An irresistibly creamy, smooth, and foolproof No bake Chocolate Pudding Pie with raspberries! This decadent chocolate dessert is made with a creamy chocolate pudding filling and a cookie crust, with a surprise popping element!
You’ll LOVE making and eating this delicious chocolate treat, and it’s no bake and so easy to make too!
We all have those days in life when only a good ol’ chocolate pie or chocolate tart will do. Something decadent, chocolatey, and above all satisfying. At least I do. Like a simple chocolate tart made with chocolate pâte sucrée (chocolate tart dough), or a classic chocolate pudding or a creamy chocolate cremeux.
And if it’s a no bake dessert, even better. If you’re on the lookout for that ultimate no bake chocolate pudding pie, then you’ve come to the right place!
This is about as luscious, creamy and decadent as a chocolate pie will ever be. When I started this blog a few years ago, I shared a recipe for my favorite chocolate pudding popsicles. The pictures were terrible and didn’t do justice to the recipe, so while I was redoing the pictures for that post, I realized just how silky smooth and creamy that chocolate pudding was and that it would make the perfect chocolate pie filing.
So after a little tweaking and experimenting, I came up with this irresistibly decadent No bake Chocolate Pudding Pie with Raspberries!
Hidden surprise element
But here’s another reason why you’ll love eating this. This chocolate pudding pie actually pops and crackles in your mouth as you eat it, because I added popping candy (also known as pop rocks) to the crust!
Imagine how surprised your guests will be, when they bite into a slice of this delectable pie and it starts fizzing and popping and crackling in their mouths? 🙂 This is hands down one of my favorite easy no bake desserts to make for guests, just for that reason!
This is one idea behind my Secret Layer Cakes cookbook too.
All the cakes and desserts in that book come with a surprise layer and one of those surprise elements is popping candy, just like in the pie crust in this recipe. I used unflavored popping candy here, but you can use a flavored kind, like strawberry for example.
This no bake chocolate pudding pie actually pops and crackles in your mouth as you eat it, because I added popping candy (also known as pop rocks) to the crust!
How to incorporate popping candy into this chocolate pudding pie
Popping candy (pop rocks) is carbonated candy. They are filled with pressurized CO2, which gives rise to that exploding sensation in your mouth when the candy dissolves in your mouth.
But one technical problem with adding popping candy to cookie crusts is that the melted butter and moisture in the crust can start melting the popping candy right away and you quickly lose the “pop”.
To prevent this, I mixed the popping candy with melted and cooled chocolate and then folded this into the crust. This minimizes the candy popping ahead of time, and that pop should last for up to 48 hours (best served within 24 hours).
When I used to live in Australia, I was able to find cocoa butter coated popping candy, and that would be the best option since they last longer in desserts like this without losing their pop.
But those are much harder to find in the US, so you can stick with regular pop rocks and simply follow the steps in this recipe to coat them with melted and cooled chocolate.
However, if you can’t find popping candy, simply leave it out. This no bake chocolate pudding pie tastes heavenly even without it, and while that crackling sensation as you bite into the crust does add a really nice surprise element to elevate the dessert, it’s not the most integral part in this recipe.
I added a layer of fresh raspberries to the bottom of the pie, because I love raspberries, plus chocolate and raspberries are obviously a perfect match (like I sometimes do with this luscious Parisian hot chocolate recipe where I add raspberry whipped cream).
That fresh, fruity flavor of raspberries is also a great contrast against the rich, creamy chocolate filling.
Make sure to be very gentle when you mix the popping candy into the chocolate and crust. If the candy breaks open, it’ll lose the CO2 and hence, the “pop”. Gently press the crust in to the pie/tart pan.
Then freeze the crust (can be frozen for 24 hours). Once you’ve made the luscious chocolate filling, let it cool down. Remember to whisk it frequently, so that it doesn’t form a skin on top (because of the cornstarch). You want the filling to be silky smooth.
Next, add the raspberries on the frozen pie base, followed by the cooled chocolate filling. Cover and let it sit in the refrigerator for about 4 hours. This no bake chocolate pudding pie is best eaten within 24-48 hours.
Just before serving, top it with whipped cream, more fresh raspberries and a chocolate drizzle.
This really is the best chocolate pudding pie that I’ve ever had, and it’s no bake to boot. Can’t get any better than that!
No bake chocolate pudding pie recipe video
Recipe
No Bake Chocolate Pudding Pie with Raspberries
US based cup, teaspoon, tablespoon measurements. Weight measurements are recommended for accurate results whenever available.
Common Measurement ConversionsIngredients:
Popping Cookie Crust
- 2 tbsp pop rocks/popping candy strawberry flavored or unflavored
- 2.5 oz bittersweet chocolate melted and cooled
- ½ tbsp oil
- 30 Oreo cookies 2 ½ sleeves
- 5 tbsp melted butter
Chocolate Filling
- 40 g cornstarch
- 150 g white sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 6 egg yolks
- 2 ½ cups half and half or 1 ½ cups milk + 1 cup cream
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 226 g bittersweet chocolate
- 2 tbsp butter
Whipped Cream Topping
- 1 cup heavy cream 35% fat
- ⅛ tsp sea salt
- 50 g sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
Assembly
- 455 g fresh raspberries to fill the pie and to decorate
- Melted chocolate or shaved chocolate
Instructions:
Popping Cookie Crust
- Mix the melted chocolate and oil together. Add the popping candy/pop rocks and fold it in gently.
- Place the Oreo cookies in the food processor and crush them to fine crumbs. Add the melted butter and process to mix – a few more pulses.
- Place the cookie crumbs in a bowl, and add the melted chocolate and popping candy mix. Fold it in to mix gently, until just dispersed.
- Butter a 9 inch pie dish (or deep tart pan), and line the bottom with parchment paper. Add the crumbs to the prepared pan, and use a spoon to gently press it into the pan to form a crust (if pressed too hard, the popping candy may pop).
- Freeze the crust (at least overnight).
Chocolate Pudding Filling
- Whisk the sugar, cornflour and salt together. Add the egg yolks and whisk until you have a smooth paste. Whisk in the milk and vanilla. Make sure there are no lumps.
- Pour the mix into a saucepan and cook the pudding base, over medium heat, until it has thickened (about 5 – 10 minutes). Make sure to stir/whisk frequently to prevent the eggs from curdling (if any lumps form, you can pour the pudding base through a sieve to remove the lumps).
- Once the pudding base has thickened, remove from the heat and add the chocolate. Stir to completely melt the chocolate. Add the butter and stir until it has melted and mixed in as well.
- Allow the pudding base to cool down completely, while whisking occasionally (to prevent a skin from forming).
Whipped Cream Topping (make this just before serving)
- Place all the ingredients in a cold bowl. Whisk at medium speed until you have stiff peaks. Place ¾ of the whipped cream in a pastry bag with an open star tip (if you want to pipe a decorative border). Set aside the rest of the whipped cream.
Assembly
- Line the bottom of the frozen cookie crust with fresh raspberries – let the raspberries lie on their side so that they’ll be filled with the pudding filling on top. Top the raspberries with the cooled down chocolate pudding filling and spread it evenly. Reserve the rest of the raspberries to decorate the pie.
- Cover the pie with plastic wrap and place it in the fridge to set – at least four hours, overnight is better.
- Just before serving, remove the plastic wrap and spread whipped cream on top. Pipe a decorative border of whipped cream, or spread as much whipped cream as you prefer on top.
- Decorate with extra raspberries and shaved or melted chocolate. Enjoy!
Nutrition Information:
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
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