Grasshopper Pie

Grasshopper pie was a favorite of Southern hostesses in the 1950s and '60s. We've updated the recipe, infusing the filling with fresh mint and adding coconut to the crust.

Source
Martha Stewart Living, April 2004
Grasshopper Pie
Photography: Anna Williams
  • yield Makes one 9-inch pie

Ingredients

  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for pie plate

  • 3/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut

  • 1 1/2 cups (about 25) crushed chocolate wafer cookies

  • 1/2 cup sugar

  • 2 1/2 cups heavy cream, chilled

  • 1 cup loosely packed mint leaves

  • 3 tablespoons green creme de menthe

  • 1 envelope (1/4 ounce) unflavored gelatin

  • 5 large egg yolks

  • 1 bar (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate, chilled

  • Freshly whipped cream, for serving (optional)

Directions

  1. Step 1

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter a 9-inch pie plate. Whisk together coconut, cookie crumbs, and 1/4 cup sugar in a medium bowl. Add melted butter, and stir until well combined. Press crumb mixture into pie plate. Bake until just set, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool completely.

  2. Step 2

    Meanwhile, bring 1 1/2 cups cream and the mint just to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove from heat; cover. Let steep 15 minutes. Pour the mixture through a fine sieve into a glass measuring cup. Discard the mint, and set cream aside. Beat the remaining cup cream in a medium bowl until stiff peaks form; cover, and refrigerate.

  3. Step 3

    Prepare an ice-water bath; set aside. Put creme de menthe in a medium heatproof bowl, and sprinkle with gelatin. Let stand 5 minutes to soften. Whisk together egg yolks and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in another medium bowl; set aside. Add steeped cream to gelatin mixture, whisking until well combined.

  4. Step 4

    Set bowl with cream mixture over a pan of simmering water. Cook, whisking constantly, until the gelatin is dissolved and mixture is hot to the touch, about 1 minute. Whisking constantly, pour hot cream mixture in a slow, steady stream into egg-yolk mixture. Return mixture to heatproof bowl; set over pan of simmering water. Cook, whisking constantly, until mixture is slightly thickened and registers 150 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 10 minutes.

  5. Step 5

    Transfer bowl to ice-water bath; whisk until mixture thickens to the consistency of pudding, about 2 minutes. Remove bowl from bath. Add one-third of reserved whipped cream; whisk until combined. Gently fold in remaining whipped cream with a rubber spatula.

  6. Step 6

    Spoon mixture into pie crust; refrigerate until set, 45 minutes to 1 hour (or up to 1 day). Just before serving, scrape a chef's knife along surface of chocolate bar to make shavings. Spoon dollops of whipped cream onto pie, if desired, and top with chocolate shavings.

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Reviews (7)

  • PIE Lover
    11 Mar, 2013

    Horrible pie! Not one of my favorites. I do not recommend! But, the crust helped.
  • ecandle96
    9 Dec, 2011

    Not quite sweet enough for my taste. I left the coconut out of the crust (not a fan) and I wonder if this was enough to make the pie just this side short of sweet enough. I think next time I'd add a 1/2 cup sugar to the egg mixture.
    I was concerned about the filling being thick enough, similar to others I never got the filling to reach a "pudding" consistency in the ice bath. But once I put it in the fridge the gelatin cooled and thickened up the pie considerably, making for easy serving.
  • lmwilcox5028
    16 Mar, 2009

    We did not like this recipe at all. The mint flavor was not good - my husband compared it to caugh medicine. We much prefer the recipe from the Eagle Brand Minty Grasshopper Pie. I made that recipe, but added peppermint extract and Bailys Choc. mint liquer. The taste was just like mint chocolate chip ice cream.
  • DessertFanatic
    25 Mar, 2008

    I had a 2nd go-around with this pie yesterday, and I had trouble getting the right consistency. The cream mixture reached 150 in 3 min. this time, and I think that it definitely needs to stay over the heat for longer time to thicken. I don't know why mine reaches temperature so quickly. I saved it by freezing the pie, and I liked that better. I used 3/4 tsp of peppermint extract, since I still can't find creme de menthe. The flavor was better, but it still had a leafy aftertaste.
  • DessertFanatic
    19 Mar, 2008

    I was worried that this wasn't going to turn out right, because my cream/gelatin mixture reached 150 degrees in about 5-6 min. I didn't think it looked as thick as I thought it should be, but I decided to put it in the water bath anyway. While I was whisking it in the water bath, it didn't seem like it was getting to a pudding consistency. Mine was like a thin pudding. BUT, once finished, the texture of my pie turned out perfectly, and it looks just like the picture, so trust the recipe.
  • DessertFanatic
    19 Mar, 2008

    I couldn't find creme de menthe, so I put in 1/4 tsp mint extract and filled the rest with water to make 3 Tbsp, and added 4 drops of coloring. I wanted to be cautious about how much extract I added, because I didn't want it to be overpowering. Now that I've tasted it, it definitely needed more extract. The mint flavor was too subtle. It also had a very mint-leafy aftertaste, which I didn't care for. Next time, I would either add more mint extract OR use peppermint extract, which I prefer
  • woodensandals
    16 Mar, 2008

    tips - (because mine wasn't perfect)

    During step 4 make sure you wait until the mixture gets thicker.. I did mine for 10 minutes and it reached 150, but in Step 5 I couldn't get it to a pudding consistency. I had to add more gelatin to get it right which ruined the texture f the pie.

    If you only have clear creme de menthe just add food coloring. That's what is in the bottle anyway.
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