No Bake Chocolate Strawberry Pie

t’s strawberry season and this means a you can start baking a lot of delicious deserts. Fresh fruits can give an amazing flavor to any cake and combining them with chocolate is simply magical. If you feel like baking a cake, but don’t want to spend a lot of time in the hot kitchen, especially when the temperature is high outside, you can always choose to make a cake that requires no baking.

Directions: Lightly spray a 9-inch pie dish with nonstick spray. Place the butter and chopped chocolate in a microwave safe bowl, heat on high for 30 seconds or until just melted. Stir until smooth. Finely grind cookies in processor. Add chocolate mixture and process until crumbs are evenly moistened. Press crumb mixture into prepared pie dish. Freeze until firm, about 30 minutes. Arrange strawberry halves in a single layer in the bottom of the crust.

For filling, whisk sugar, cornstarch, cocoa powder, spices, and salt in heavy medium saucepan to combine. Whisk in egg yolks to form thick paste. Gradually whisk in milk, then whisk over medium-high heat until mixture thickens and boils 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add chocolate and whisk until smooth. Whisk in bourbon and vanilla. Cool 5 minutes, whisking occasionally. Pour filling over strawberries until level with the top edge of the crust (you may not use all the filling). Chill until set, at least 2 hours and up to 1 day. Top with fresh whipped cream and more strawberries, if desired.