A pie with pretzels, peanut butter, cream cheese and chocolate – a combination of crunchy and creamy, sweet and salty…. it sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?
Do you remember your teenage years?
I know some of you left them far away in the past, but still memories surely exist, at least fragments of it, like in my case.
How did you get along with your parents then? It is only when we get out of this period (which in some cases lasts too long), that we become aware of the people around us. I was “a good kid”, and yet I had many arguments with my parents.
Now I see things differently. No, even now I don’t think my parents are ideal, infallible…. But now I understand them and see them from a different perspective.
Why am I even writing this? It’s my mother’s birthday today. It is only now when I became a mother, too, that I am able to see her as a woman, a mother, a person. Only now I do understand her worrying about us, some of her advice, sacrifice she made…..
I made this Peanut Butter Pie with Pretzel Crust for My Mom’s Birthday, and completely butchered the thing while taking pictures. That’s another thing that always happens in a food blogger’s home – you never get a dessert that doesn’t already have a slice or bite or something taken out of it. Fortunately, my family had already got used to it.
Mom, I wish you a happy birthday! I love you very much !!
A pie with pretzels, peanut butter, cream cheese and chocolate - a combination of crunchy and creamy, sweet and salty.... it sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?
Ingredients
- 3 cups of ground pretzels, (about 6-7 cups whole pretzels, you can ground these until they are crumbs or leave them a bit thicker for more of a toffee bark texture) , plus more for decoration about 1/4 cup
- 1 cup butter, melted
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 1/4 cup milk chocolate chips
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- 1 1/4 cup peanut butter, crunchy (I used crunchy for texture)
- 1 1/4 cup powdered sugar, sifted
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 12 oz Cool Whip (you can use lite)
- Reese's Mini Peanut Butter Cups for decoration
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, combine the crust ingredients with a fork until evenly moistened.
- Lightly coat the bottom and sides of an 9-inch springform pan with non-stick cooking spray.
- Pour the crumbs into the pan and, using the bottom of a measuring cup or the smooth bottom of a glass, press the crumbs down into the base and all the way up the sides.
- Bake for about 10 minutes, and then sprinkle chocolate chips over the bottom of the crust.
- Bake for an additional 5 minutes before removing from oven.
- Once removed, using a spatula, spread the melted chocolate chips to evenly coat the bottom and side of the pretzel crust with a thin layer of chocolate.
- Allow chocolate to completely cool in refrigerator before filling.
- Beat cream cheese and peanut butter together until light and fluffy.
- Beat in vanilla and powdered sugar until well combined, scraping down sides of the mixing bowl as necessary.
- Then gently fold in 2 cups or half of the cool whip tube.
- This should result in a light and fluffy texture.
- Pour the peanut butter filling evenly in the deep dish.
- Spread the remaining cool whip over peanut butter filling.
- Crush some reese's peanut butter cups and place together with ground pretzels around the outside of the pie in a circle.
- Place some whole and sliced peanut butter cups in the middle to form a pile.
- Keep refrigerated or frozen.
Notes
Very good ideas and recipes!
So I am not sure what all of the fuss is about. I made this and everyone in my home was happy, even me and I don’t really care for peanut butter.
I did alter the recipe slightly. I used 2 1/2 cups of crushed pretzel’s with about 18 tbs of butter, probably only needed about 13 tbs, and 1/4 a cup of brown sugar. I used simi-sweet chocolate chips around the entire crust not just the bottom. I have no idea of it made a difference but it was only in the freezer about 5 minutes so the chocolate was not set when. I added the peanut butter filling.
This is a thicker crust but I wouldn’t say pieces fly everywhere when you are eating it. I will put a disclaimer on her that I live at 9200 ft so altitude, and using natural gas may make a difference.