Friday Pie-Day: Peanut Lover Pie

We have ourselves another family favorite! Of the 61 different pies we’ve made over the last 5 years, this makes the top 5. 

It takes a little time and effort, but it can be made in advance and frozen.

Also, there are nuts in it. Lots and lots and lots of peanuts! So don’t make or eat this if you have a peanut allergy. This pie is for those of us with a peanut obsession (aka my entire extended family).

First, the ingredients. Not too difficult. Let’s move on.

This was my first time using a food processor. I think I’m in love. If I had left it on a little longer, these honey roasted peanuts would have turned into peanut butter!

It was also (surprisingly) my first time making a graham cracker crust! It is just so much easier to buy them usually, but adding peanuts to the graham crackers was a worthwhile investment of my time.

This experience was much better than when I tried to make a crust for my Oreo pie several years ago!

I couldn’t stop photographing this gorgeous crust, and I also can’t believe how simple it was to make!

By the way, throughout the entire crust-making process, I had the chocolate ice cream carton sitting out on the counter getting soft.

These are all the ingredients you need for the filling! (Yes, I finished that jar of peanut butter.)

I worried needlessly about mixing peanut butter with ice cream – the melted ice cream absorbed its counterpart easily.

It doesn’t even look like ice cream anymore, does it? Looks more like a chocolate peanut butter milkshake…

Take the pie crust out of the freezer, where it has gotten firm for the last 30 minutes, and pour half the filling into the crust. Then refreeze the pie and the other half of the filling (still in the bowl).

Meanwhile, chop up some peanut butter cups! (These were leftover from Christmas.)

I chopped each one into eighths.

Set aside the best looking ones, about a third of them, and place all the others as the middle layer of the pie! (after it’s had an hour in the freezer)

Then while the pie is freezing for half an hour, take out the ice cream mixture bowl and let it melt a little. Spoon it over the pie, remembering that the pie will be very full and almost overflowing. (That’s the way we like it!)

This is what 2 more hours in the freezer will do to it! Note the garnishes I had ready to sprinkle on top.

Peanuts all the way through – crust, filling, and even topping!

But wait, there’s more! A little peanut butter mixed in with caramel, anyone? I heated it for 30 seconds in the microwave.

My family tried to be patient with me as I garnished each of the plates with this delicious (and sticky) peanut caramel sauce.

And then as I placed a slice of pie on each plate.

And then as I garnished each slice of pie with more peanut caramel sauce.

Some descriptive words I heard while we were all digging in were, “rich,” “delicious,” “favorite,” and “oh yeah!”

Compared with our peanut butter cup pie, I'd say this is a little more work but a lot more peanutty and delicious! Even with all the freezing times, I would classify this as an easy pie to make. I love that you can prepare it in advance. And the taste is well worth the effort!

 

Peanut Lover Pie (recipe from Taste of Home)

6 T. honey-roasted peanuts, divided

1½ cups graham cracker crumbs

7 T. butter, melted

3 pints chocolate ice cream, softened

1 cup plus 1 T. peanut butter, divided

¾ cup coarsely chopped peanut butter cups, divided

½ cup caramel ice cream topping

1. Chop 1 T. of peanuts; set aside. Place remaining peanuts in a food processor; cover and process until ground. In a small bowl, combine ground nuts, cracker crumbs, and butter. Press onto the bottom and up the sides of an ungreased 9-inch pie plate. Freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.
2. In a large bowl, combine ice cream and 1 cup peanut butter until blended. Spoon half into crust. Return remaining ice cream mixture to freezer. Cover and freeze pie until almost firm, about 1 hour.
3. Sprinkle with about two thirds of the chopped peanut butter cups. Freeze for 30 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, resoften remaining ice cream mixture. Spread over peanut butter cups (pie will be very full). Cover and freeze for at least 2 hours or until almost firm.
5. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts and remaining chopped peanut butter cups. Cover and freeze until firm, about 1 hour longer.
6. Remove from freezer 15 minutes before serving. Combine caramel topping with remaining peanut butter; drizzle some over dessert plates. Top with a piece of pie; drizzle with remaining caramel mixture.

Friday Pie-Day: Peach Raspberry Pie

Delightfully cool and fresh, this pie was the perfect way to say farewell to summer. The good news is you can take steps to simplify this process and enjoy it year round!

Friday Pie-Day: Strawberry Key Lime Pie

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The fresh berries blended beautifully with the zesty lime taste to create a culinary masterpiece.

I’ve made a key lime pie and a strawberry pie, but this marriage was a match made in heaven.

Friday Pie-Day: Banana Split Pie

Confession: I have never before eaten a banana split. However, THIS PIE… I have assembled and partaken, and people must be on to something. Maybe one day I will eat a banana split, but until then, this pie will have to do.

Of the 49 different pies I've made in the past 4 years, this was one of the funnest pies to put together. There were so many layers, but they were all so simple. Also, since this pie is frozen, it is easy to make in advance.

Friday Pie-Day: Peppermint Snow Pie

Have you ever wanted to indulge in some peppermint Oreo bark, but in a pie form? Well, look no further; this is the recipe for you!

I made a few mistakes while I was making it, so I will share them with you so you won’t mess up like I did. (I think it still turned out great though!)

Friday Pie-Day: Grasshopper Pie

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Friday Pie-Day: French Silk Pie

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Friday Pie-Day: Peanut Butter Cup Pie

Chocolate plus peanut butter equals heaven. And in pie form? Even better. And the fact that this is so easy to throw together and make ahead of time makes this an ideal dessert for any occasion year round.

In fact, why not make 2 like we did? These are the only ingredients you will need! (The recipe below is for 1 pie.)

Friday Pie-Day: Pumpkin Pie

Autumn is such a wonderful time of year, especially when October rolls around. Unfortunately in Florida, we don’t experience the leaves or weather of the season, so we have to take fall where we can… hence this pie! (Check out all our family's pies since 2010!)

Friday Pie Day: Watermelon Pie

Without a doubt, this is the weirdest pie we have ever made. And we have made a lot of pies – 43 to date! 

I wouldn’t say it was bad; it was just extremely odd. It definitely tasted like watermelon… maybe it was the texture that threw us off.

Friday Pie-Day: Pineapple Paradise Pie

Put on your tropical shirts and get your tastebuds ready for this beauty – pineapple paradise pie!

We made this in 2011 as our pie of the month. (Aren’t my grandparents adorable?)

You don’t need many ingredients, and it is not very labor-intensive. But it is quite yummy!

Friday Pie-Day: Fresh Strawberry Pie

Here is a very simple recipe for a fresh summery pie! Unfortunately, this was our June pie of the month way back in 2010, so the pictures aren’t that great, but it’s super easy to make!

Friday Pie-Day: Peanut Butter Pie

Another classic pie of the month (we made this in 2011), and this is a favorite, knowing our family’s love for peanut butter!

Friday Pie-Day: Black Forest Freezer Pie

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When I saw this beautiful pie in my Taste of Home pies book, I knew we had to make it! We finally got around to it March 2012 (last year) for our pie of the month, and this double-layered pie was so fun to make and very tasty!

Friday Pie-Day: Key Lime Pie

The real adventure with this pie started a couple weeks before we made it in March 2010. 

The key lime tree in our front yard was sagging with the weight of fruit, and I wanted to make sure it would still be fresh.