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Sweet, buttery, salty, and oh so creamy, this Vintage Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie is not your average pie! The crust is a mix of salty pretzels, sweet brown sugar, and a bit of butter. The cream filling is made with plenty of chocolate, cream cheese, peanut butter, heavy cream, vanilla, and a touch of sugar. The crust is topped with a layer of chocolate fudge, then the peanut filling is spooned over the chocolate. Just before serving the pie is topped with mountains of whipped cream and a heavy dusting of cocoa powder. Trust me, this peanut butter pie is extra special. Every bite is sweet, salty, creamy, and heavy on both the chocolate and the peanut butter. The perfect pie for any time of year.
Special Tuesday pie for you guys! But don’t worry, this is an EASY pie. And yes, I know I missed pie day last week (March 14th), but hey, better late than never. And trust me, you’re going to want this pie no matter what day it is.
It’s classic, almost “retro”, and 100% feels like a pie my grandma would have made. Though without a doubt, hers would have some cool whip…mine does not. But promise it’s still as easy as can be. It’s such a great pie for Easter in less than two short weeks!
I’m going to jump right into things today because well, it’s peanut butter chocolate pie! We need the recipe, not my rambling…though I’ve got a little of that too.
The process
What I love about this pie is that it’s easy, no fuss, and anyone can make it.
The crust, it’s made with pretzels, brown sugar, and butter. Sooo, it’s salty, sweet, and buttery. It requires no rolling out or chilling of the dough. Just mix, press the dough into a pie plate, and bake it. The crust gets toasted until golden and lightly browned, giving it a bit of a nutty browned butter flavor. Meaning it is perfectly delicious.
If you have a food processor, this makes very quick work of mixing the crust. If not, no worries at all, just crush the pretzels in a bag (you can even just step on the bag). Then just mix the crust together in a mixing bowl. Do whatever option works best for you.
While the crust is baking, I like to make the chocolate fudge, which isn’t traditional in a peanut butter pie, but since my crust doesn’t use any chocolate cookies, you knew I’d have to include some chocolate somewhere. A little fudge seemed like a good idea. It’s just chocolate, coconut oil, and cream melted together. I spread the chocolate over the pretzel crust, then let it set up before adding the peanut butter filling.
Onto the peanut butter filling
I used cream cheese to keep things thick and creamy, but I wanted this peanut butter pie to be a little looser than most. To do this, I added heavy cream to create more of a whipped peanut mousse texture. So there’s thick cream on the edges, but while the pie sits on your plate, the center of the cream slowly softens into a bit more of a peanut mousse.
And it is so DELICIOUS. You get the best of both worlds. Thick and creamy edges, then a light and creamy center…with a fudgy layer of chocolate underneath!
The cream on top!!
Most peanut butter pies are topped with a chocolate drizzle, but I wanted to do something a little creamier. So, I made a simple vanilla whipped cream and dusted the top as you would a classic tiramisu…with lots of cocoa powder and chocolate shavings.
Again, not classic, but delicious.
Every bite of this pie is filled with sweet peanutty and chocolate flavors with just the right amount of saltiness throughout. And the whipped cream on top is that final extra special touch that really elevates this peanut butter pie above others. Trust me, I know this is a little different, but it’s different in a very delicious way. And it still feels like the pie grandma would make…just maybe a tiny bit better.
Looking for a sweet treat for spring or Easter? This is your pie. Honestly though…it’s really good any time of year!
Looking for other Easter dessert recipes? Here are a few to try:
Soft and Crinkly Brown Sugar Peanut Butter Cookies
Coconut Pecan Caramel Butter Cake
Lastly, if you make this Vintage Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Vintage Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie
Servings: 10
Calories Per Serving: 617 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Crust
- 2 cups mini salted pretzels
- 6 tablespoons salted butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
Filling
- 6 ounces semi-sweet or dark chocolate, chopped
- 2 teaspoons coconut oil
- 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 3/4 - 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
- 2 cups, plus 1 tablespoon heavy cream
- 1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon, plus 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- cocoa powder, for dusting (optional)
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Grease an 8 or 9 inch tart pan with a removable bottom or use a standard pie plate. 2. To make the crust. In a food processor, pulse together the pretzels, butter, and brown sugar until the pretzels are fine crumbs. Press the mix into the prepared pie plate. Bake 8 minutes, until golden. 3. Meanwhile, combine the chocolate, 1 tablespoon cream, and the coconut oil in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave, stirring every 45 seconds, until melted. Carefully spread the melted chocolate onto the bottom of the crust and gently up the sides. Chill in the freezer for 10-15 minutes. 4. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar on high speed, until very smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the peanut butter and beat until combined. Slowly add the 1 1/4 cups heavy cream, 1/4 cup at a time until incorporated. Add the vanilla and whip on high spread until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes. Spoon the peanut cream into the chilled crust. Cover and chill 1 hour.5. Using an electric mixer, whip 3/4 cup heavy cream, 1-2 tablespoons powdered sugar, and 1 teaspoon vanilla together until soft peaks form. Dollop cream onto the pie. Dust generously with cocoa powder just before serving. Pie will keep for up to 4 days in the fridge.
This was SO delicious and rich – it was a huge hit. We didn’t have all the appropriate ingredients so we made some modifications and it still worked great. We used cool whip instead of making our own – great substitute in a pinch – and microplaned a chocolate bar over the top instead of cocoa powder. We also were short a 1/4 cup of heavy cream for the filling, but it still tasted great. Lastly, for the crust, it wasn’t solidifying at all once it had cooked. We decided to chill it in the freezer before putting the chocolate over the top which worked wonderfully. Not sure if the pretzels weren’t ground fine enough, but it made the work easier! I’ll definitely be making this again, it was SO good.
Hey Marissa,
So great to hear! Love that this recipe was enjoyed and thanks so much for making it! Have a great week? xTieghan
This is absolutely incredible! One of by kids crushed pretzels in a bag for me, and I think because of that my crust was a little bit more delicate in places than it would have been if I had used a food processor (depriving her of the fun of smashing pretzels with a rolling pin!). I didn’t risk spreading the chocolate up the sides of the crust, but the pie is still outrageously good. Beautiful as well! Thank you!
Hey Julie,
So great to hear! Love that this recipe was enjoyed and thanks so much for making it! Have a great week? xTieghan
Seriously so delicious! I was a little lazy and used a graham cracker crust because it was what I had on hand. I followed everything else in the recipe and everyone loved it. The peanut butter layer is perfect. I can’t wait to make it again!
Hey Catherine,
Thank you so much for giving this recipe a try, I am delighted that it was enjoyed!! Have a great weekend! xTieghan
Thinking of putting the crusts in mini muffin pan to make “bite-sized” version of this for a group gathering. Thoughts???
Hey Doug,
I think that would be a super fun idea! I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
This pie rocks!
Thanks so much Patti! xTieghan
Really delicious.. Definite keeper! How can it miss with these favorite flavors ♥️♥️ i used the low range of sugar in the peanut butter filling and the whipped cream because i prefer less sweet.. It was perfect. . I struggled spreading the fudge layer thin enough . It simply wouldn’t liquify sufficiently for easy spreading. Still very delicious but quite a hard thick layer to cut through. Any tips? I used the microwave instead of my usual double boiler approach .. Thank you for your passion and creativity. So fun!
Hey there,
Thanks so much for trying this recipe, I am so glad it was enjoyed! For the fudge, I would highly recommend a different brand of chocolate, I like to use Chocolove! I hope this helps! xTieghan
I am torn which of your cookbooks to purchase. Is this recipe in one of them or are these new recipes that are not included in the books?
Hey Lauri,
Any of the recipes that you see online will not be in either cookbook, the recipes in the cookbooks are exclusive to the books. They both have a variety of recipes, the main difference is Super Simple is filled with super easy/quick recipes. I hope this helps! xTieghan
Made this for Easter & it is absolutely delicious and easy! A keeper for sure!
Hey Cyndee,
Happy Monday! It’s so great that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for giving it a go! xTieghan
Hi Tieghan! I made this pie this weekend and it was delicious! I had trouble getting my crust to stay together. It completely fell apart when I went to serve it. It was still delicious though-any thoughts?
Hey Katy,
Thanks for giving the recipe a try, so sorry to hear about your crust. Was there anything you may have adjusted in the recipe? Let me know how I can help! xTieghan
THIS WAS SUCH A HIT THIS EASTER! Thank you so much for an awesome recipe! I too, like others had the chocolate “seized” up on me. I used Hershey’s semi-sweet chocolate and had this happen. I was not sure if It was waiting 45 seconds or from the heavy cream. The second time, I slowly heated the chocolate w/ the coconut oil and voided the cream and it worked out! Prepped and assembled everything the night before, minus the whipped cream which I did several minutes before serving. This was a total hit – even with gluten-free pretzels! I have already have been begged to make it again soon. Thanks Tieghan!
Hey Melissa,
Happy Monday! It’s so great that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for giving it a go! xTieghan
Hi Tieghan!
If I put the whip cream on early (like 30min before serving) will it still hold up in the refrigerator? I plan to take this to Easter but don’t want it to look frumpy by the time we get there.
Hey Danielle,
Yes, that is perfectly fine to do! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know how it turns out! xTieghan
Made it and the peanut butter mousse is to die for!
Hey Joan,
I am delighted that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for giving it a try! Happy Easter ?Tieghan
Do you prefer to use the dark or semi sweet chocolate ?
Hey Meagan,
I love using dark chocolate. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Can’t wait to try. Is heavy whipping cream the same as the whipping cream that’s called for in the recipe?
Hey Jennifer,
Yes that will work just the same. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
This was absolutely amazing! I used gluten free pretzels and I think this crust will be my new “go to” gluten fre substitute for tarts and pies. This was the perfect deliciousl combination of sweet and salty. I used butter and guittard chocolate chips and they melted perfectly. I”m already looking forward to when I can make this again!
Hey Victoria,
I am thrilled this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for giving it a try! ?xTieghan