Peanut Butter Week: Peanut Butter Pie, Two Ways

Happy Pi Day, everyone!  In honor of this irrational number, we had pie today.  And in honor of peanut butter week, I made peanut butter pie.  Two kinds, actually!

PEANUT BUTTER CREAM PIE

• 1 baked pie crust (I used graham cracker)
• 3/4 c powdered sugar
• 1/2 c creamy peanut butter
• 1 recipe vanilla pudding
• whipping cream or cool whip

Mix the powdered sugar and peanut butter until nice and crumbly. 

Put about 2/3 of the crumbles in the bottom of the pie plate.

Whip up some pudding.  Homemade is definitely best, but (as you can tell from the poor lighting in my photos) it was getting late and I was getting tired, and I just so happened to have this one blessed box of instant pudding in my cupboard, so that's what I used.  And it was delicious.

Pour the pudding into the crust, then refrigerate until set.  Since this was instant pudding, it really didn't take long.

Top with whipped cream or cool whip and refrigerate until ready to serve.  Just before serving, top with the remaining peanut butter crumbles, then make all of your coworkers wait for their pie while you snap one final picture.

This pie definitely falls into the "impressive-yet-quick-and-easy" category, because you can buy a pie crust, use instant pudding and cool whip, and only have to mix up the crumbles.  How easy is that?


This next pie is a recipe Mandy gave me at my bridal shower.  Thanks Mandy!


PEANUT BUTTER SLIDE PIE

• 1 c heavy cream
• 12 pieces refrigerated peanut butter cookie dough
• 6 oz (3/4 package) cream cheese, softened
• 2/3 c sugar
• 2/3 c packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 c creamy peanut butter
• 1 T vanilla extract
• 1/2 c crushed peanuts
• 1/2 c chocolate chips

1. Heat oven to 350.  Coat a 9 inch pie plate with cooking spray (I skipped this step and definitely regretted it-- grease the stinkin' pan).  

With electric mixer, beat cream to stiff peaks.  Refrigerate.

2. Roll out dough between 2 sheets of waxed paper into as big a circle as possible; remove one of the sheets of waxed paper and invert dough into pie plate.  Press dough up sides of dish (not over rim) with lightly floured fingertips. (If dough is sticky  & paper difficult to remove, refrigerate for 10 to 15 minutes.)

3. Bake at 350 for 18-20 minutes.  Remove from oven and press down center slightly, if puffed.  Cool completely on a wire rack.


3.5 Drop your cream cheese on the floor.

4. In a large bowl, blend together the cream cheese and both sugars until smooth.  

Add peanut butter and vanilla. 

Beat until light colored.  It's ok if pie filling flies everywhere...it happens to the best of us.

Fold in chilled whipped cream until no streaks remain.

5. Spoon peanut butter filling into cooled crust.  

At this point, you could begin the never-ending cycle of using a utensil to scrap the rest off of the spatula, then the spatula to scrap the rest off of the utensil, etc.  Or you could make your husband happy and save it for him to lick (the spatula, not the pie) because he will be home in one minute...

...he won't notice one lick missing.


Refrigerate at least 1 hour.  Before serving, sprinkle top w/ crushed peanuts.  Melt chocolate chips in glass bowl in microwave on HIGH for 1 minute, stirring halfway through.  Drizzle over pie.  

Again, make your coworkers wait while you snap another picture, then slice & serve.


Hope you all had a great Pi Day!  Don't forget to vote about your favorite kind of peanut butter waaaaaaaaaaaaaay at the top (right below the header photo).