What’s better than a peanut butter cup? A peanut butter cup in a pie! This peanut butter fudge pie has a chocolate cookie crust, a no bake peanut butter filling and is covered in chocolate ganache. It takes 25 minutes to prep the entire recipe and you’ll need to let it chill overnight. This recipe needs just 15 ingredients, and you’ve probably already have them all at home!
This post was originally published in January 2021 but has been updated with new photos, new content and a revised recipe.
Tell me about this recipe!
- Rather than a regular pie crust, I’ve made a chocolate cookie crust. This crust is much easier to make than a regular pie crust, you’ll just need to make a chocolate cookie dough and then press it into your pie plate before letting it bake.
- The filling is an easy no bake peanut butter filling made with cream cheese.
- I topped this pie with a dark chocolate ganache which then sets firm in the fridge, though you could also just decorate it with whipped cream
Ingredients Needed
The printable recipe card with the full list of ingredients and instructions can be found at the bottom of this post.
Ingredient Notes
- Peanut Butter: you’ll need to use smooth peanut butter, not the natural kind which has oil on top of it.
- Cream Cheese: I used Philadelphia full fat cream cheese for this recipe. If you are based in Europe and your cream cheese comes in tubs, make sure to pat it down with paper towels to remove some of the excess moisture (cream cheese in North America doesn’t have this issue!)
- Butter: I always use European style butter, like Kerry Gold, which has a higher butterfat content. This makes the butter much richer and creamier.
- Chocolate: I used chocolate that is 63% cocoa. Using dark chocolate will help balance the sweetness of the peanut butter filling.
How to make this recipe:
One Two
One: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together for 2 minutes until smooth.
Two: Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add your egg, then beat again on medium speed.
Three Four
Three: Add the flour, cocoa powder and salt. Mix on low speed until combined. Add your milk and mix until smooth
Four: Press your cookie crust into a 9″ deep dish pie plate and chill for 30 minutes (or you can chill overnight). Bake at 350 degrees for 20-22 minutes, and let cool completely.
Five Six
Five: In a medium bowl, whip up your heavy cream until you have medium peaks. Keep in the fridge to stay cool.
Six: In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and peanut butter together until combined.
Seven Eight
Seven: Add the sugars, butter, salt and vanilla and beat on medium-high speed for 5 minutes.
Eight: Fold in the whipped cream in three additions, make sure to fold gently so you don’t deflate the mixture. Spoon the filling into the cooled crust, then cover with plastic wrap and keep in the fridge for at least 3 hours (but the longer the better!)
Nine Ten
Nine: Chop up your chocolate and plate in a heatproof bowl. Heat up your cream until it begins to gently simmer. Pour over the chocolate and leave for 3 minutes.
Ten: Use a rubber spatula to mix the chocolate and cream until it begins smooth.
Eleven Twelve
Eleven: Pour the ganache over the chilled pie and use a small offset spatula to smooth it out. If you want to add any toppings, like I did with the pretzels and miniature peanut butter cups, add them on top now. Keep in the fridge.
Twelve: Let chill for another 2-3 hours before slicing up!
Recipe Tips
- I highly recommend using a weighing scale and measuring out your ingredients the metric way. It makes a huge difference to your baking and is the most accurate way to bake! I do provide US measurements in the recipe card however the recipe was not developed or tested using these measurements.
- Try to keep your pie in the fridge as long as possible before slicing. The longer it is chilled, the smoother your slices will be.
- Do not use a natural peanut butter for this recipe, it’ll make the filling too oily due to the natural oils. You want to use a commercial peanut butter like Skippy or Jif.
- I make sure that all of my ingredients are at room temperature before I start the recipe, so pull out all of the ingredients (except for the cream!) before you start baking.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Depending on the type of chocolate you use (semisweet, bittersweet), it will change the amount of heavy cream you’ll use. I used a dark chocolate (over 63% cocoa) for this ganache recipe.
This pie is best kept in the refrigerator! It will last up to 4 days, but I recommend keeping it tightly wrapped in the fridge.
Yes! You could make an oreo crust for this, like in my Golden Oreo Cheesecake.
Replace the chocolate ganache with whipped cream by whipping 235 grams (1 cup) of heavy cream until it starts to thicken. While the mixer is running on medium speed, slowly stream in 50 grams (1/4 cup) of sugar, then keep whipping until you have medium peaks.
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Make sure to tag me on Instagram @alpineella and leave a review below if you’ve made this pie! If you want more baking ideas, you can follow me on Pinterest.
Chocolate & Peanut Butter Pie
Equipment
- 9 inch deep dish pie plate
Ingredients
- 113 grams unsalted butter room temperature
- 53 grams light brown sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tbsp whole milk
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 28 grams cocoa powder
- 180 grams all-purpose flour
Peanut Butter Filling
- 226 grams cream cheese room temperature
- 270 grams peanut butter
- 56 grams powdered sugar
- 99 grams granulated sugar
- 28 grams unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 170 grams heavy cream
- ¾ tsp kosher salt
Chocolate Ganache
- 113 grams heavy cream
- 170 grams semisweet chocolate
Instructions
Make Pie Dough
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar for 2 minutes until smooth.
- Add the egg yolk and mix on medium speed until combined
- Add the flour, cocoa powder and salt and mix on low until combined. Add the milk and mix until smooth
- Use your fingers to press into the pan and chill for 30 minutes (up to overnight). Bake at 350°F/175°C for 20-22 minutes.
Make Filling
- In a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whisk the cream until you have medium peaks. Transfer to a bowl and keep cold.
- Clean out the mixing bowl, and with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and peanut butter together until well blended. Add the granulated sugars, butter, salt and vanilla and keep beating until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
- Add half a cup of the whipped cream to the peanut butter mixture and stir quickly to combine. Fold in the rest of the cream in three additions, stirring quickly each time.
- Carefully spoon the filling into the crust, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
Chocolate Ganache
- Bring the cream to a simmer in a small, heavy saucepan. Add the chocolate and stir until smooth. Set aside to cool. Gently spread over the cooled pie, refrigerate for 3 hours.
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