4.17.18
So many people say to me, “I can cook, but I CAN’T bake.” Turn that frown up side down and start believing in yourself! Yes, baking involves science. Yes, sometimes it doesn’t turn out right. But that doesn’t mean you can’t bake. And I have made what I think is the perfect starter project for you. This peanut butter and pretzel pie. You will bring this bitch into work and everyone will look at it and wonder how you missed your calling opening a precious storefront selling pies and cakes as a bird sits on your shoulder and winks at your happy customers as they leave. Too much? Make this pie and it won’t seem so far fetched.
This pie was originally a gift for a friend who loves peanut butter. Her coworkers loved it. So I made it again for ME and amped it up. Remember that candy bar Take 5? This is like a deconstructed pie version of that. And it is goooooooooood. I brought it to rehearsal and it was demolished.
Get motivated to start baking with this recipe. Live those peanut butter dreams.
Peanut Butter Pretzel Pie
Ingredients
For the Crust
- 3 1/2 cups pretzels, broken down by food processor or rolling pin
- 7 tbsp butter, melted
- 1/4 cup sugar
For the Caramel Sauce
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup milk or heavy cream
- 1/2 cup butter
- splash vanilla extract
For the Filling
- 3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
- 3/4 cup confectioners sugar
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
For the Chocolate Drizzle
- 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted
Instructions
For the Crust
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Break up pretzels so they’re small chunks, but not powder. Do this in a food processor or by placing pretzels in a sealed ziplock and using a rolling pin to smash them
- In a medium bowl, mix together pretzels and sugar
- Pour melted butter over mix and toss together until it becomes clumpy
- Pour mixture into glass pie dish and press with the bottom of a glass into the bottom and up the sides of dish
- Bake for 15 minutes
- Allow to fully cool before filling
For the Caramel Sauce
- Combine all ingredients except for vanilla in a small sauce pan
- Over low to medium heat allow to melt and come to a boil, then stirring with a wooden spoon allow to boil on medium for about 5 minutes until thickened
- Take off heat, add in vanilla, mix thoroughly, allow to cool
For the Filling
- Beat cream cheese, peanut butter, and confectioners sugar in bowl of stand up mixture on medium until combined
- Chill a second bowl and whisk attachment for 15 minutes in freezer, whip heavy cream until stiff peaks form
- Add half of whipped cream into peanut butter mixture and fold until no white streaks remain
- Add that mixture to the rest of whipped cream and fold together until no white streaks remain
- Pour into center of cooled crust and smooth out to fill crust with offset spatula
- Using a spoon, scoop small amounts of caramel sauce and drizzle over top of pie
For the Chocolate Drizzle
- Melt chocolate in heat proof bowl in 35 second bursts, stirring in between until chocolate is smooth and melted
- Drizzle over top of pie
- Chill pie for at least an hour and enjoy!
