Rich and luxurious, this Chocolate Chai Cream Pie is made for chocolate and chai lovers alike. A thick layer of chocolate pudding laced with chai rests on a buttery, flaky crust and is topped with homemade whipped cream, creating a decadent (but easy!) dessert.
Prep Time 30 minutesminutes
Cook Time 45 minutesminutes
Chill Time 2 hourshours30 minutesminutes
Total Time 3 hourshours45 minutesminutes
Servings 10
Ingredients
For the crust
1 ½cups(195g)all-purpose flour
2tablespoonsgranulated sugar
¼teaspoonsalt
5tablespoonsunsalted butter, cold & cut into pieces
4tablespoonsvegetable shortening, cold & cut into pieces
Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Stir with a whisk until well mixed.
Using a pastry cutter or two knives cut the butter and shortening into the flour mixture just until lentil-sized crumbs form. A few larger bits are perfectly okay.
Drizzle just enough ice water over the flour to moisten it. Toss the mixture together with a fork to combine. You will know you have enough liquid when you can squeeze the mixture and it holds together.
Turn the dough out onto a work surface and gently knead until the dough comes together. Flatten the dough into a disk, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
When ready to use, roll the dough into a circle that's about 12-inches in diameter. Gently place it in a 9-inch pie pan without stretching it. Make sure the pie pan is metal or tempered glass.
Trim the edge so there's a 1-inch overhang over the sides of the pie pan. Fold the excess dough under so it sits upon the rim of the pan and flute as desired. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
Adjust the oven rack to the lower-third position and preheat to 400°F.
Remove the crust from the refrigerator, prick the bottom with the tines of a fork, and line the shell with parchment paper. Make sure the parchment paper is large enough that it's easy to pick up by the ends once it's time to remove the pie weights. Don't use wax paper, it smokes.
Fill the lined shell with pie weights, uncooked rice, or dried beans, and bake for 15 minutes, until it starts to turn lightly golden.
Carefully remove the pie weights and return the crust to the oven to continue baking for another 15 minutes, until golden brown and matte looking instead of shiny. If the edges of the crust begin to brown too much, cover with an aluminum ring or pie shield.
Remove from oven and set on a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the filling
Warm the milk over medium heat until it reaches 180ºF degrees. Add the tea bags to the milk and let steep for 5 minutes. Remove the tea bags.
Add the chocolate to the warm milk mixture, stir until mostly melted. Stir in the sugar and salt. Slowly add 1 cup of the warm milk mixture to the egg yolks, stirring constantly. Slow pour the egg mixture into the milk mixture, stir continuously. Add in the cornstarch, whisk until smooth.
Heat mixture over medium heat, stir constantly until the mixture thickens, about 3 minutes. Stir in the butter.
Immediately pour the filling into the prepared pie shell. Cover the filling with plastic wrap, making sure the plastic wrap is touching the filling to prevent a skin filming. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm.
Spread the whipped cream over the filling. Dust lightly with cinnamon.
Notes
Shortening: I do not recommend using butter in place of shortening for this crust. It will make the crust delicate and it may be difficult to roll out.
Pie pan: Because the crust is refrigerated in the pan before going into the oven, a metal pan or tempered glass pan is required. You may also use a disposable aluminum pie pan.
Chai: I prefer to use Twinings Black Chai. The warm cozy spices pair so well with chocolate.