When Easter comes around, I'm always secretly planning to make this dessert – I've been this way since I've had kids old enough to eat their own body weight in chocolate. That happens way too soon after they start eating solid food, by the way.

I don't have much of a sweet tooth, so I don't get their obsession with all things chocolate. By mid-week after Easter I am so fed up with their constant sweet-snacking, I end up secretly confiscating their stash to make this triple chocolate pudding pie.

Now, I know I said I don't have much of a sweet tooth, but can you keep a secret?

I love Oreos.

I don't eat them, or buy them – ever. It's too dangerous. Since I was a little girl, one of my favourite snacks has been Oreos dunked in cold milk.

The only time I'll buy them, now, is if I'm crushing them to make a base for a cheesecake, or – you guessed it – for this triple chocolate pudding pie. That's one of the ingredients that makes me love this dessert so very much.

I may be taking quarantine-induced comfort eating a little too seriously, but since I make this dessert each Easter and I get rid of a lot of chocolate in the process, I think can get away with this one. And it is comfort on a plate. Soft, custard-like filling, crisp and chewy meringue topping and an easy Oreo base?

It's the dessert Ireland needs right now.

Recipe

Triple chocolate pudding pie

For the base:

1 package Oreo cookies, crushed

30g butter

For the pie:

250g leftover Easter chocolate (it can be anything that melts)

200g butter

2 large eggs

3 egg yolks

50g caster sugar

100g plain flour

Large pinch of flaky sea salt

1 tsp vanilla

For the meringue topping:

1/4 tsp cream of tartar

3 large egg whites

100g powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

To serve:

Crushed leftover Easter chocolate or candies

  • 1 Make the base: preheat the oven to 180°C. Mix the crushed oreos and butter until well combined and press into a tart dish with a removeable bottom. Bake the base in the oven for 5 minutes, then immediate turn down the heat to 150°C.
  • 2 Make the filling: in a microwaveable bowl, melt the chocolate and butter together until smooth. Add the eggs and mix quickly so they don't scramble in the hot chocolate mixture. Add the caster sugar, salt and vanilla and mix, then gently fold in the flour. Pour the batter on top of the base and bake in the 150°C oven for 15 minutes.
  • 3 Make the meringue: in a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, mix the egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks start to form. Add the powdered sugar one heaping tablespoon at a time until it's all incorporated.
  • 4 Continue to whisk the meringue mixture until it's thick, glossy and shiny. Add the vanilla and mix again to combine. Top the pie with the meringue, swirling the top a little bit and place back into the oven.
  • 5 Continue baking at 150°C for around an hour, or until the meringue topping is crunchy and dry on top. Cool and remove from the tart pan.
  • 6 Crush the remaining Easter chocolate to decorate the top and enjoy!