Chocolate Mousse Pie

Fourth of July weekend. Tyler and I went to his family's annual cookout in the back yard, which is a large Clarke family tradition involving Roy's smoker and approximately forty pounds of meat and every side dish Debbie has ever made. I had been warned this was a significant event. The warning was accurate.

I brought my corn and black bean salad with lime vinaigrette and a lemon icebox pie, which disappeared within the first forty minutes, which I take as the correct outcome. Debbie tasted a bite of the salad and said where did you get this recipe and I said I made it up and she said you made it up? She said it with real surprise, like improvising a recipe is an unusual thing. I told her I do that fairly often. She looked at me with a new expression, like she was recalibrating something, and said then you have to show me that.

Roy and Tyler's brothers Marcus and the others were at the smoker for most of the afternoon. Roy has strong opinions about smoke wood. Tyler has inherited these opinions. I stood there for a while learning about oak versus hickory versus pecan wood for different meats, which is a depth of knowledge I had not previously encountered.

At one point in the evening I was standing with Debbie's sweet tea in my hand watching the Clarke family in various states of arguing and laughing and cooking and I thought: this is a family. A real, loud, all-over-each-other family that I am being let into. I am twenty-three years old and I have been waiting my whole life for exactly this noise. I did not expect it to be so simple to receive.

The lemon icebox pie I brought that day is a recipe I’ve made a hundred times — but standing in the Clarke backyard watching it disappear, I knew I wanted something in that same spirit for next time: cold, creamy, a little indulgent, the kind of thing that clears a platter at a loud summer party without you having to say a word about it. This chocolate mousse pie has become my go-to for exactly that. It’s the sort of dessert that does the talking for you — which, when you’re still learning how to belong somewhere new, is exactly what you need.

Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 0 minutes | Total Time: 4 hours 20 minutes (includes chilling) | Servings: 8

Ingredients

1 pre-made 9-inch chocolate cookie crumb crust
8 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
3 large eggs, separated
1/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup heavy whipping cream, cold
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
Whipped cream and chocolate shavings for garnish (optional)

Instructions

Melt the chocolate. Combine chocolate chips and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water. Stir until completely melted and smooth. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes.
Temper the egg yolks. Whisk egg yolks with 2 tablespoons of the granulated sugar until pale and slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Slowly whisk the warm chocolate mixture into the yolks until fully combined. Stir in vanilla extract. Set aside.
Whip the egg whites. In a clean bowl, beat egg whites and salt with an electric mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add the remaining 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar and beat until stiff, glossy peaks form.
Whip the cream. In a separate chilled bowl, beat heavy whipping cream and powdered sugar on high speed until firm peaks form.
Fold together. Gently fold one-third of the whipped egg whites into the chocolate mixture to lighten it. Fold in the remaining egg whites in two additions, then fold in three-quarters of the whipped cream until just combined and no white streaks remain. Reserve remaining whipped cream for topping.
Fill and chill. Pour the mousse filling into the prepared cookie crust and smooth the top with a spatula. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight, until fully set.
Serve. Before serving, top with reserved whipped cream and chocolate shavings if desired. Slice and serve cold directly from the refrigerator.

Nutrition (per serving)

Chocolate Mousse Pie — The Dessert That Made Me Feel Like a Clarke