 minutes to set slightly before adding the topping.
Add Ganache
Pour the reserved chocolate ganache all over the top of the pie and smooth it out into an even layer.
If the ganache has cooled too much and isn't fluid enough to pour, warm it in the microwave in 5-second increments.
Chill
Chill the chocolate mousse pie in the fridge for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.
Slice and top with a dollop of chantilly cream and chocolate shavings.
Is Chocolate Mousse Safe to Consume?
Yes, it is. Cooking the raw eggs to a temperature of 160°F / 170°C makes them safe to eat, even if they haven't been pasteurized.
My original recipe for chocolate mousse actually calls for a French meringue which doesn't heat the eggs, but I adapted it to use a Swiss meringue instead so it's safe for everyone to enjoy.
If you are using pasteurized eggs and would prefer not to make a double boiler, you can make a French meringue instead and make the rest of the chocolate mousse pie recipe as normal.
The uncooked version is actually how I tend to make this at home, but many people are not comfortable with the idea of using raw eggs, so I have included the instructions for heating them.
Make it a No-Bake Pie
The chocolate mousse filling doesn't need to be baked, but if you use my flaky pie crust, you'll need to bake that before you fill it.
If you would prefer to make a no-bake dessert, you can swap the pie crust out for a graham cracker or Oreo cookie crust.
You just need to crush graham crackers or Oreo cookies into fine crumbs in a food processor and mix them with melted butter, then press them firmly into your pie dish. This kind of crust doesn't require any baking so the whole pie would then be no-bake.
Variations
- Add Berries - Chocolate and fresh berries are always good together. Try adding some strawberries or raspberries inside or on top of the chocolate mousse pie.
- Mocha Mousse Pie - Mix a few teaspoons of espresso powder into the cream with the vanilla for a coffee-infused chocolate mousse.
- Different Crust - The delicious chocolate pie recipe works in any kind of pie crust. Try making it in a graham cracker or Oreo cookie crust.
Equipment
- Pie Plate - 9-inches, deep dish.
- Saucepan
- Mixing Bowl
- Whisk
- Stand Mixer (with whisk attachment) - you can use a hand mixer but your arms may get tired as it whips for a long time.
- Heatproof bowl (if your stand mixer has a metal bowl, you can use that for the double boiler so you don't have to transfer it to a separate bowl after).
- Rubber Spatula
Storage
Store your chocolate mousse pie in the refrigerator in an airtight container or covered with plastic wrap. It will be good like this for up to 5 days.
FAQ
If you have a question about this recipe that isn't answered here, feel free to write it in the comment section and I will get back to you as soon as I can.
As the recipe uses Swiss meringue, the eggs are cooked to a temperature of 160°F / 71°C, which makes them safe to consume.
Yes, you can use any kind of pie crust you like for this chocolate mousse pie, it goes well with just about anything.
The chocolate filling doesn't need to be baked, but the pie crust does. If you want a no-bake pie you can make it in a different crust using graham crackers or Oreo crumbs instead.
Absolutely, yes. You may have seen recipes for an 'easy chocolate pie' made by combining something like chocolate pudding with sweetened whipped cream or cool whip. Don't get me wrong, shortcut recipes like this have a time and place, but if you really want the best results for a creamy chocolate mousse with amazing flavor, it's worth it to make it from scratch.
More Decadent Chocolate Desserts
If this chocolate mousse pie is what your chocolatey dreams are made of, take a slice out of one of these other chocolate recipes:
Recipe
Chocolate Mousse Pie
Equipment
- 9-inch Pie Pan deep dish
- Whisk Attachment
- Balloon Whisk
Ingredients
- Pie Crust (baked and cooled) Homemade pie crust or store-bought. Or use Oreo or graham cracker crust for a no-bake option).
- 1 ½ cups Heavy Cream 360ml
- 10 oz Dark Chocolate 285g (chopped)
- 4 Large Egg Whites
- 1 cup White Sugar 200g
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract or vanilla bean paste
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- Prepare the pie crust first. If you are using my flaky pie crust recipe or a store-bought pie crust, fully bake it according to the recipe or package instructions and set aside to cool. If you are using a no-bake pie crust with graham crackers or Oreo crumbs, there is no need to bake it, just prepare and set aside.Pie Crust (baked and cooled)
- Finely chop the chocolate and put it into a large bowl.10 oz Dark Chocolate
- Heat the heavy cream and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat until it is scalding hot. (This means that there is steam rising from it and you can see tiny bubbles appearing on the surface). Do not let it boil.1 ½ cups Heavy Cream, 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate and let it sit for one minute, then stir until all the chocolate has melted and you have a smooth, glossy ganache. Put roughly a third of the ganache (about ¾ cup) into a separate bowl. We will use this as a topping later. Set both bowls aside while you make the meringue.
- Make a double boiler by putting 1-2 inches of water into a small saucepan over medium-low heat until the water is simmering.
- Put the egg whites, sugar, and salt into a heatproof bowl and whisk them together. Put the bowl over the simmering saucepan (make sure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water) and whisk constantly until the mixture reaches a temperature of 160°F / 71°C or it doesn't feel grainy when you rub it in between your fingers.4 Large Egg Whites, 1 cup White Sugar, ¼ teaspoon Salt
- Transfer the egg white/sugar mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment fitted and whip at high speed until glossy stiff peaks form and the bowl no longer feels warm to the touch (about 10 minutes). If your meringue reaches stiff peaks and the bowl is still warm, let it sit until it cools to room temperature, then continue.
- Gently fold the meringue into the larger bowl of chocolate ganache (the ganache should be cool by now; if it isn't, don't proceed until it is room temperature - you can put it in the fridge to speed this up but don't let it get too cold).Don't put it all in at once - add it in about a third at a time. Fold until incorporated and there are no lumps of meringue.
- Pour the chocolate mousse into your prepared pie crust and smooth it out so it is even. Put the pie in the fridge for 10 minutes to set slightly before going to the next step.
- Pour the reserved chocolate ganache on top of the mousse and spread it out so it covers the whole surface. If the ganache has cooled too much and isn't fluid enough to pour, warm it in the microwave in 5-second increments.
- Chill the pie in the fridge for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight. Enjoy chilled and top with a dollop of chantilly cream.
Notes
Ingredients Notes:
- Heavy Cream - You must use heavy cream or heavy whipping cream that has a fat percentage of at least 36%
- Chocolate - Make sure you use real chocolate, not chocolate chips or chocolate candy bars. Look for a cocoa content of at least 54%
- Egg Whites - I recommend using real, fresh egg whites rather than carton egg whites, as the carton egg whites often don't whip up very well.
Options for pie crust:
- My homemade flaky pie crust recipe (fully baked)
- A store-bought pie crust (fully baked)
- An Oreo crust (for a no-bake pie)
- A graham cracker crust (for a no-bake pie)
Raw Eggs
As this recipe heats the egg whites to 160°F, the eggs will be safe to consume. See the post above for more detail on this.It really helps and I love hearing all your feedback!
Ben
Substituted aquafaba for egg whites since I had made crispy chickpeas recently. Fun way to learn that apparently you need to boil off some of the water in aquafaba if you want it to whip up to stiff peaks. Still delicious even if the texture isn't right.
All my problems with the recipe appear to come from the above substitution and my attempt at doubling the recipe. I'll be trying to make this again.
Kimberly
I made this and it was delicious. I had a lot of meringue lumps in my mousse. I was afraid of stirring too much and deflating the mousse. Should I have just kept at it?
Miss Karen
For what it's worth: Nabisco discontinued production of their premade Oreo pie crust. They also stopped making their Famous Wafers....IMHO this is a terrible marketing screw up.
STYXCHYX65
When I make a chocolate mousse pie, I use a graham cracker crust, chocolate pudding pie filling and fold in cool whip. I've had people ask me for the recipe
Shirley Jones
Very good and easy to make
Jules Grasekamp
Thank you Shirley, I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
Jules
Julianne
I had to laugh about your comment that this heavenly concoction lasts 5 days in the refrigerator. It was gone the next day (I did share with my sister who also raved about it). I made it with a homemade chocolate crumb crust that was delicious. It was a fabulous way to celebrate Pi Day. I was a bit alarmed how liqudy the ganache was but it thickened up nicely as it cooled; I did put the bowl in the fridge after reserving the topping. I also placed my merengue bowl over an ice bath to cool it after whipping. The peaks were super firm. Thank you so very much for my new favorite pie of all time.
Jules Grasekamp
Haha it never lasts long in my fridge either! I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe - a chocolate crumb crust sounds delicious with it!
Thank you for trying my recipe and for taking the time to let me know you loved it!
Jules