Chocolate Pumpkin Cream Pie

Not your typical pumpkin pie: with a smooth and lightly spiced pumpkin cream filling, silky chocolate ganache, all nestled in a sweet and salty chocolate graham cracker crust, with a stabilized whipped cream to finish it off with a flourish.

Instructions

For Crust:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Pulse graham crackers, cocoa powder, brown sugar, and salt in a food processor until finely ground.
Melt butter and chocolate in the microwave on half power in 15 second bursts, stirring between each interval, until fully melted and smooth. Drizzle into food processor and pulse a few times until mixture is evenly moistened.
Press crumbs into a standard 9-inch pie pan, using a smooth bottomed glass or measuring cup to press the crumbs firmly into the bottom and up the sides.
Bake for 8-10 minutes to set (it won't look much different). Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

For Ganache:

Finely chop chocolate and place in a heat proof bowl.
In a small saucepan, combine cream with glucose and heat over medium heat until it starts to steam and just barely bubble around the edges (do not let it fully boil).
Pour hot cream over chopped chocolate and let sit for 30 seconds, then whisk gently, working from the center out in concentric circles, until chocolate is fully melted and cream is incorporated. Add cubed butter and stir until melted and smooth.
Pour ganache into prepared crust, then place in the refrigerator to set while you prepare the cream filling.

For Pumpkin Cream Filling:

In a medium saucepan, mix 1 ½ cups of milk with pumpkin puree, then heat over medium heat until mixture starts to steam and bubble around the edges (do not let it fully boil).
In a separate bowl, whisk sugar, flour, cornstarch and salt with the egg yolks. Drizzle in the remaining ¼ cup of milk to thin, then whisk until smooth. Temper the egg yolk mixture by slowly drizzling in some of the hot milk, about ¼ cup at a time, whisking constantly. Repeat with another ladle or two of hot milk, until the yolk mixture is warm to the touch. Pour into the larger saucepan with the rest of the milk.
Return saucepan to low heat and cook, stirring regularly and scraping the sides and bottom as you go (I like to switch to a rubber spatula at this point), until mixture starts to bubble and thickens to the consistency of thick pudding. This will take about 10 minutes, you don't want to rush it by using higher heat.
Remove from the heat and stir in butter, bourbon, and vanilla until smooth. If your custard appears slightly lumpy, you can press it through a fine mesh sieve to remove any stray lumps of egg or flour, but this step is optional. Set aside and let cool slightly, about 20 minutes.
Your ganache should be set firmly at this point. Pour lukewarm cream filling on top, smoothing into an even layer all the way to the edges. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour until fully cooled (but you can make it a day or two ahead of time if needed, cover lightly with foil or plastic wrap).
The day of, whip heavy cream with an electric mixer until frothy. Whisk sugar with guar gum (if using). With the mixer running, slowly pour in sugar, then increase speed and beat until cream holds medium peaks. Stir in vanilla. Transfer to a piping bag and pipe a decorative border around the edge of the pie. Garnish with chocolate curls or grated chocolate if desired.

Ingredients

For Chocolate Graham Cracker Crust:

For Chocolate Ganache Layer:

For Pumpkin Cream Layer:

For Whipped Cream & Garnish:

Instructions

For Crust:

For Ganache:

For Pumpkin Cream Filling:

Notes