Old Fashioned Peanut Butter Pie
Ah, the old fashioned peanut butter pie your grandmother used to make. I would say this recipe is better, but let’s be real here, who bakes better than your grandma?
This pie is all the delicious, decadent things we love. We’re talking sugar, butter, cream cheese, heavy whipping cream, and, of course, peanut butter. This pie isn’t free of anything, but oh boy, is it full of flavor!
This is a great dessert to bring when you don’t have much time to bake and it looks good no matter what.
Even if you didn’t leave much time for it to set, just bring it to wherever you’re going, pop it in the fridge, and it will be ready by the time dinner is over. It is so easy and such a crowd pleaser.
Did I mention the filling takes 10 minutes to make? This recipe does include a homemade graham cracker crust, but if you are short on time, a store bought one will be just fine.Â
Making The Crust
I went with the traditional graham cracker crust on this one, but you could substitute them for Oreos, Biscoffs, or whatever cookie you want really.
You could even add a few ritz crackers to it to give it a little more of a salty kick. And no shame in buying a store bought crust – it saves you a good 15 minutes in this recipe.
I used Tillamook unsalted butter in the crust, but any unsalted butter works great.
If you don’t have a food processor (I use this one) but still want to make the crust at home, add the broken up graham crackers in a large zip up bag and whack it with a rolling pin until you have fine crumbs.Â
Making The Filling
Jif peanut butter is the classic choice for this pie. I chose the smooth option without sugar, since we’re adding powdered sugar to it.
If you want to use a more natural peanut butter, I would microwave it for 15 seconds so it’s a bit softer and easy to mix with the other ingredients.Â
In my opinion, using the real deal heavy whipping cream is far tastier than cool whip, but if that is all you have on hand, it will definitely work in this recipe.Â
As you saw in the ingredients list, I added cream of tartar to my heavy whipping cream before mixing it. It really helps the filling hold up its shape when you slice it, but it really is optional if you don’t have any.
What To Use For The Topping
To pretty up your pie, a few ideas are sprinkling some chopped peanuts, more whipped cream, or even flaky sea salt on top.
My favorite is the flaky sea salt, not only because it’s so pretty, but because I am obsessed with the salty sweet combo.Â
Old Fashioned Peanut Butter Pie Recipe
Yield: 1 pie
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Setting Time:Â 2 hours
Ingredients
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 4 oz cream cheese
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- 1 tsp cream of tartar (optional)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 package of graham crackers
- 8 tbsps (1 stick) of unsalted butter
- â…› tsp salt
- 2 tbsp sugar
Instructions
1. To make the crust, break up your graham crackers and add them to a food processor and blend until finely ground. Add the sugar and salt and blend again.
2. Melt the butter. You can brown the butter if you desire a nuttier flavor. Transfer the graham cracker crumbs to a bowl and pour the melted butter in.Â
3. Mix the crust with a spoon or your hands and add to your pie dish. Press the crust into the pan until it is even and smooth, starting with the sides first and working your way to the bottom of the dish. You can use the back of a measuring cup as well.Â
4. Place your pie crust in the freezer while you make the filling.
5. For the filling, in a standing mixer, beat the heavy whipping cream and cream of tartar until stiff peaks form. Place in the fridge to keep cold.Â
6. In a mixing bowl, whisk the cream cheese, peanut butter, and powdered sugar until smooth.
7. Use a large spatula and fold the whipped cream into your peanut butter mixture until smooth.Â
8. Pour the peanut butter filling into your pie crust and place in the fridge until set, about 3 hours.
9. Top with sea salt flakes or crushed peanuts and serve!
Old Fashioned Peanut Butter Pie
This peanut butter pie is creamy, fluffy, and oh-so-decadent!
Ingredients
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 4 oz cream cheese
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- 1 tsp cream of tartar (optional)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 package of graham crackers
- 8 tbsps (1 stick) of unsalted butter
- â…› tsp salt
- 2 tbsp sugar
Instructions
- To make the crust, break up your graham crackers and add them to a food processor and blend until finely ground. Add the sugar and salt and blend again.
- Melt the butter. You can brown the butter if you desire a nuttier flavor. Transfer the graham cracker crumbs to a bowl and pour the melted butter in.
- Mix the crust with a spoon or your hands and add to your pie dish. Press the crust into the pan until it is even and smooth, starting with the sides first and working your way to the bottom of the dish. You can use the back of a measuring cup as well.
- Place your pie crust in the freezer while you make the filling.
- For the filling, in a standing mixer, beat the heavy whipping cream and cream of tartar until stiff peaks form. Place in the fridge to keep cold.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk the cream cheese, peanut butter, and powdered sugar until smooth.
- Use a large spatula and fold the whipped cream into your peanut butter mixture until smooth.
- Pour the peanut butter filling into your pie crust and place in the fridge until set, about 3 hours.
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