Peanut Butter Pie

Before moving to the U.S. from Serbia for high school, I had never seen or had peanut butter. I didn’t even understand what it was, but I remember seeing it in countless movies and dreaming of trying a PB&J sandwich.

One day, shortly after moving to Indiana, still jet-lagged and waking up far too early, I was hungry for breakfast and stumbled across a jar of Skippy. Two problems: I had no clue what the J in PB&J stood for, and a sandwich with “butter” back home meant some sort of cured meats, pickles, and maybe ketchup and cheese.

Guided by that notion, I also grabbed Wonder bread and Kraft singles (also new to me), along with ketchup, relish, and the only cured meat I could find — hot dogs — and I made myself a sandwich. I’ll let you imagine what that tasted like.

Months later, someone made me a proper all-American PB&J sandwich and I started appreciating peanut butter in sweet applications. This luscious peanut butter pie has no hot dogs or relishes, but is packed with peanut flavor. Plus, it’s so easy to make that you can whip it up in less than 20 minutes. 

This simple pie requires just a handful of ingredients, all found in your local store. If you can’t find Biscoff cookies, good ol’ graham crackers will do, but you can also venture out and try other cookies like Nilla wafers or even pretzels. The filling combines peanut butter, cream cheese, heavy cream, and sugar in a food processor and comes together in minutes.

Some recipes add vanilla extract, but I prefer to leave it out so the peanut flavor can shine. I add extra salt to balance the sweetness and elevate the nuttiness. 

Essentially you can use any peanut butter, but be aware that natural kinds, those with oil floating on top, might affect the texture of the filling, making it softer and less smooth. If you prefer natural, go with Skippy Natural, which contains a little bit of palm oil to keep it from separating, making for a creamier product. Also, go for chunky or extra chunky for more peanut flavor and texture, even if you are usually a creamy fan.

To be honest, this pie didn’t last a day in my fridge. I recently made it for a movie night and served it with fresh raspberries and chocolate fudge sauce. This pie was gone before the post-credit scene between the five of us! If you do have any left over, wrap it well and store it in your fridge for up to five days. The filling might get firmer over time, but let it sit at room temperature for 15 to 30 minutes and it will get softer and creamier.

And if you have any peanut butter left after making this pie, I dare you to grab some hot dogs, cheese, and condiments and try out that sandwich yourself. Who knows, it might be the next Elvis sandwich!