Is that the greatest name for a pie ever, or what??? (Thanks to my IG friend @aboyandhiscity for the brilliant idea. Go follow him!)

It’s exactly as advertised: Chocolate and pumpkin, the greatest partnership on earth, if you ask me.

You may have seen me post in the past about my famous chocolate cream pie. It’s a homemade custard pie and one of the best pies ever and HOLY cow was that really three years ago? Good lord, time flies. Anyway. I have a very serious decision to make for Thanksgiving this year… make the OG chocolate, or another one of these babies!

This pie is a combination of a super simple pumpkin pie, basically made at half depth, and once cooled, topped with delicious chocolate custard. I think it looks a lot trickier than it actually is.

For good measure, I added some chunky sea salt on top. Don’t skip that step! It’s the icing on the cake. Er.. you know what I mean.

In my opinion, pie is the true focal point of holiday meals. Everything else is – ahem – just gravy.  My mom and I are big believers that there should always be multiple pies at Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner – That way, you never have to choose which one you make or eat. And, there’s enough pie for everyone to have pie for a late night snack and breakfast the next day! Win, win, win.

The only thing left for you to decide is if you’re going to add whipped cream. I’m actually not necessarily on Team Whip. I guess it’s always welcome, but in this case I’d prefer to focus on pumpkin and chocolate. Duke it out in the comments!

Ingredients

• 1 prepared pie crust
• For the pumpkin layer:
• 8 ounces Pumpkin Puree
• 1/2 cup half-and-half
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/8 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 large eggs
• 1/2 large egg yolk (save the other half for below!)
• For the chocolate layer:
• 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 2/3 cups semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 1 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
• Pinch of salt
• 1 1/2 egg yolks (use the one from above!)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream (no, you cannot use half and half! 🙂 )
• 1 cup whole milk (no, you cannot use low fat! 🙂 )

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. If not already done, roll out pie crust and place in pie pan, trimming edges and piercing all over with a fork.
2. Whisk the brown sugar, eggs, and egg yolk in a large bowl until smooth. Add the pumpkin mixture and whisk until thoroughly combined. Pour into the prepared pie crust until about halfway full, and bake 20-30 minutes, or until the center only jiggles a tiny bit when you shake it. Any extra filling can just be baked in oven safe ramekins for a crustless treat 🙂
3. Allow the pumpkin layer to cool COMPLETELY. You are not going to have nice layers if you skip this step.
4. For the chocolate filling, mix the chocolate, butter and vanilla together in a small bowl and set aside.
5. In a saucier or saucepan (off the heat), whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, cocoa and salt, Whisk in 1/4 cup of the cream until the mixture is smooth. Follow with another 1/4 cup of cream, whisking until smooth. Finally, whisk in the egg yolks – again until smooth.
6. Place the pan over medium heat. As you gently heat, add in the rest of the milk. I did this in 3 batches, but did not wait for a specific temperature to add.
7. Bring the mixture to a boil, whisking constantly. When it reaches a boil, set a timer for 90 seconds. Keep stirring.
8. At the end of the 90 seconds, remove from the heat and pour into the bowl with the butter and chocolate. Whisk until everything has melted and the mixture is once again smooth. Pour through a fine mesh strainer, then cover with greased plastic wrap right on the surface of the custard. Chill completely. This will take a while. I suggest using the freezer to speed things up. Basically, the bottom of the bowl should be cold to the touch before you move on.
9. VERY GENTLY AND CAREFULLY, spoon the chocolate filling onto the pumpkin layer. Gently smooth with a spatula. Chill in the fridge for at least two hours before serving.