Homemade (No cooking necessary) Peanut Butter Fudge Pie

            I enjoy cooking (and baking) almost as much as I enjoy crafting.  Today I decided to make a favorite of Matt’s:  My Almost-Famous Peanut Butter Fudge Pie.  Anyone who’s tried the stuff has given me endless compliments and requested I make it again.  It’s one of the easiest recipes in the world and is so simple to make… in fact it doesn’t even require baking if you use a ready-crust.  I’ll post the recipe and pictures of how to make the pie for yourself, but first a little extra description.

This pie can be modified very easily.  I’ve made it with hand-whipped whipped cream, crumbled Reese’s crumbled on top, as well as with a homemade cookie crumb crust (also easy and I’ll post the recipe below for that too).  Feel free to modify as you like, but for the sake of simplicity, I put the easiest and quickest method below.

Step 1:  Measure out 1 cup of sugar and one package (8 oz) of cream cheese (softened) into a large mixing bowl.

Mix with a hand mixer on medium speed until well blended and fluffy.

Step 2:  Add ½ cup of creamy peanut butter to the cream cheese mixture. 

 Blend on medium with hand mixer until well combined and honey-colored.

Step 3:  Increase the speed on your hand mixer to medium high and add 1 tsp vanilla mixing until thoroughly combined.

Step 4:  Add ½ of a container of cool whip (or whipped cream, if you’re feeling froggy) and blend on medium-high speed until well blended.

Add the remaining cool whip and continue mixing on medium high until a light beige color is reached and everything is thoroughly combined.

Step 5:  Add the mixture to the pie crust.

Spread the mixture (it will be thick) all around the pie crust up to the edges.

Step 6:  Heat your hot fudge until liquid-like consistency is reached.  

Using a knife to control the flow, drizzle the fudge across the pie in whatever pattern you desire.

Bonus!!!  If you want to make a pretty, marbled pie, just run a butter knife back and forth through the top layer of pie and fudge.  Then run the knife up and down.  If you want, add crumbled Reese’s cups to the top of this.

Step 7:  Refrigerate at least 2 hours, or until pie is firm.  Serve cold and enjoy!  

Check out below for a simple, easy to print version of the recipe as well as a recipe for a homemade crumb crust.

Peanut Butter Fudge Pie

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

½ cup creamy peanut butter

1 tsp vanilla

1 container cool whip (or whipped cream)

Oreo or chocolate cookie crust

Hot Fudge Topping

Directions:

1.       With an electric mixer, mix together sugar and cream cheese on medium speed until fluffy.

2.     Add peanut butter and blend until honey-colored.

3.     Increase blender speed to medium-high and add vanilla, mixing well.

4.    Add whipped topping one half at a time and blend until creamy.

5.     Smooth filling into pie crust.

6.     Heat hot fudge then drizzle over pie filling.  Using a butter knife, swirl fudge back and forth and side to side to create marbling.

7.     Refrigerate at least 2 hours, or until firm.  Serve cold.

Cookie Crust

Ingredients:

30 Oreo cookies, or 10 chocolate graham crackers (finely crushed)

4-6 Tbsp butter, melted

1 Tbsp sugar (if using graham crackers)

Directions:

1.      Heat oven to 325^o F.

2.     In a medium bowl, combine cookie crumbs and 4 Tbsp butter (and sugar if necessary).  Mix crumbs until moistened.  Add more butter if needed.

3.     Add crumbs to an 8” pie pan or dish.  Using your fingers, press crumbs into bottom of pan and up the sides so that no holes show.

4.    Bake crust 8-10 minutes.  Let crust cool completely.