SpyMom's Not So Secret Chocolate Cream Pie Recipe

Oh, that's something tasty. Can't you just tell?

This is the chocolate cream pie I grew up with. The one SpyMom always made. The one we all devoured in about ten minutes after it was served. 

I guess the recipe was never a secret, but the pie was so good that it became a mythical thing in all of our minds. And recently, when SpyMom made it after not having made it for quite a while, I got up the nerve to ask if she'd share her recipe.

She was more than happy to tell me what it was: the recipe on the chocolate pudding box! All this pie is, my friends, is a pre-baked pie crust filled with cook and serve chocolate pudding and topped with whipped cream.

There is a reason why this back-of-the-box recipe has endured. It's simple as can be, but beautiful in its own way. It is creamy and chocolate-y and simply divine. You can dress it up in any number of ways: use part almond, chocolate, or flavored milk for the pudding, add a flavoring extract to the whipped cream, or add some chocolate chip or nuts to the pudding mix.

Here's the recipe.  With this pie, I played around a bit: I used 1 part almond milk and two parts regular whole milke for the pudding, and added a dash of vanilla extract to the whipped cream. I also garnished with shortbread cookies and a few pecans, for color contrast and cuteness.

Of course, that having been said, it's tremendous simply made straight-up--you go ahead and choose your adventure! 

Simple as can Be Chocolate Cream Pie (printable version here!)

Ingredients

• One pre-baked 9-inch pie shell
• One box (5.1 ounces--the big size) cook and serve chocolate pudding
• 3 cups whole milk (can be part almond milk, etc)
• 2 cups freshly whipped cream

Procedure

1. Have your cooled pie shell at the ready, but to the side.
2. Prepare the chocolate pudding according to the box instructions, bringing the milk to a boil and stirring frequently until thickened.
3. Pour the pudding into the pie shell. Got a little extra pudding? Guess you'll have to eat it from the bowl, with a spoon. Life is hard sometimes.
4. Let the pie set (sans whipped cream) in the fridge for several hours, 2 to 3 at least. Top with whipped cream and any garnish directly before serving. Enjoy!

Comments

[Betsy Butts]

This may be a strange question, although I'm rather strongly of the opinion that nothing is strange, especially not a question, but...is that Cool Whip topping the pie in the photographs? I don't know, something about it seems...too shiny and white to be real whipped cream. Maybe it's just me. That aside, "recipes" like these may get a lot of flak from food purists, but I do think there's something to be said for simplicity...especially when it's tasty simplicity :) I'm a baker and love complicated, from-scratch desserts, but I also have a profound appreciation for things like this because let's face it, boxed chocolate pudding is plain good; put it in a pie shell and add whipped cream and it's even better.

[Cakespy]

Betsy: No, that is freshly whipped cream - yum!