Black Raspberry Cream Pie

When I ate this dessert I thought I was in heaven. It is so DELICIOUS!!  After seeing that this recipe used fruit spreads for the flavoring of the pie, I don't see why you couldn't try this in any spread flavor. I can't wait to try this in strawberry and raspberry.

I will confess, I was very nervous when making this because I had never made anything with whipping cream that needed to be formed into peaks before. The original recipe did not explain how to do that so I looked it up and not that it was complicated to do but there was a lot more to it than I thought. I added those instructions to my recipe below in case any of you aren't sure how to do it either. A co-worker of mine told me that I didn't need to go through all of the steps that I did, but hey it worked for me so I am keeping it this way. If you already have your own method, by all means stick with it and ignore my instructions on it.

Recipe:

1 (9-inch) graham cracker crumb pie shell recipe
1 cup whipping cream or heavy cream
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (10 ounce) jar black raspberry spread
Fresh black raspberries, and/or mint leaves (optional)

1) Place a medium sized mixing bowl and the beaters in the freezer for at least 15 minutes. After sufficiently chilled remove the mixing bowl and beaters from the freezer and place the mixing bowl in a larger bowl of ice water.
2) Add the cream in the chilled mixing bowl and beat with a hand mixer for 20 to 30 seconds on low until bubbles begin to form. Increase mixer speed to medium and beat until the cream begins to thicken and the beaters show a slight trail in the cream.
3) Increase mixer speed to high and beat until the cream begins to thicken and puff up. Continue to beat the cream until stiff peaks form; set aside.
4) In a large mixing bowl beat cream cheese with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until smooth. Add black raspberry spread. Beat on low speed just until combined. Fold in whipped cream. Spoon mixture into pie shell. Cover and freeze for 4 to 24 hours or until firm. Garnish with fresh black raspberries and/or mint.

Note: To check for stiff peaks, pull the beaters straight up out of the whipped cream. The peak should hold its shape and stick tightly to the beaters. DO NOT over-whip the cream. Once it forms stiff peaks, stop beating. If the cream is over-whipped it will start to separate and curdle.

Tip: The cream should be kept in the coldest part of the refrigerator until just before using. Try different pie flavors with changing the fruit spread. If using a stand mixer, be careful because the cream can become over-whipped quickly.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Total Time: 4 hours, 27 minutes or Overnight | Other Time: Pie Shell: 17 minutes | Yields: 8 servings

Source: BHG