Chocolate Chocolate Caramel Mousse Cream Pie

My parents were in town for a few days, and my dad's birthday happened while they were here. Because my mom's kitchen isn't fully equipped with ingredients, and because his traditional birthday dessert (chocolate death cake - maybe a post for another time) was a bit much for the amount of family that was here in terms of quantity, Mom asked me to make a little something and I jumped at the opportunity. Food is not officially a love language in terms of the "Five Love Languages" book, but it really is to me. I appreciate really good food, but even more I love to make really good food for people I love. Which is why I'm not terribly interested in selling what I make as one relative often suggests that I do (although a cupcake bakery could be super fun). Making it a money thing or a job would just ruin the experience for me, you know?

Anyway, I have all kinds of decadent things pinned on pinterest, and when I looked at what I had available for no-bake pies (it's hot and I'm very pregnant, k?) lots of things appealed to me but didn't seem quite right for my dad. I'm not sure he shares my fetish for chocolate/peanut butter things (my pinterest food boards are littered with recipes of that variety). He's very much a chocolate man, but a plain chocolate cream pie, even with an oreo crust didn't seem like quite enough for a birthday to me. So I combined a couple of ideas and decided it was probably post-worthy. :) I used the chocolate pudding from this recipe and the chocolate caramel mousse and crust (slightly modified) from this recipe. Also opted to top with the whipped cream and chocolate shavings from the chocolate cream pie recipe. The result was wonderful! And so I'm sharing with you.

It was every bit as good as it looks (probably better because I'm not a very skilled food photographer at this time). Very decadent, but the whipped cream lightened it up just enough to make it possible to consume a larger piece without feeling ill. Unless you have a much lower tolerance for rich foods than I do. Then proceed with a generous slice at your own risk. hahaha

Chocolate Chocolate Caramel Mousse Cream Pie

Ingredients

Oreo crust:

• 24 oreo cookies
• 3 T. melted butter

Chocolate pudding base:

• 2/3 cup Sugar
• 1/4 cup Cocoa Powder
• 3 Tbsp Cornstarch
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 2 1/4 cup Milk
• 1 tsp Vanilla

Chocolate caramel mousse:

• 8 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup salted caramel sauce, store-bought or homemade 

Directions

Make the crust:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9-inch pie dish with cooking spray.
Place the Oreo cookies in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely ground. Add in the melted butter and pulse until moistened. Press the mixture into the bottom and up the sides of the prepared pie dish. Bake for 10 minutes, or until fragrant and set. Let cool completely on a wire rack.

 Make the pudding:

Combine sugar, cocoa, cornstarch, and salt in a medium pan.
While stirring constantly, slowly add in milk and bring to a boil over medium heat.
Remove from the heat and stir in vanilla.
Pour into pie crust, cover with plastic wrap directly on the pudding and chill until firm. (2-3 hrs)*

Make the mousse:

In a microwave-safe bowl, heat the chocolate on high in 30 second intervals, stirring between each interval, until melted and smooth. Let cool.
In a large bowl, use an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment to beat the cream until soft peaks form. On medium speed, gradually add the caramel and continue whipping until medium-stiff peaks form. Gently fold in the cooled melted chocolate until combined. Pour into cookie crust and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours.* Top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings (optional).

*I found a hurry-up method for chilling these kinds of recipes in the freezer. The rule of thumb I found was specifically referring to cookie dough, but I took a risk and tried it with my layers and it worked great! Just be sure to use a timer so you won't overdo it. The rule of thumb is to chill in the freezer for a quarter of the amount of time you would in the refrigerator. For the pudding layer that was between 30-40 minutes, and for the mousse layer it was about one and a half hours. As I said, it worked great for me!