This recipe is certainly quite a mouthful in more ways than one! I was gifted a lovely glass pie dish from Pyrex to celebrate their 100 year anniversary and I started out trying to make a simple peanut butter pie. But as always, I had to put my own spin on things!
We don’t have graham crackers in Australia, so I substituted them for a combination of arrowroot biscuits and pretzels for the crust.
Then I feared the original version would be too sickly sweet, and stumbled across the concept of a “black bottom pie” and decided my dessert definitely needed a thick dark chocolate ganache in its base. And, to be fair, I feel most desserts need dark chocolate ganache incorporated somehow ;)
I kept the filling simple – it’s just cream cheese, peanut butter and a bit of sugar. Heaven. And finally, most peanut butter pies were topped with Cool Whip, another product we don’t have in Australia (but why would you use imitation whipped cream instead of the real deal? I’ve love to know!) so I omitted the cream topping and simply finished it off with a drizzle of dark chocolate and some crumbled pretzels.
Ingredients
Pretzel Crust
- 200 g arrowroot biscuits
- 100 g salted pretzels
- 180 g butter melted
Black Bottom (ganache layer)
- 1/2 cup thickened cream
- 110 g dark chocolate
Peanut Butter filling
- 250 g smooth peanut butter
- 250 g cream cheese room temperature
- 1/2 cup caster sugar
Topping
- 50 g dark chocolate
- Crumbled pretzels
Instructions
Pretzel Crust
- Blitz biscuits and pretzels in the food processor until finely crushed.
- Add in melted butter and pulse until just combined.
- Press the biscuit mixture into a 24cm/9.5″ pie dish and put in the fridge to set.
Black Bottom (ganache layer)
- Heat cream up into the microwave until warm (not boiling) and then add finely chopped chocolate, stirring until melted and combined.
- Pour the ganache on top of the set pie crust, gently coaxing the chocolate mixture up the sides of the crust.
- Return to fridge to set.
Peanut Butter filling
- Place the cream cheese and sugar in a large mixing bowl and beat until smooth.
- Add in the peanut butter and keep beating until smooth and creamy.
- Pour onto pie crust and put in the fridge to set for at least 2 hours.
Topping
- Melt the dark chocolate in the microwave in 30 second bursts until smooth and glossy.
- Drizzle the chocolate over the top of the pie and crumble over a few pretzels.
- Top with a final pretzel and enjoy!
So how was my bastardisation of the humble American peanut butter pie? Pretty damn delicious, if I do say so myself! This is a seriously rich pie, but it’s given balance by the omission of the whipped cream layer and the addition of the salty pretzels.
This glorious innards shot shows off the layers of the dessert well – a salty and sweet crust, a thick and fudgey ganache layer and a smooth and creamy peanut butter filling (with a crunchy topping of chocolate and pretzels for good measure!)
This is truly heaven on a plate.
And finally… Waka waka waka. Sorry, I forever have to turn pies into Pacman characters. Hah!
What’s your favourite American dessert? What would you like to see me try next?
17 Comments
I’ve never tried an American peanut butter pie but I have a feeling your Aussie version tastes even better. I could look at these pics forever, it looks soooooooooo good.
Oh thank you Pearl! I can confirm this version tasted pretty bloody amazing!! :D
This looks magical! I love the idea of a black bottom pie – all my favourite things in one tasty treat!
I’ve never made a black bottom pie before but had seem them a lot on Pinterest. It’s a great (and tasty) idea!
Oh my! Pretzels in with the biscuits – genius! And I would never so no to dark chocolate ganache!!!
I am obsessed with added pretzels to my biscuit bases, the added salty crunch is heaven!
[…] ♥ Recipes to try this week: grilled corn salad, chicken pitas, and peanut butter pie with a pretzel crust. […]
Just at a time where I am craving something sweet and delicious!
This would surely satisfy even the strongest sweet tooth ;)
This looks perfect! I agree, chocolate ganache should be added to everything :)
Haha totally, when in doubt, add chocolate ganache ;)
This recipe sounds so delicious. Definitely is on top of my list of recipes to try. Thank you for sharing such great ideas.
You are very welcome Anne, glad you love it!
This was our afternoon indulgence! Thank you for celebrating our 100 years with us! :)
So glad you liked it guys! xx
[…] 11. Black Bottom Peanut Butter pie with Pretzel Crust […]
Sounds scrumptious & very creative! The chocolate base would stop your biscuit/pretzel base getting soggy as well as being a delicious addition. I’ve used this base/lining in fresh fruit pies for the same reason.