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slice of French silk pie with whipped cream
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5 from 8 votes

French Silk Pie with Graham Cracker Crust

This French Silk Pie is the stuff of dreams! It is the classic recipe with a few enhancements: a really thick graham cracker crust (no pie shells here, please) and stabilized whipped cream so that your pie looks perfect even on day two. You must try it!!
Prep Time20 minutes
Total Time20 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: French
Servings: 8
Calories: 704kcal
Author: The Food Charlatan

Ingredients

For the crust

  • 2 & 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs*
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 9 tablespoons butter melted**

For the filling

  • 2 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate
  • 1/2 cup salted butter softened (1 stick)
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs preferably farm fresh

For the whipped cream

  • 4 ounces cream cheese*** softened
  • 1/4 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 cup heavy cream

For the chocolate curls

  • 1/3 cup dark chocolate chips or semisweet
  • 1 teaspoon shortening

Instructions

  • For an extra crispy crust, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. (This is optional.You can chill the crust if you like.)
  • Crush the graham crackers in a large food processor until fine (You can also add the graham crackers to a ziplock and crush with a rolling pin.)
  • Add the 1/2 cup sugar and 9 tablespoons melted butter and pulse to combine throughly. (or put it all in a bowl and mix it up.)
  • Press the mixture into the bottom and up the sides of a pie pan. I like to use a glass or a measuring cup to press it into the corners.
  • Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Put it in the fridge or freezer to cool. If you don't feel like baking, just stick it in the fridge to chill while you make the filling.
  • Now make the filling. Add the unsweetened chocolate to a small bowl and microwave in 30 second increments until it is mostly melted, then stir until completely smooth. Set aside to cool.
  • In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat the softened 1/2 cup butter until light and fluffy, 1-2 minutes. (If you are using a stand mixer, use the whisk attachment, not the paddle.) Make sure to scrape the bottom and sides.
  • Add 3/4 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat well, scraping sides.
  • Once the chocolate is cool (completely cool! You don't want to curdle your eggs!) add it to the bowl and mix it in, scraping the sides.
  • Add the first egg. Beat on medium speed for 5 minutes. Set a timer! Don't skimp! If you don't beat it long enough it won't get fluffy. Stop to scrape the sides at some point.
  • Add the second egg. Repeat the same process; scrape at least once and beat 5 minutes.
  • If your crust has cooled completely you can pour the filling in now. Otherwise cover the bowl and put it in the fridge until the crust is cool.
  • Once you put the filling in the crust, you can either cover tightly and refrigerate, or add the whipped cream right away. Adding the whipped cream ahead of time does make it a little more tricky to cover tightly, but it's not the end of the world.
  • To make the whipped cream, add the cream cheese to a clean bowl or stand mixer. Beat (with the whisk attachment, if you have one) until it is completely smooth with no lumps. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and beat well.
  • Add about half of the cream and beat until incorporated. Add the remaining cream and beat on high until stiff peaks form.
  • Spoon the whipped cream on top of the chocolate filling. Refrigerate until ready to serve. (You can also refrigerate the whipped cream separately and spoon it on at the last minute if you prefer.)
  • The chocolate curls are so easy to make if you have the time. In a small bowl, add 1/3 cup chocolate chips and the shortening. Microwave in 30 second intervals until almost melted, then stir until smooth. Use a spatula to spread the chocolate in a thin layer on the back side of a baking sheet. Freeze for 5 minutes (or refrigerate for 10-15.) When the chocolate is hardened, use a tool to scrape curls off of the chocolate. You can use a paring knife, a metal spatula, a vegetable peeler, etc. Decorate the whipped cream with the chocolate curls!

Notes

*This is exactly one and a half packages, or 13.5 full graham cracker sheets. No need to measure; add one full package (9 full sheets), then open another package, break it in half and toss it in. 
**calling for 9 tablespoons of butter is like, so annoying. Sorry everyone. It's one tablespoon more than one stick. I almost just used one stick, but in a fit of excess I threw it in from the butter dish on my counter. Feel free to just use one stick. I think your pie will be fine. 
***You don't have to use cream cheese if you don't want to! Skip it and make regular whipped cream. Increase the cream to 1 and 1/2 cups and just beat the heck out of it, adding the sugar and vanilla as usual. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 704kcal | Carbohydrates: 61g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 50g | Saturated Fat: 30g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 13g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 167mg | Potassium: 217mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 44g | Vitamin A: 1444IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 96mg | Iron: 3mg