As I announced and described my Chocolate Cherry Cream Pie to my friend, Kimmy, she said,
“Can you bake me a pie? I want that! But, not with cherries. Maybe with strawberries or raspberries.”
“Done!” I replied.
However, I had a little difficulty finding the chocolate covered strawberries I had envisioned for this pie. So, knowing that Kimmy truly enjoys pomegranate (and being slightly lazy), I decided to incorporate a bit of chocolate covered pomegranate candy into the mix.
The crust is a mix of traditional pie crust + graham cracker crumbs + chocolate chunks. The filling is a dark chocolate strawberry ganache. Then, I topped that with strawberries AND chocolate covered pomegranates. On top of that, it’s a chocolate whipped cream. And, of course, the garnish is a beautiful mix of fresh strawberries and chocolate covered pomegranates, again.
Basically, it’s the same as before, but different.
You’ll love it, either way.
Triple Chocolate Strawberry Cream Pie
Crust:
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 cup all purpose flour
8 Tbs. cold butter, cubed into 1″ pieces
1 large egg
1 Tbs. vinegar
1 cup dark chocolate chunks
2-3 Tbs. ice cold water
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Combine all the ingredients, except for the water, in the bowl of a large food processor. Pulse until crumbly and beady. Drizzle in the water until still beady, but not too wet.
Transfer the crumbs to parchment paper and push into a dough mound. Top with another piece of parchment paper and roll out into an 11″ pie crust round. Transfer to a deep dish pie plate and flute and pinch the edges for a decorative effect.
Fill with pie weights and bake the crust for about 15 minutes, until golden brown.
Remove from oven and allow to cool.
Chocolate Strawberry Ganache:
1 lb. frozen strawberries
1 1/2 cups dark chocolate chunks
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup chocolate covered pomegranate seeds candy
Thaw the berries, reserving the thawing “juice.” Set the berries aside.
Combine the “juice,” the chocolate, and the cream in a medium sauce pan. Heat on very low heat, stirring constantly, the melt the chocolate. Stir everything together until nice and creamy.
Pour over the cooled crust.
Once the ganache has set, topped with the thawed strawberries and chocolate covered pomegranate seeds.
Chocolate Whipped Cream:
1 cup cold heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 Tbs. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Beat the cream and cocoa powder together for 8-10 minutes, until thick, but not yet butter. Add the sugar and vanilla and beat for an additional 20-30 seconds.
Spread over the cherry filling of the pie.
Chocolate Strawberry Topping:
1 cup fresh cherries
3/4 cup chocolate covered pomegranate seeds candy
Arrange the fresh fruit and candy over the top of the whipped cream layer of the pie. Chill to completely set before slicing.
