A twist on traditional pumpkin pie – swirled with decadent Nutella and baked in a gingersnap crust.
A swirly twirly pumpkin pie to add to your fall baking list. Isn’t she pretty?
Like gingerbread is to my Christmas, pumpkin pies are to my fall. Crunchy leaves, oversized sweaters, and pumpkin-spiced everything.
I usually cover my pumpkin pie with Cool Whip. Like… drown. My Thanksgiving dessert is typically a plate of Cool Whip and a side of my mom’s pumpkin pie. There’s nothing better. But this weekend, in true Sally fashion, I decided to wander down the unconventional route. I swirled my traditional pumpkin pie with chocolate. Nutella, to be exact.
Oh. And I also did not have Cool Whip hiding my freezer like I thought. So thereyago.
Chocolate saves the day.
We’ve got a standard pumpkin pie here. Eggs, heavy cream, pumpkin, brown sugar, and spices. The smooth creamy pie filling lies on a bed of spicy crushed gingersnaps binded with melted butter. For those of you who fear pie dough, this is an easy patted-down style crust, which means no rolling or chilling! It’s very easy and stays together nicely.
Feel free to use homemade gingersnaps for your crust, but make sure they are crunchy and sturdy enough for the heavy filling. Or use a graham cracker crust, traditional pie crust, or even a chocolate cookie crust (Oreo crust – that would be good).
I loved the flavor of the crunchy gingersnaps. Each bite of the crust had a complex sweet, spicy and sultry kick to it.
This was my first time trying pumpkin and Nutella together. Both items are almost always sitting in my pantry, but the thought never occurred to me to combine them until last week. A total “aha!” moment. I truly feel that chocolate and pumpkin is an under-appreciated duo.
Here is a photo of the crust being made and the pie before going into the oven. Tip: warm, melted Nutella works best for swirling.
There are so many wonderful pumpkin pie recipes out there, but I wanted something different to share. Plus, I don’t think I could ever make my mom’s traditional pumpkin pie quite like she does. You don’t mess with the best!
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Nutella Swirl Pumpkin Pie
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours
- Yield: one 9-inch pie; serves 8-10 1x
- Category: Pie
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
A twist on traditional pumpkin pie – swirled with decadent Nutella and baked in a gingersnap crust.
Ingredients
For the Crust:
- 1 and 1/2 cups gingersnap cookie crumbs
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
For the Filling:
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 15 ounce can pure pumpkin or 2 cups fresh pumpkin puree
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger*
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves*
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg*
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup Nutella, warmed (or 4 oz melted high quality chocolate)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Spray 9 or 8 inch pie dish with nonstick spray. Set aside. Grind up gingersnap cookies into a fine crumb. Mix with melted butter, and sugar. Press into prepared pie dish. Do not press the crust far up the sides of the dish, or the cookies will end up burning. About halfway up the sides. Bake crust for 10 minutes and allow to slightly cool.
- In a large bowl, lightly whisk the eggs. Add the remaining ingredients (except for the Nutella) and stir to combine. Pour the mixture into pie crust. Drop spoonfuls of warmed Nutella (I usually just stick in the microwave for 30 seconds) onto pie, swirling gently with a knife. Do not swirl too much, just lightly.
- Bake at 350°F (177°C) for 40-45 minutes or until the filling is set. The center will still look wet but will not “jiggle” too much. Allow to cool completely and serve at room temperature. Pie is good up to 4 days covered tightly and stored in the refrigerator.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Pie freezes well, up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice: 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice may be substituted for these spices.
Keywords: nutella swirl pumpkin pie, nutella pumpkin pie
What is your favorite pumpkin pie recipe like?
And here is my classic pumpkin pie recipe.
Reader Questions and Reviews
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I made this pie yesterday. Oh goodness!!!! It was the best thing I have ever done to our pumpkin pie. I loved the the Nutella, but amazingly what I loved the most was the Ginger Snap crust. Go figure. I, we love chocolate here in this household and I was boasting about the crust.
can I use pumpkin pie spice instead? If so, what amount would you suggest.
Yep – 1 teaspoon.
Could this be made in muffin tins for mini pies? Would I need cupcake liners, or just press crust straight into muffin tins? Would they crumble when taken it? Adjustments for baking times?
Hi Erica! Yes, absolutely. I would use cupcake liners. The bake time should be around 20 minutes, give or take. I would pre-bake the crusts for 5-8 minutes first.
Can this pie be made ahead and frozen?
Yep! See the last step.
Can you use a traditional pie crust for this recipe? I have an extra one laying around in our fridge.
Yes. I recommend pre-baking (with pie weights) for 10 minutes at 350F.
Can gluten free gingersnaps be used for the crust?
I haven’t tried it, but assuming they are nice and crunchy– they should work. Let me know how your pumpkin pie turns out!
Could you add the fresh black pepper to this like in your classic pumpkin pie?
Yes, absolutely! Just a pinch.
Hi Sally, looks amazing. I plan on making this along with a traditional one (sans Nutella) for those more calorie conscious! 😉
Do you recommend the additional sugar for the ginger snap crust? Seems to me they are typically sweet enough. Thoughts?
Hi Diane, the sugar helps to hold the crust together, so we wouldn’t recommend removing it. Hope the pie is a hit!
Thanks for your prompt reply.
I noticed some differences in the pie filling recipe between this one and your traditional one, can the traditional pie filling be substituted in this recipe before the Nutella is added, since the amount of filling is enough for 2 pies?
Thank you.
Hi Diane, our regular pumpkin pie recipe is not enough for 2 full-sized pies. A couple readers have commented that– but it is, in fact, not enough unless you want 2 pumpkin pies with very thin layers of filling. You can use this filling without the Nutella swirl if desired though!
Fantastic simple recipe! It just won me first prize in our neighborhood Fall Festival Pie Contest. Thank you!!!
★★★★★
Hi! Not sure what I did wrong, but I had way too much filling. Since the crust only goes halfway up the sides, I wasn’t sure whether to stop where the crust does or keep pouring. In your photos, it looks like the crust is going all the way up the sides? I may have messed this up. Any advice would be appreciated!
Hi Jena! You want the crust to go about half way up as directed, but you can push it up more if needed – all pie dishes are slightly different volumes. If this happens again, just stop pouring in the filling before you reach the edge of the crust. Thank you for giving this recipe a try!